Should you really get the Mac Studio? – An average user’s opinion

Now that the initial hype from the launch of the new Mac Studio has somewhat died down and the early reviews are all in, I think we have enough information to answer the question, should I, I mean, should you get the Mac Studio?

Now if you aren’t familiar with what the Mac Studio is, Apple recently launched an all new desktop box which is basically a Mac Mini on steroids. It starts off with an M1 Max chip and maxes out with the new M1 Ultra chip which is basically two M1 Max chips fused together. It also adds front IO ports that include an SD card reader and supports up to five external displays.

Mac mini vs Mac Studio (How do they differ?)

So evidently the Mac Studio caters to those who want a powerful desktop computer. That being said, Apple does currently already have a powerful desktop computer, and no I’m not referring to the Mac Pro which has yet to receive Apple Silicon treatment.

I am referring to the M1 Mac mini which unlike previous versions has really been given a new lease of life by putting the M1 chip inside it. It really is quite mind blowing just how capable the M1 Mac mini is now even at its base configuration. 

While I don’t own an M1 Mac mini, I do own an M1 MacBook Pro which we know performs pretty much identically to the Mac Mini. The M1 chip literally soars through everything that I use it for including editing 4K YouTube videos in Final Cut Pro.

The Mac Studio however brings this experience to another level. While the mini maxes out at 16gb of memory, the Studio starts at 32gb of memory and comes with the superior M1 Max (not the Pro) chip. 

Where the mini previously had the most number of IO on an M1 Mac, the Mac Studio ups the game by including front USB-C or Thunderbolt 4 ports and an SD Card reader. Not to mention that while the Mac mini only supports two external displays, this has now been upped to five displays on the Mac Studio.

So who is the Mac Studio for?

Do not be mistaken, the introduction of the Mac Studio doesn’t suddenly make the mini a bad computer. Don’t forget all the rave reviews about the mini and how it has greatly improved the speed and capability of so many people’s workflows. 

It still is the same M1 Mac mini that blew everyone’s minds when it first came out and none of that has changed. The Mac Studio simply raises the performance ceiling and adds a bit more convenience, for nearly three times the price.

In my opinion, the Mac Studio is literally as the name suggests, for studio level work. The people who need that kind of power are the ones working with large quantities of professional grade media and data. The type where every extra minute saved in the process actually helps them save or earn more money.

For pretty much everything else (apart from gaming, but why would you?), the Mac Studio isn’t going to provide any meaningful improvement over what the M1 Mac mini already offers. For basic everyday tasks, they both perform pretty much identical thanks to having the same single core performance.

A case study: Is the Mac Studio for me? 

So as a decision making exercise, let’s take a look at my own workflow requirements. I primarily use my computers for managing my businesses which mostly involves spreadsheets, some web development and photo editing. All this is handled by a fully maxed out 2012 Mac mini in the office.

Along with that, running this channel mostly involves writing, web development and 4K video editing. I pretty much do all these things smoothly on my M1 MacBook Pro as well as some of the more administrative stuff on my 2012 Mac mini.

I also have a dedicated filming and editing setup that runs entirely off my M1 MacBook Pro which plugs into my monitor and microphone over a USB-C connection. I have however been thinking of having a fixed desktop setup for this hence my consideration between the Mac mini and the new Mac Studio. 

At almost twice the price however, I’ve had to question my need for such a powerful machine given that I haven’t even gotten near the limit of my M1 MacBook Pro. The additional money spent would at this point be frankly quite a waste and could easily be put to much better use. Because of this I decided that the Mac mini is really the more suitable machine for my usage.

Conclusion

So with that in mind, I actually might as well just continue using my MacBook Pro anyway instead of spending on an additional Mac mini. A fixed desktop setup for easy access to my filming/editing suite is still a tempting prospect but that’s another argument altogether. 

In any case, I’ve decided that I will not be getting the Mac Studio because it really is quite a lot more computer than what I actually need at this current moment. Maybe I’ll wait for the rumoured M2 Mac mini.