2022 in tech has begun in force. Apple has just held its big spring hardware, titled "Peek Performance," where it announced the first (of many, hopefully) new products of 2022. There are a bunch of new products, including a new iPhone SE, the first M1-powered iPad Air — and an all-new modular computing system complete with a brand-new external display.
Here's everything you need to know.
New Apple Silicon: M1 Ultra
The M1 Ultra is the newest of Apple's silicone chipsets that builds on the M1, M1 Pro and M1 Max. You can think of the M1 Ultra as a drastically scaled-up version of Apple's previous most powerful chipset, the M1 Max, and it's designed for the most powerful of power users.
According to Apple's presentation, the M1 Ultra seems to function essentially as if two of its M1 Max chipsets were combined into one chipset; it has a 20-core GPU, 64-core GPU and 128GB of unified memory. Apple claims it's 8x more powerful than its now-baseline M1 chipset — it's the most powerful chipset that Apple has ever created.
Mac Studio
Apple announced two new products that are designed to work as a modular computing system. The Mac Studio is essentially a souped-up version of the Mac mini that can be configured with either of Apple's M1 Max or M1 Ultra chipsets. It has an advanced thermal cooling system, Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth connectivity and a wide variety of ports, including USB-C, USB-A and an SD card slot. Additionally, all these ports allow the Mac Studio to connect up to four external displays (yes, that includes four Studio Displays) and a 4K TV.
The Mac Studio with M1 Max chipset starts at $1,999, while the Mac Studio with M1 Ultra starts at $3,999. Both can be ordered today.
Studio Display
The Studio Display is a new 27-inch 5K Retina external display that has a similar hinge-and-stand design as Apple's 24-inch M1 iMac (released 2021). Maybe most impressively is the fact that the display as packs Apple's A13 Bionic processor inside, giving some pretty neat camera and sound capabilities.
According to Apple, it has the best mics, cameras (that support Center Stage) and speaker system that has even been put in a Mac. The Studio Display was designed to work with the Mac Studio, however, it can connect to any Mac computer via a single 96-watt USB-C connection.
The Studio Display starts at $1,599 and can be ordered today.
iPhone SE (2022)
Apple announced a new-and-improved version of its affordable iPhone. The new iPhone SE packs the same body as its 2020 predecessor — that means you still get the Home button, but no FaceID. However, Apple has given it an upgraded A15 Bionic processor (the same processor that's in the latest iPhone 13), a more durable body, an upgraded camera system and support for 5G connectivity. It starts at $429.
You can preorder now, and it'll ship on March 18.
iPad Air (2022) with an M1 Processor
Apple announced an improved version of its iPad Air with big news being that the mid-range tablet is getting Apple's M1 chip. This is the same chipsets that are in the latest 24-inch iMac, 13-inch MacBook Pro and the latest iPad Pros. The new iPad Air has pretty much the same design as the previous 2020-released iPad Air, but Apple has updated it with a new front-facing camera system with an ultra-wide lens (so that it supports the Center Stage tracking feature), support for 5G connectivity and a more powerful USB-C charging port. It starts at $599 (same as before).
You can preorder it now and it'll ship on March 18.
Magic Keyboard with Touch ID (Silver-and-Black)
Apple announced a new silver-and-black color of its Magic Keyboard with Touch ID to "compliment" the Studio Display. It has also brought back the black (called space gray at the time) colors of its Magic Mouse and Magic Trackpad that were released with the now-discontinued iMac Pro in 2017. All these new accessories can be bought separately, however you'll need an M1-based Mac for Touch ID to work on the wireless keyboard.
iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 Pro: New Green Colors
Apple announced that the iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 Pro will each be available in a new green finish that are slightly different; the iPhone 13 Pro will be available in a softer "alpine green finish, instead. You can preorder them now and they'll ship on March 18.
