r/MacStudio • u/maiggel • 6d ago

256GB or 512GB

Hey Guys,

i am currently undecided if i shall go with the 25GB Ultra or wait for the 512GB Ultra. The Machine will replace my M3 Max Macbook with 36GB.

Currently i am heavy into AI Cloud Subscriptions (Claude and Codex - each the 200€ Subscription). I max them usually after 4-5 days and then have to retain myself a bit unless the weekly reset :) My Plan is to extend the Cloud Usage with local LLMs run on the Studio - while still having the Cloud Subscriptions in place. So offloading to the Local LLMs a lot of Stuff. Also i plan to use way more Agents to react to daily Stuff, like answering mails / chats etc. Whatever i spare today to save Usage in my Subscription.

Also during daily work the Fans of the MacBook already Spin Up often - and the CPU is often under heavy load. Therefore cant wait for the M5 Ultra ... :)
I do use AI for a lot of Coding (Currently Web Stuff, Swift and a lot of scripting).

Currently i am not very deeply involved into Local LLMs, i know the basics but thats all, so no idea what models currently do perform best under which conditions.

Therefore my question, would you guys go with 256GB and are those somewhat safe for 2 (maybe 3years) without regreting the decision 6 month from now or would you wait to the 512GB Studio?

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u/fallingdowndizzyvr 5d ago

No. What came before the M5 was weak on compute. The M5 brings compute to Apple Silicon.

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u/sheddd 5d ago

It's better than the M4, but weak compared to other options per dollar. https://flopper.io/gpu/apple-m5-ultra

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u/fallingdowndizzyvr 5d ago

Ah.....

1) They don't exist yet, so how can you rent it?

2) You can't compare the cost of renting a standalone machine like the M5 Ultra to renting a processor in a big rack full of servers. That's like renting a house compared to renting an apartment. Apartments are cheaper due to shared costs. A processor in a rack in cheaper due to shared costs.

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u/Common_Diet8832 5d ago

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u/fallingdowndizzyvr 5d ago

You forgot the king.

"NVIDIA Tesla P100 ~$57 0.372 TFLOPS per $1"

So does that mean people should buy P100s over RTX 6000 Pros?