Apple Mac Pro – 5 reasons why it costs so much

Apple has created a new high performance mac for professional users. The cost of the Apple Mac Pro has created a lot of chatter and many are not able to understand why this Mac device costs $6000 for the base model. Here is everything you need to know about the Apple Mac Pro including five reasons why it costs so much.

The Mac Pro is designed and engineered to enable wide range of uses and virtually unlimited possibilities for customization. Central to the mac pro design is a precision stainless steel space frame that also functions as handles and feet. It is the structural foundation for an architectural design for an absolute flexibility and utility. The space frame provides 360 degree access to the interior as well as multiple mounting points for variety of different components.

To meet the diverse demands of professional users, the dual sided logic board is built for configuration and expansion. The new xion processor has up to 28 cores and it can run continuously at maximum frequency without constraint. The Mac Pro has 12 dip slots that can accommodate up-to 1.5 terabytes of RAM. There are 8 available VCI-E slots, which allow the users to build a system that fits their needs. Apple has created a new Graphics architecture, the Mac Pro Expansion Module (MPX Module) for Pro workload. As graphics performance is critically important, the MPX module has two GPUs and Mac Pro is designed accommodate up-to two MPX modules. With two MPX modules, you can have total of 4 Radeon Pro Vega II GPUs, 56 teraflops, 128GB HBM2, 1000 watts. Apple has also developed Apple Afterbird for video editing with available accelerator card, which boosts the performance of ProRes and ProRes Raw video and eliminates the need for proxy workflows. You can have 3 streams of ProRes RAW 8K videos or 12 streams of ProRes RAW 4K videos.

For maximizing the performance of every component, the Mac Pro has 1.4 kilowatts power supply and advanced thermal architecture. There are three large impeller fans that quietly channel the air from front to back while a blower pulls heat from the memory. This system eliminates the need for fans on individual components, which keeps sound levels very low. The thermal system is enclosed by aluminum housing that slides over the frame and completes the architecture. The unique 3D vents are machined on both internal and external surfaces, which results in a lightweight lattice pattern that maximizes airflow while creating a rigid structure. The stainless steel handles and I/O ports are easy to reach and there is also an option for mounting wheels to make it easier to move between places.

To compliment the capability of a Mac Pro, Apple has created a new display called Pro Display XDR. The 32 inch edge to edge panel is housed in a machine aluminum uni-body enclosure, which has the same lattice vent pattern that acts as a heat sink. With over 20 Million pixels delivering dynamic range Pro Display XDR is the first 6K retina display. The back lighting system includes a larger array of blue LEDs that generate exceptional brightness and modulate independently based on the content. Along with the intricate series of custom lenses that geometrically optimize reflectors, this system shapes and controls the light to achieve 1000-1600 nits of brightness. In addition to P3 wide color gamut, the Pro Display has a remarkable 1,000,000:1 contrast ratio. The Pro Display can have a refresh rate of up-to 60 Hz, which is very surprising as we would have expected Apple to include at least 120 Hz refresh rate for a display that costs $6000. The Pro Display has the capability to magnetically attach to the Apple Pro Stand, which is made from single solid aluminum extrusion. The Pro Stand has a precise mechanism in the arm that counterbalances the display and allows the user to adjust the height and angle. The Pro Stand also allows you to use the display in both portrait and landscape orientation.

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5 Reasons why the Apple Mac Pro costs so much

1. Apple engineering: Many have argued that Apple Mac Pro is overpriced as compared to build-your-own hardware. If you were to compare the cost of purchasing the different components separately and putting them together by yourself, the cost will be definitely cheaper. However, you will still have to worry about thermal management, selection and placement of right parts, and compatibility of different components. With the Apple Mac Pro, you don’t need to worry about any of that as Apple has already done that work for you, which is included in the total cost.
2. Other Vendors charge similar prices: If you are not able to build-your-own computer then you are most likely going to purchase it from a vendor. If you need a high performance computer, then your only alternate options are windows computers. Both HP and Lenovo offer similar high performance computers but they also charge similar prices. For instance, the ‘HP Z8 G4 workstation’ costs around $8500 and ‘Lenovo Precision 7820 Tower workstation’ costs around $4950. These prices are for a system with 8-core processor, 32GB RAM, 256GB SSD, and 8 GB Graphics card, which is what you get with Apple Mac Pro for $6000.  
3. Designed for Professionals: Apple has not designed the Mac Pro for normal consumers who come to the Apple store to purchase devices for their day-to-day life. The Apple Mac Pro is for professionals only. The Apple Mac Pro is for professional video editors who work for big name movie studies (like Disney Pixar). People working in professional video and audio industry are most likely using Apple computers and software. The big name studios have big budgets for their projects and they can afford to purchase a system like Mac Pro if it saves time during editing and post processing.
4. Apple Design (cool factor): Say what you will about the cost of the Mac Pro but when it comes to design, Apple is your best bet. The Mac Pro has unique 3D vents that are machined on both internal and external surfaces, which results in a lightweight lattice pattern that maximizes airflow while creating a rigid structure. You can’t purchase a similar looking device elsewhere.
5. Flexibility for future upgrade: The Apple Mac Pro has a structural foundation for flexibility and utility. The space frame provides 360 degree access to the interior as well as multiple mounting points for variety of different components. The dual sided logic board is built for configuration and expansion. The Mac Pro has 12 dip slots for up-to 1.5 terabytes of RAM, 8 available VCI-E slots, up-to two MPX modules. If you have the need and budget for the Apple Mac Pro, you can look at it as one time investment as you can easily upgrade the systems as your needs change in the future.

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What do you get for your money?

Apple sells the Mac Pro with a base price of $6,000 with optional upgrades/configurations. If you want the fully loaded, max performance, high-end configuration Mac Pro, it will cost you $52,199. This is excluding the option for the $400.00 frame with wheels and Software ($300 for Final Cut Pro X and $200 Logic Pro X). Let’s face it, if you are buying the Apple Mac Pro, you are also going to purchase the Pro Display XDR with Pro Stand, which will set you back and additional $6,000.

Mac Pro – $6,000

• 3.5GHz 8‑core Intel Xeon W processor, Turbo Boost up to 4.0GHz
  • 3.3GHz 12‑core Intel Xeon W processor, Turbo Boost up to 4.4GHz + $1,000
  • 3.2GHz 16‑core Intel Xeon W processor, Turbo Boost up to 4.4GHz + $2,000
  • 2.7GHz 24‑core Intel Xeon W processor, Turbo Boost up to 4.4GHz + $6,000
  • 2.5GHz 28‑core Intel Xeon W processor, Turbo Boost up to 4.4GHz + $7,000
• 32GB (4x8GB) of DDR4 ECC memory
  • 48GB (6x8GB) of DDR4 ECC memory + $300.00
  • 96GB (6x16GB) of DDR4 ECC memory + $1,000.00
  • 192GB (6x32GB) of DDR4 ECC memory + $3,000.00
  • 384GB (6x64GB) of DDR4 ECC memory + $6,000.00
  • 768GB (12x64GB) of DDR4 ECC memory + $10,000.00
  • 768GB (6x128GB) of DDR4 ECC memory + $14,000.00
  • 1.5TB (12x128GB) of DDR4 ECC memory + $25,000.00
• Radeon Pro 580X with 8GB of GDDR5 memory
  • Radeon Pro Vega II with 32GB of HBM2 memory + $2,400.00
  • Two Radeon Pro Vega II with 32GB of HBM2 memory each + $5,200.00
  • Radeon Pro Vega II Duo with 2x32GB of HBM2 memory + $5,200.00
  • Two Radeon Pro Vega II Duo with 2x32GB of HBM2 memory each + $10,800.00
• 256GB SSD storage
  • 1TB SSD storage + $400.00
  • 2TB SSD storage + $800.00
  • 4TB SSD storage + $1,400.00
• Stainless steel frame with feet
  • Stainless steel frame with wheels + $400.00
• Magic Mouse 2
  • Magic Trackpad 2 + $50.00
  • Magic Mouse 2 + Magic Trackpad 2 + $149.00
• Apple Afterburner card + $2,000.00

Pro Display XDR – $4,999.00

• Nano-texture glass + $1,000.00
• Pro Stand + $999.00
• VESA Mount Adapter (wall, desk, stand) + $199.00

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What’s In the Box

Mac Pro

• Magic Keyboard with Numeric Keypad
• Magic Mouse 2
• USB-C to Lightning Cable (1 m)
• Power cord (2 m)
• macOS Catalina

Pro Display XDR

• Power cord (2 m)
• Apple Thunderbolt 3 Pro Cable (2 m)
• Polishing cloth

Check out detailed Apple Mac Pro technical specifications.