Well the $5'000 ultra can't even beat the $580 13900k, so harsh reality kicked in... I suppose they tried to up the core count etc but still single core performance wouldn't match 13900k and if the price skyrocketed then comparisons would be made with Epyc up to 192 cores... Even focusing the promotion on efficiency wouldn't work cause nobody cares for efficiency on a pro level machine.
A thought; how about an M2-Ultra, but multiple processors. Yes, the ultra, but 2, 4, or 8 of them?
Then maybe having the option to upgrade the processor later?
You do know that the Ultra is already two Max CPUs fused together, don't you? It also requires a 2 lb. heat sink for cooling. How do you plan on cooling multiple Ultra CPUs, which is already multiple Max CPUs? Apple doesn't know how to build the thing that would do better than the current Mac Pro. The problem is GPU performance. Apple Silicon can't compete in GPU with dedicated high performance cards that are offered in the Mac Pro. It would be an embarrassment to release a Mac Pro that caps out at 128GB of Memory when the Intel Mac Pro supports 1.5TB of Memory. And they are not going to release a Mac Pro with lower GPU performance due to Apple Silicon.
That is why Apple hasn't replaced it, and it is going on year 3 of their 2-year transition. They bit off more than they can chew.
As ambitious as Apple was with taking on their own silicon, there are bound to be delays and changes. But one thing that isn’t going away is commitment to the course. Apple silicon is just a newborn baby at this point. M1 and m2 are great first steps. Let’s see what m3 is like. The die shrink alone will alleviate any cooling issues - which pale in comparison to Intels cooling issues. Apple over engineered the cooling system for the ultra. And that’s s good thing. Lots of overhead.
Cooling won’t be an issue for Mac Pro, nor will graphical power. One Extreme exceeds the power of the nest dedicated cards. the tech combining SOCs is nascent. The ultra, as powerful as it is, doesn’t equate to M1 Max x2. It’s not 1 to 1. And that issue exacerbates when you’re doubling that. So Apple is no doubt working hard at either a better interconnect - or - going crazy and developing actual custom extreme SOCs that are all on one die - no interconnects. Either that or go all in one getting the ultra on one die and have one interconnect for the extreme. That way, the ultra could possibly make its way into an all new 30” or so iMac. Makes more sense to spread the SOC that costs the most to more products.
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