Apple Announces M3 Ultra—And Says Not Every Generation Will See an “Ultra” Chip
The M3 Ultra is a custom-designed system-on-a-chip (SoC) that combines two M3 Max chips with a silicon interposer, doubling the CPU cores, GPU cores, and Neural Engine cores. Apple has also added new features, such as Thunderbolt 5 support and up to 512GB of RAM, making it a more powerful option for high-end Mac Studio users. The decision not to include an M3 Ultra in every generation may be due to sales data indicating that the high-end models can't justify the cost and effort needed to design and manufacture a new chip.
- This strategic approach could have significant implications for Apple's pricing strategy, potentially allowing them to maintain higher profit margins on their flagship products.
- Will this trend of selective Ultra chip releases influence Apple's overall silicon development roadmap, leading to further optimization of resources and cost savings?