What ports are available on the Mac Studio? More than you might think

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What ports are available on the Mac Studio? More than you might think



Apple’s Mac Studio is quite the powerhouse if the company’s claims about the Apple M1 Ultra hold true. And based on past Apple M1 series processors, we don’t have a reason to doubt that. But it’s not all about performance Given how small the Mac Studio is, you might be worried that there aren’t a ton of ports you can use. Thankfully, there’s nothing to worry about, as the Mac Studio has a total of 12 ports, not counting the power input.

The Mac Studio has most of its ports on the back, but that shouldn’t be a huge problem because of how small it is. You should be able to keep the computer on your desk and reach all the ports easily. Here are all the ports on the back of the Mac Studio:

• 4 x Thunderbolt 4 ports
• 2 x USB Type-A ports (5Gbps)
• 1 x HDMI (supports 4K 60Hz monitors)
• 1 x 10Gbps Ethernet
• 1 x 3.5mm headphone jack (supports high-impedance headphones)

That’s already a very solid setup on the back. Thunderbolt ports can be used for display outputs or other Thunderbolt accessories. In fact, you can connect up to four displays with the Thunderbolt ports. Other highlights here include the 10Gbps Ethernet port for ultra-fast wired internet, something you don’t see that often. And the headphone jack with support for high-impedance headphones means you can also connect some audiophile-grade headphones like the Sennheiser HD 600. You also get two USB Type-A ports for legacy peripherals, HDMI for more traditional monitors and TVs.

That’s not the end of it, though, because you also get a few more ports on the front. The amount of ports is the same in all models, but if you go with the Apple M1 Ultra processor, they’re actually faster. Here’s what you get:

• 2 x USB-C ports (10Gbps)
  • On Apple M1 Ultra models: 2 x Thunderbolt 4 (USB-C) ports
• 1 x SDXC card reader

Overall, that means you get up to six Thunderbolt 4 ports, plus a solid setup of connectivity across the board. There really shouldn’t be much you’re missing out on with the Mac Studio.

Can I add more ports to the Mac Studio?

If you don’t think these ports are enough, the great thing about Thunderbolt ports is that you can use Thunderbolt docks to expand the port selection on your Mac Studio. There’s a myriad of docks and adapters you can use to connect more peripherals to your computer.

If you’re looking for a way to add more ports to the Mac Studio, we’d recommend the Plugable 14-in-1 Thunderbolt 3 dock as one of the best options. It adds a ton of USB Type-A ports (5Gbps), two more display outputs with your choice of HDMI or DisplayPort, and some extra ports like a microSD card reader, if you don’t have a full-size adapter handy.

• Plugable 14-in-1 Thunderbolt 3 Dock
  
  

• [ame][URL="https://www.amazon.com/Plugable-Thunderbolt-Certification-Charging-Monitor/dp/B08HR3T837/?tag=xdadev04-20"][/ame]

• This PLugable THunderbolt dock is one of the best options to add more ports to the Mac Studio.

• [ame]https://www.amazon.com/Plugable-Thunderbolt-Certification-Charging-Monitor/dp/B08HR3T837/?tag=xdadev04-20[/ame]

Many other docks try to include Thunderbolt daisy-chaining, but with so many Thunderbolt ports already available on the Mac Studio, that’s probably not the reason you’re buying a dock. Still, if you want to explore other options, check out the best Thunderbolt docks here. You can also check out some generic USB-C hubs if you don’t need all the bandwidth of Thunderbolt.

And that’s all you need to know about the ports on the Mac Studio. If you’re interested in buying this compact powerhouse, you can do it below. It’ll begin shipping on March 18th, and it’s looking to be one of the most powerful and best Macs Apple has created.

• Mac Studio
  
  

• 

• The new Mac Studio comes with up to an Apple M1 Ultra chipset, 128GB of unified memory, and 8TB of storage. It has a solid supply of ports for its small size, too.

• See at Best Buy

• See at Apple

The post What ports are available on the Mac Studio? More than you might think appeared first on xda-developers.



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