Apple has launched a new Mac mini with M6 and M5 Pro chips, along with a new Mac Studio lineup using M5 Max and M5 Ultra. New desktop range focuses on AI work, creative tasks, professional workflows and always-on computing.
Mac mini starts at $899 and offers M6 or M5 Pro. New model brings up to 4x faster AI performance, up to 2x faster graphics and storage, and up to 40 percent faster CPU performance compared with previous Mac mini generation.
Mac Studio targets professional users who need more power for AI modeling, 3D rendering, video editing and other demanding tasks. New M5 Ultra also brings a quad-die design and up to 512GB unified memory.
Apple Mac Mini and Mac Studio Specifications
| Specification | Mac Mini M6 | Mac Mini M5 Pro | Mac Studio M5 Max | Mac Studio M5 Ultra |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chip | Apple M6 | Apple M5 Pro | Apple M5 Max | Apple M5 Ultra |
| CPU | 12-core | Up to 18-core | Not specified | Up to 36-core |
| GPU | 12-core | Up to 20-core | Not specified | Up to 80-core |
| Neural Engine | Dual 16-core | Neural Accelerators in GPU cores | Not specified | Up to 32-core |
| Chip Process | 2nm | Not specified | Not specified | Quad-die design |
| CPU Performance | Up to 1.2x faster than M5; 2.4x M1 | Up to 40% faster than previous Mac mini CPU | Not specified | Up to 1.3x higher multithread performance than M3 Ultra |
| GPU Performance | Up to 30% faster than M5 in peak AI compute; up to 8x M1 | Up to 2x graphics performance vs M4 | Not specified | Up to 4.3x peak AI compute vs M3 Ultra |
| Unified Memory | Up to 32GB | Up to 64GB | Not specified | Up to 512GB |
| Memory Bandwidth | Up to 170GB/s | Up to 307GB/s | Not specified | Up to 1.2TB/s |
| Ray Tracing | Hardware ray tracing | Third-generation ray tracing | Not specified | Supported |
| AI Performance | Up to 4x vs M4 | Higher AI compute than previous Mac mini | Supports large on-device models | Up to 4.3x peak AI compute vs M3 Ultra |
| Wi-Fi | Wi-Fi 7 | Wi-Fi 7 | Not specified | Not specified |
| Bluetooth | Bluetooth 6 | Bluetooth 6 | Not specified | Not specified |
| Ethernet | 2.5Gb; 10Gb option | 2.5Gb; 10Gb option | Not specified | Not specified |
| Front Ports | 2x USB-C; headphone jack | 2x USB-C; headphone jack | Not specified | Not specified |
| Thunderbolt | 3x Thunderbolt 4 | 3x Thunderbolt 5 | Not specified | Not specified |
| Video Support | — | — | Not specified | Up to 33 streams of 8K ProRes at 30fps |
| Starting Price | $899 | Not specified | $2,499 | $5,499 |
| Main Target | AI, daily work, gaming, local AI | AI, video, 3D, development | Professional work | AI, 3D, video, large models |
Mac Mini With M6 Chip
M6 brings a 12-core CPU with two more cores than M5. Apple says CPU offers fast single-thread performance. M6 can reach up to 1.2x faster multi-thread performance than M5 and up to 2.4x faster performance than M1.
M6 also uses a 12-core GPU with a Neural Accelerator in each core. GPU supports hardware ray tracing and Dynamic Caching. Apple says M6 delivers up to 30 percent higher peak GPU compute for AI work than M5 and up to 8x performance of M1 in this area.
A dual 16-core Neural Engine provides up to 2x peak compute over M5 for on-device AI tasks. Mac mini with M6 supports up to 32GB unified memory with memory bandwidth up to 170GB/s.
Apple says Mac mini with M6 can deliver up to 4x faster AI performance and 2x faster graphics than Mac mini with M4. Storage performance can also reach up to 2x previous M4 model.
LLM prompt processing in LM Studio can reach up to 13.5x faster than Mac mini with M1 and up to 4.8x faster than M4. Spreadsheet calculation in Microsoft Excel can reach up to 2.3x faster than M1 and up to 1.5x faster than M4.
Gaming also gets a boost. Apple says ray-traced Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition performance can reach up to 2x that of Mac mini with M4.
Mac Mini With M5 Pro
Mac mini with M5 Pro targets users who need more computing power for video work, app development, 3D work, game development and AI tasks.
M5 Pro offers up to an 18-core CPU and 20-core GPU. GPU includes an enhanced shader core, third-generation ray tracing and Neural Accelerators across GPU cores.
Mac mini with M5 Pro supports up to 64GB unified memory and up to 307GB/s memory bandwidth. Memory capacity helps users run large local AI models, work with 3D scenes, edit ProRes RAW files and process large datasets.
Apple reports up to 8.5x faster LLM prompt processing in LM Studio than Mac mini with M2 Pro and up to 4x faster than M4 Pro.
Blender ray tracing can reach up to 4.5x faster than M2 Pro and up to 1.4x faster than M4 Pro. Affinity image processing can reach up to 2.1x faster than M2 Pro and up to 1.5x faster than M4 Pro.
Mac Mini Gets New Connectivity
New Mac mini models support Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6 and 2.5Gb Ethernet. A 10Gb Ethernet option is also available.
Front connectivity includes two USB-C ports and a headphone jack with support for high-impedance headphones.
M6 model has three Thunderbolt 4 ports, while M5 Pro model gets three Thunderbolt 5 ports. Thunderbolt 5 allows users to connect multiple Mac mini systems for larger AI workloads.
USB-C also supports genlock for synchronization between a display and camera, including iPhone 17 Pro.
Mac Studio With M5 Max and M5 Ultra
Apple has also refreshed Mac Studio with M5 Max and M5 Ultra chips. New desktop targets developers and professional users who need high performance for AI modeling, 3D rendering, video editing and other demanding work.
Mac Studio with M5 Ultra uses a quad-die design based on two dual-die M5 Max chips connected through UltraFusion. Apple calls M5 Ultra its most powerful chip to date.
M5 Ultra offers up to 36 CPU cores, 80 GPU cores and 32 Neural Engine cores. Apple says M5 Ultra can deliver up to 4.3x peak AI compute compared with M3 Ultra.
M5 Ultra also includes twice as many video encode and decode blocks. This allows support for up to 33 streams of 8K ProRes video at 30fps at once.
Memory support reaches up to 512GB unified memory with bandwidth up to 1.2TB/s. This gives Mac Studio enough memory capacity for large AI models, datasets and video workflows.
Apple says M5 Ultra reaches up to 1.25x higher single-thread performance and up to 1.3x higher multi-thread performance than M3 Ultra.
AI Becomes Main Focus
AI is a major focus across new Mac desktop range. Mac mini can serve as an always-on device for local AI agents, while Mac Studio can handle larger AI models and demanding professional workflows.
Multiple Mac mini systems can also work together through Thunderbolt 5 for larger AI workloads. This gives developers and businesses another option for running AI models locally.
Mac Studio with M5 Ultra targets users who need more memory and compute for AI modeling. Up to 512GB unified memory and 1.2TB/s memory bandwidth can help with large local models and datasets.
macOS 27 and Apple Intelligence
New Mac mini works with macOS 27 and next-generation Apple Intelligence features. Siri AI can help users find information across messages, emails and photos, answer questions and perform tasks across apps.
Siri AI also connects with Spotlight and systemwide context menus. Users can ask about content on screen through Visual Intelligence.
Apple Intelligence also adds AI tools to Safari, Shortcuts and Photos. New system changes focus on performance, search and interface updates.
Mac Mini and Mac Studio Pricing
Mac mini starts at $899, which makes new model $100 more expensive than previous generation.
Mac Studio with M5 Max starts at $2,499, while M5 Ultra version starts at $5,499.
Apple says new Mac mini is available for pre-order, with availability starting September 22.
Mac Mini vs Mac Studio
Mac mini with M6 is aimed at users who want a compact desktop for daily work, AI tasks, gaming and local AI agents. M5 Pro version adds more CPU, GPU and memory capability for professional workloads.
Mac Studio with M5 Max and M5 Ultra targets users who need higher performance. M5 Ultra stands at top of lineup with up to 36 CPU cores, 80 GPU cores, 512GB unified memory and 1.2TB/s memory bandwidth.
Final Take
Apple’s new Mac desktop lineup puts AI performance at center. Mac mini with M6 brings faster CPU, GPU and Neural Engine performance in a compact desktop, while M5 Pro adds more memory and compute power for professional work.
Mac Studio with M5 Ultra moves performance further with its quad-die design, up to 80 GPU cores, 512GB unified memory and 1.2TB/s memory bandwidth.
With local AI support, AI agent workloads, video editing, 3D rendering, game development and large model support, new Mac lineup gives users more options across desktop computing.
