What to Know About the Newly Announced M1 Ultra Chipset

In 2020, Apple released the new M1 chipset, designed to provide ample processing power for creatives. A few days ago, in March of 2022, Apple announced its release of the M1 Ultra. They claimed this chipset stood alone as the most powerful processor on the planet. Find out how Apple accomplished this engineering feat, how the M1 Ultra may perform, and which devices have it.

According to TechRadar, Apple created the M1 Ultra by connecting two M1 Max chips. The pair of processors communicate with each other in a way that provides peak efficiency. Instead of just functioning as a computer’s CPU, the M1 Ultra works as an entire system-on-a-chip, including the CPU, GPU, RAM, and the media and storage engine.

Tom’s Guide highlighted some technical specifications of the M1 Ultra chipset for interested consumers:

The GPU alone includes 8,192 execution units, matching RTX 3080 specs. The company says their new processor will match the 3080’s performance and consume 200W less power. In simple terms, expect an all-in-one processor that’s about twice as powerful as the original M1 chipset. So far, reviewers haven’t had a chance to test the processor in person to see if it lives up to expectations.

Apple will start offering the M1 Ultra chipset on the Mac Studio. This new computer will go on sale on March 18th. The new Mac Studio with the M1 Ultra chip will retail for $3,999, though Apple will also offer cheaper workstation versions with the standard M1 chip. The Mac Studio monitor complements this computer and costs an additional $1600.

Right now, the latest Mac Studio computer appears to offer the only current device to include an M1 Ultra chip. Smaller or mobile devices probably can’t supply enough power to run this type of chipset right now.

Upon its release, the cheapest bundle that includes the Mac Studio with an M1 Ultra chip plus an M1 Studio monitor will cost $4,600. Many customers will probably pay even more than that for upgrades, such as adding extra storage. Prudent customers of high-end graphics machines like this will want to make sure that their purchases live up to their promises for a long time.

These customers will probably feel dissatisfied when they learn that AppleCare+ limits repairs for accidental damage to two claims per year. After all, one incident could damage multiple parts, thus exceeding this arbitrary limit. On the other hand, Upsie covers accidents without imposing any annual limit on the number of claims.

An Upsie extended warranty for Mac Studio computers gives customers a choice between two and three years of protection that includes these benefits:

Most people who already bought Mac computers with the M1 chip reported performance that exceeded their expectations. This new computer promises twice the power and energy efficiency. Still, the workstation and monitor will cost most purchases around $5,000, so they won’t want to leave its protection to chance. Choose an Upsie warranty for Mac computers, plus many other brands and kinds of electronics.