Mac Pro finally gets updated to Apple silicon, is 3X faster

Mac Pro finally gets updated to Apple silicon, is 3X faster

• News

The new Mac Pro features Apple's powerful M2 Ultra chip with PCI expansion.
Photo: Apple

Apple’s transition to its own silicon is finally complete with the launch of a new Mac Pro, which combines Apple’s powerful M2 Ultra chip with PCIe expansion.

The new Mac Pro features the “most powerful chip ever created for a personal computer,” and is up to 3x faster than the previous-generation Intel-based model.

Mac Pro with Apple silicon

The specs of the new M2 Ultra Mac Pro.
Photo: Apple

Sporting the same industrial design as its Intel-based predecessor, the new Mac Pro is based on Apple’s new M2 Ultra chip. It’s the “most powerful chip ever created for a personal computer,” said Apple’s Jennifer Munn, Director, Engineering Program Management, during its unveiling at WWDC23.

The machine features eight Thunderbolt 4 ports, two HDMI ports, six PCIe slots, and dual 10 Gigabit Ethernet ports. It also comes in a rack-mounted version.

The new chip features a 24-core CPU; a 76-core GPU; and a 32-core neural engine. It can be configured with a whopping 192-Gbytes of unified memory.

“It is a monster of a chip,” Munn added.

The ability to add so much unified memory is a key feature of the new chip.

“It enables the new Mac Pro to do things simply not possible before,” said Munn during Monday’s WWDC keynote.

Mac Pro connectivity

The new Mac Pro now features eight built-in Thunderbolt ports (twice as many as before) — six on the back and two on the top.

It has six PCI expansion slots, which allows customers to add all kinds of expansion cards, including audio and video IO, networking and storage. The PCI slots support Gen four, which is two times faster than before, Apple said.

Mac Pro completes transition to Apple Silicon

With the release of the new Mac Pro, Apple’s transition to its own custom-made chips is now complete.

“With Apple silicon, it’s remarkable how far we’ve taken the Mac in such a short amount of time,” said Apple CEO Tim Cook during the keynote. “It’s the best and most capable lineup in the history of the personal computer, and I couldn’t be more excited about its future.”

Mac Pro availability

The new M2 Ultra Mac Pro starts at $6,999 ($6,599 for education) and is available to order today from Apple’s website. The Rack Enclosure version starts at $7,499 ($6,999 for education).

The new machine will available in Apple’s retail store and authorized resellers next week, beginning Tuesday, June 13. Configure-to-order options are available on Apple’s website.