The Mac Studio is a compelling machine in Apple's Mac lineup. It's targeted at professionals in a studio environment and provides flexibility that content creators can appreciate.

Like the Mac mini, the Mac Studio is a compact computer that packs stellar performance for its price, and there are many reasons to consider it as your next computer.

1. The Modular Design

The Mac Studio features a modular design, meaning you will have to supply your own display, keyboard, camera, and mouse. This allows you to customize your setup to your liking.

The Mac Studio can connect to just about any external monitor with an HDMI or Thunderbolt port, but Apple's own Studio Display is the perfect 5K display for this machine.

Its compact form factor is a huge selling point for this computer, as it allows you to easily transport it from one location to another. Apple has designed it in a way that doesn't take up much space on your desk—the machine looks like two Mac minis stacked on top of each other.

2. Packs Apple's Most Powerful Chips

The Mac Studio features two chips to choose from: the M2 Max and the M2 Ultra. The M2 Ultra is essentially two M2 Max chips fused together to deliver unprecedented performance without facing the limitations that come with increasing the die size.

You can configure the M2 Max variant with a 30-core or a 38-core GPU. As for the M2 Ultra configurations, you can get the Mac Studio with either a 60-core or 76-core GPU depending on your power requirements.

When it comes to memory and storage configurations, you can spec the Mac Studio with up to 192GB of unified memory and up to 8TB of storage. However, if you need 192GB of RAM, you need to get the M2 Ultra chip since a single M2 Max chip only supports up to either 64GB or 96GB of memory, depending on which M2 Max you pick.

Both the M2 Max and M2 Ultra chips offer moderate improvements over the previous generation M1 versions. In an Apple Newsroom post, the company claims that the M2 Ultra has a 20 percent faster CPU and a 30 percent faster GPU than the M1 Ultra. The Neural Engine inside the M2 Ultra is also up to 40 percent faster.

With all the CPU and GPU cores included in Apple's high-end chips, the Mac Studio can handle almost any professional work you need to complete without breaking a sweat.

3. The Price Is Compelling

The Mac Studio comes in at a surprisingly reasonable starting price of $1,999. That model comes with the M2 Max chip, 32GB of memory, and 512GB of storage. The Mac Studio's M2 Ultra configuration starts at $3,999 and packs 64GB of unified memory and 1TB of storage.

The Mac Studio sits above the M2 Pro Mac mini while giving the $6,999 Mac Pro a run for its money in the value department. For the price of either the base model or high-end model, you get stellar performance that can handle demanding workflows such as 4K video editing, photo editing, app development, music creation, and more.

However, one should only consider purchasing the M2 Ultra version if their workflow can benefit from the performance.

4. Versatile I/O

The Mac Studio offers a generous amount of ports. The desktop comes with four Thunderbolt 4-enabled USB-C ports on the back and two regular USB-C ports on the front.

However, if you get the Mac Studio with the M2 Ultra, the two USB-C ports on the front are Thunderbolt 4-enabled as well. The Mac Studio also features an SDXC card slot on the front that should please all content creators.

In addition to those ports, the Mac Studio also features 10 Gigabit Ethernet, two USB-A ports, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and an HDMI port. The headphone jack supports high-impedance headphones like the M2 Pro MacBook Pros and M2 MacBook Airs.

As you can tell by now, the port selection on the Mac Studio won't be a limiting factor at all, as it offers multiple forms of connectivity for peripherals such as displays, storage devices, and more.

A High-End Desktop Mac for Professional Use

The Mac Studio is a computer aimed at professionals who want a compact, capable machine that they can easily move around in a studio or workspace. Even the base model provides incredible performance at a compelling price—it's like a Mac mini on steroids.

So, if you need the most powerful compact Apple silicon Mac available, the Mac Studio is it. However, if you're looking to purchase the Mac Studio and Studio Display as a replacement for your iMac, you may want to reconsider.