New Mac mini and more now available from Amazon for launch day pre-order [Updated

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Update August 27, 2026: The new Mac Studio is also now available for pre-order on Amazon. Apple surprised us with some big Mac news today, including a new lineup of Mac Studio and Mac mini models. If you’re in the market for some of today’s new Apple gear, you now have the choice to pre-order from Amazon as well.

Buy Mac mini from Amazon Buy Mac Studio from Amazon. New Mac mini and more now available from Amazon for launch day pre-order [Updated]. Apple announces iPhone 18 Pro and foldable iPhone Ultra event: ‘Surprise and shine’ Zac Hall Aug 26 2026.

Apple this week announced a new Mac Studio with the M5 Max and M5 Ultra chips, discontinuing the M4 Max and M3 Ultra models that had been on sale since March 2025. The machine’s design is unchanged for a fifth consecutive year, with all of the upgrades being internal.

The table below details everything that changed regardless of whether you choose a Max or an Ultra chip. The two tables that follow break down the differences within each tier.

What Changed Across Both Models Here’s everything that differs between the 2025 and 2026 ‌Mac Studio‌ irrespective of configuration: ‌Mac Studio‌ (2025) ‌Mac Studio‌ (2026) Baseline SSD read and write speeds Next-generation SSD architecture built on PCIe Gen 6, with up to twice the read and write speeds Wi-Fi 6E (802.11ax) Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be) via the Apple-designed N1 chip Bluetooth 5.3 Bluetooth 6 Genlock over USB-C With the latest model, Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6 arrive on the ‌Mac Studio‌ for the first time, facilitated by the same N1 chip Apple introduced in the iPhone 17 lineup. Apple also says the new machine is made with 35% recycled content overall, including 100% recycled aluminum in the enclosure and 100% recycled rare earth elements in all magnets.

Mac Studio M4 Max vs. M5 Max Here’s everything that differs between the M4 Max and M5 Max configurations: ‌Mac Studio‌ (M4 Max, 2025) ‌Mac Studio‌ (M5 Max, 2026) M4 Max chip M5 Max chip 14-core CPU, configurable to 16-core, with 12 performance cores and 4 efficiency cores 18-core CPU with 6 super cores and 12 performance cores 32-core GPU, configurable to 40-core 32-core GPU, configurable to 40-core, with Neural Accelerators built into every core and enhanced shader cores Second-generation hardware-accelerated ray tracing Third-generation hardware-accelerated ray tracing Up to 546GB/s memory bandwidth Up to 614GB/s memory bandwidth 36GB unified memory with the 32-core GPU, or 64GB with the 40-core GPU (128GB option withdrawn in May 2026) 36GB unified memory with the 32-core GPU, or 48GB, 64GB, or 128GB with the 40-core GPU Weighs 6.1 pounds (2.74 kg) Weighs 6.0 pounds (2.7 kg) Now discontinued Starts at $2,499 The most immediately useful change is at the entry level.

The M4 Max started with a 14-core CPU and could be configured up to 16 cores, whereas the M5 Max has an 18-core CPU as standard with no CPU upgrade to buy. Apple has also changed its core architecture, dropping the performance and efficiency split in favor of 6 super cores and 12 performance cores.

The 1.2TB/s of bandwidth feeding that memory, which is 50% higher than before, and the Neural Accelerators for each GPU core, are among the key changes. How Big Are the Upgrades.

Apple’s own comparisons against the outgoing chips are heavily weighted toward AI and graphics. For the M5 Max against the M4 Max, Apple claims: Up to 3.9x faster LLM prompt processing in LM Studio Up to 3.5x faster text-to-image performance Up to 3x faster Magic Mask performance in Blackmagic Design DaVinci Resolve Studio Up to 1.9x faster basecalling for DNA sequencing in Oxford Nanopore MinKNOW Up to 50% faster graphics performance For the M5 Ultra against the M3 Ultra, Apple claims: Up to 4.3x faster text-to-image performance Up to 4x faster LLM prompt processing in LM Studio Up to 3.3x faster CopyCat ML training performance in Foundry Nuke Up to 1.8x faster graphics performance Up to 1.7x faster scene rendering performance in Maxon Redshift Up to 1.3x higher multithreaded CPU performance On either chip, tasks that use matrix multiplication can run three to four times faster thanks to new Neural Accelerators in each GPU core.

Apple no longer sells the M4 Max or M3 Ultra models, which became relatively poor value for money by the end of their run. The M4 Max cost $2,499 with a 14-core CPU and up to 64GB of memory.

For the same price, the M5 Max has an 18-core CPU, 614GB/s memory bandwidth, up to 128GB of memory, twice-fast storage, and Wi‑Fi 7. The M3 Ultra ended at $5,299 with a 96GB memory limit.

For $200 more, the M5 Ultra brings back 256GB and 512GB options and adds 50% more memory bandwidth. Current M4 Max and M3 Ultra owners generally do not need to upgrade after only 17 months.

Launch buyers paid $1,999 or $3,999, so replacing their machine now costs 25–38% more for the same design, ports, Ultra core limits, storage limit, and Media Engine. The main exception is AI-heavy work.

Local LLMs, on-device image or video generation, and demanding machine-learning tasks in applications like DaVinci Resolve or Nuke can benefit substantially from the new Neural Accelerators. The M5 Ultra’s 1.2TB/s memory bandwidth can also improve large-model token generation.