eXtensions - Saturday 8 March 2025
By Graham K. Rogers
This week came in a rush, with a new M3 iPad Air; an iPad with A16 chip, but no AI; M4 MacBook Air (13" and 15"); and a new Mac Studio. Although the MacBook Air is highly attractive for home users and students, the Mac Studio stole the show and sowed some confusion with its chips. The standard version at a basic $1999 has a new M4 Max chip. The superfast version at $3999 has the M3 Ultra chip. Both have lots of chips and storage options plus memory configurations up to 512GB: all for a price.
As had been anticipated Apple released a number of new products this week, starting with an updated iPad, then followed with some fairly interesting Macs. These included a new MacBook Air with a nice color change and a slightly reduced price, followed by a brace of Mac Studio devices with somewhat different chip setups: M4 Max and M3 Ultra, with the latter now the most powerful Apple silicon in the lineup. It seems to me that the iconic Mac Pro has become an anachronism: impressive when you see it, but out of its time now.
Tim Cook had hinted about some of what was coming with the cryptical message, There's something in the Air, which harked back to the original announcement of the MacBook Air in January 2008 when Steve Jobs walked onto the stage carrying a manila envelope. Like others who were there, I knew that he never used a prop without it having significance (like the leather chair for the iPad announcement), but when the reveal came the MacBook Air was still a major surprise.
This latest iPad Air emphasises the difference between this and the top of the the range iPad Pro with the M3 chip instead of the M4. Chance Miller (9to5Mac) was the first link I saw to the news about this new product and he notes that the Magic Keyboard was also updated for the new device. The side view makes this look like a mini-iMac, but I do note that the left side (as you face the iPad) has the same charging port that the Magic Keyboard I use for the iPad Pro has, although the back support looks as if it is a little higher. Mine starts close to the speaker output, while the new one starts above this. Nonetheless this is an accessory that adds considerably to efficiency.
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Almost lost at the bottom of the press release for the iPad Air was an announcement for a new basic iPad with the A16 chip. Nathan Ingraham (Engadget) notes that this still does not have access to Apple Interlligence - not enough computing power, I would guess. Apple lauds the faster speed of this over the previous A13 Bionic chip, but it is a surprise that Apple did not take the opportunity to bring more of its lineup into the AI family, perhaps with the A17 Pro or M1 chip. Mind you with the price of the 11" model starting at 12,900 baht here ($599) it is a fairly good entry level device.
The MacBook Air has always been a good bet ever since it first appeared. The latest version announced this week continues this: a respectable product with a fairly good performance. These come in 13" and 15" versions, with several options regarding storage, memory et al. Adam Engst (TidBits) notes, however, that this update "nonetheless brings notable developments that make it a standout in Apple's lineup." He adds that, as well as the M4 chip, there is "a new 12-megapixel Center Stage camera that enhances video calls, and the capability to drive two external displays with the lid open".
We have lost the signature wedge shape now, but these have always been a good alternative. When I broke the screen of my last Intel MacBook Pro about 5 years ago, I needed something to work with as soon as possible. I picked up a basic MacBook Air in central Bangkok and was up and running within a couple of hours. It took a couple of weeks for the screen to be replaced on the MacBook Pro (my fault) but in that time, I hardly noticed the difference and came away most impressed with the MacBook Air. I had used different versions on test since it first appeared, but this longer acquaintance showed me what a good alternative this was (and is). I passed it on to a friend a couple of months after the MacBook Pro was returned - the 16GB of memory was useful of course as opposed to the basic 8GB of the MacBook Air - but as all new Macs now have 16GB this difference is less obvious these days.
The M4 MacBook Air starts at 34,900 baht here (including VAT), making it slightly cheaper (after taxes) than the basic US version ($999). That price is itself lower than the previous price for the equivalent model. While there are options for larger capacity disks and more memory, the 41,900 baht price of the MacBook Air with 2 more GPU cores (10 + 10 as opposed to 10 + 8 for the cheaper model) and 512GB storage instead of 256GB seems to be more of a bargain. The MacBook Air also now supports two screens which overcomes a limitation of the past models. However it still has only 2 Thunderbolt 4 ports and these are both on the left side as before. Andrew E. Freedman (Tom's Hardware) has a look at the new MacBook Air and quite likes this, commenting positively on the pricing, the performance and the new blue color. He notes that "Space gray, however, has been shown the door." There was another, subtle change to the design. Zac Hall (9to5Mac) reports that the Mute key in the Function key row, has been slightly redesigned as a speaker with a line through it. As Tim Hardwick (MacRumors) also explains, previously the mute key just showed a speaker, although the screen display had a speaker plus strikeout line.
Unsurprisingly, benchmark test results began to appear for the products, but the first was not the MacBook Air. Joe Rossignol (MacRumors) reports that figures for the iPad Air with the M3 chip are reasonable if unexciting: "the device has achieved an average multi-core CPU score of 11,605 so far" which is about what was expected as the M3 is already available in a number of devices. Rossignol notes, however, that "it will be more interesting to find out how much faster the M3 Ultra chip is compared to the M4 Max chip" (see below).
We have been waiting quite a long time for the Mac Studio to be updated and this week saw a major (if confusing) boost to the capabilities of this product. We are used to different chip specifications and capabilities, but when one chip is an M4 and the other M3, that is rare, if not unique. When the M3 is faster than the M4, that brings on a whole suite of questions, although the basic one, concerning speed is the most easily answered. The M4 here is the M4 Max; the faster configuration uses the M3 Ultra (the M3 Max chip times two). There is more. The M4 Max, starting at 69,900 baht ($1999), has a 14-core CPU and 32-core GPU, with 16-core neural engine. This comes with a basic 36GB unified memory and 512GB storage. That begs for an immediate upgrade. There are various options, with 1TB at 7,000 baht and up to 8TB for 84,000 baht. Up to 512GB memory can be installed (168,000 baht).
Both the M3 Ultra and M4 Max versions have 4 Thunderbolt 5 ports on the back, with 2 USB-A, HDMI, headphone jack and 10GB Ethernet. The front has 2 USB-C ports on the M4 or 2 Thunderbolt 5 ports on the M3 version; both have an SDXC card slot. The Mac Studio with the M3 Ultra chip starts at 139,900 baht ($3999) with 28-core CPU (20 performance cores and 8 efficiency cores), 60-core GPU and 32-core Neural Engine. It also has 96GB memory that can go up to 512GB (140,000 baht) and a basic 1TB SSD (up to 16TB, 161,000 baht). For another 52,500 baht the M3 Ultra chip could have 32-core CPU, 80-core GPU and 32-core neural engine. Commenting on the memory, David Snow (Cult of Mac) comments, "Perhaps most impressive is the M3 Ultra's memory capabilities. The chip supports up to an unprecedented 512GB of unified memory - over half a terabyte - making it the most high-bandwidth, low-latency memory ever available in a personal computer".
One question being asked is, Why is there no M4 Ultra? Joe Rossignol (MacRumors) along with other sources looks at the "mismatched" options, and citing an Apple source, we are told that "not every generation of M-series chips for Macs will include an "Ultra" chip" which implies that perhaps there will be no M4 Ultra. Rossignol then speculates as to what this might mean for the Mac Pro. As I comment above, perhaps the Mac Pro has become an anachronism. Much of the inside of the body is spare space. Perhaps by default the Mac Studio, which cannot be reconfigured or updated is the Mac Pro replacement. As everything is pre-configured into the SoC (system on a chip) the new generation Macs - the M3 Ultra has 184 billion transistors (Apple Press release) - cannot have the memory or storage replaced down the line. It used to be possible to replace some components on a motherboard. Those days have gone. The all-in-one construction, which other Macs have had for a number of years is more economical and reliable. When the Mac Studio was first released, it was clear to me that this was a new generation of Mac and there was probably little (if any) room for a Mac Pro, impressive as they are to look at.
Some benchmarks did arrive on Friday and while at first glance they seem to be close to the figures from the M4 Max, there are a number of caveats and footnotes to put the M3 Ultra in its proper context, Filipe Espósito (9to5 Mac) explains. Jowi Morales (Tom's Hardware) also made comments on these benchmarks. Like others he notes that the specifications of the cores are better on the M4 chips, but the M3 Ultra has far more GPU cores and this will make a considerable difference in real-world use. However Michael Simon (MacWorld) suggests that we hold off on the early benchmarks as he expects the true figures for the M3 Ultra to be far higher. He suggests that Geekbench 6 that was used for the tests is not suited to handling large CPUs, adding that "Geekbench appears to have issues when there are more than 16 performance cores".
It had been suspected that DeepSeek was acquiring its high performqnce chips via Singapore when sales to the country increased to unusual levels, but now Anton Shilov (TomsHardware) reports that arrests have been made. The 3 suspects have been arrested for fraud as they misrepresented who the chips were being delivered to. It may well be that these chips are being sourced from other countries too, so it would not be surprising if more news about how this setup was developed. I also wonder where a company in the People's Republic of China (PRC) is able to acquire the funds for such a venture.
When Nikon acquired RED last year I was intrigued. Both companies should be able to benefit from the merging, with improvements filtering down to the customer at some stage: video features in Nikon cameras for one possibility. Christopher Malcolm (FStoppers) reports that the combined company has teamed up with Vimeo, "to create the first-ever Vimeo Short Film Grant, presented by Nikon and RED." The project will "provide five filmmakers with $30,000 each in production funding to create a short film," adding the important point that this will also "pair them with industry mentors to help them execute their projects." There is more to this in the article, but there are other benefits for those 5 winners. It is nice to see industry giving something back to users.
This week saw the final episode of Prime Target which seemed to run out of steam and left me with a number of questions, particularly the questionable death of the Cambridge Master (head of college), played by Steven Rea, shot by Edward Brooks (Leo Woodall). Rea's character may have been the evil mastermind, but a summary execution was not an example of the justice that was needed, especially as other killers in the series were not brought to book. I also found the police procedures and public use of firearms unrealistic. Nonetheless, omitting a few problems, I enjoyed this series and look forward to more. I was interested to see this week that Paul F. Verhoeven (Guardian) had another look at the 1992 movie, Sneakers. I was reminded of this when I first saw Prime Target. Verhoeven suggests that some of the ideas covered in the movie may be "just the kind of cinematic vibe we need right now".
On Netflix I was much entertained (and educated) by a 4-part series, Toxic Town. Based on events in Corby, Northamptonshire (not far from where I lived) it looks at the pollution created by the end of the steel industry in the town and the subsequent effects on a number of mothers and their children who were born with defects. I particularly enjoyed the performances of Rory Kinnear who has a long list of film, TV and stage credits to his name, but recently played a particularly difficult prime minister in the Netflix series, The Diplomat. Also notable in Toxic Town was the talented Robert Carlyle (Trainspotting) and Aimee Lou Wood (playing Tracey Taylor) who sometimes plays vulnerable females, for example in Sex Education and in Living, opposite Bill Nighy. The children in the series are also worth mentioning and did a good job. As with many series or movies this did not follow the historic events exactly. To find out more, I downloaded the 299-page judgement and am working my way through that.
A future offering from Netflix (14 March) is a movie offering starring Millie Bobby Brown, Chris Pratt, and Stanley Tucci: The Electric State. This was reviewed by Peter Bradshaw (Guardian), who was not particularly pleased by this "bland and derivative sci-fi adventure", adding, "a laminated Spielberg/Lucas knockoff with bits of Toy Story and Guardians of the Galaxy". It is listed for the Thai Netflix service as arriving 14 March. The 2 trailers and 3 teasers have me intrigued; some silliness, but also some interesting lines. I shall watch it as I like most Sci-Fi movies or series, and I will make my own judgment. I am currently being entertained by a series that is a spinoff from a computer game. Halo has an interesting enough plot line, and plenty of action, although some of the dialogue is a bit weak. The aliens also look wrong (see Alien or Predator for how to do this right), but there is enough in the series to keep me entertained for now.
Also later this month, Apple will show its new series on Hollywood, The Studio, Ryan Christoffel (9to5Mac) reports, adding that next week there is also the release of Dope Thief to look forward to. The Studio, starring Seth Rogan (a plus), looks at the struggles of keeping a Hollywood studio alive. The trailer shows that there are a couple of interesting cameo appearances (Scorsese for example), but some of the acting in the trailer seems a little over the top: there is no need to shout so many lines. Apple did well with the behind-the-scenes look in The Morning Show, so I would use that as my creative reference when this comes out. That series has finished filming for Season 4, but there is as yet no date for its return to the small screen.
This week also sees the return of Formula 1: Drive to Survive, now in its 7th season. We will be able to see some more of the background to the significant changes, and the disagreements, that happened last season.
Graham K. Rogers teaches at the Faculty of Engineering, Mahidol University in Thailand. He wrote in the Bangkok Post, Database supplement on IT subjects. For the last seven years of Database he wrote a column on Apple and Macs. After 3 years writing a column in the Life supplement, he is now no longer associated with the Bangkok Post. He can be followed on X (@extensions_th). The RSS feed for the articles is http://www.extensions.in.th/ext_link.xml - copy and paste into your feed reader.
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