Apple's 2023 compact desktop with a 12-core M2 Max chip, starting with a 30-core GPU, 32GB of memory and a 512GB SSD, plus Thunderbolt 4, 10Gb Ethernet, HDMI 2.1 and front USB-C and SD ports. Owners find it quiet and more than fast enough years on, but nothing can be upgraded after purchase and a minority of units have a high-pitched whine.
This entry is written from the 5 sources listed at the bottom of the page. The numbers are our editorial estimates drawn from that material, not measurements, and no statistical sample sits behind them.
On the evidence gathered here, yes. 86% of owners say they would buy it again, and satisfaction is still 8.2 out of 10 two years in. Still more than enough power for most owners' workloads.
Owners say it handles Final Cut Pro, Logic and other creative work with plenty of headroom and stays quiet under load. The lingering frustrations are fixed memory and storage and, on some units, an intermittent whine audible in quiet rooms.
Some units develop an intermittent high-pitched whine. Newer M4 Max model adds Thunderbolt 5, ray tracing and AV1 decode. Local AI and LLM work benefits from the newer chips.
Still more than enough power for most owners' workloads. Sentiment across the ownership period stays close to flat, which is rare: it reads 8.7 out of 10 in the first week and 8.2 two years later.
Worth it for: Photo and video editors; Music producers; Used or refurbished buyers. Think twice if: Local llm and ai developers; Buyers needing upgradeable storage; Noise-sensitive studio rooms.
Our reading of how sentiment moves across an ownership period, drawn from the sources below. It is an editorial estimate, not tracked longitudinal data.
| At purchase | 8.6 / 10 |
|---|---|
| First week | 8.7 / 10 |
| One month | 8.7 / 10 |
| Six months | 8.6 / 10 |
| One year | 8.4 / 10 |
| Two years or more | 8.2 / 10 |
Owner reviews move this score. The researched figure stays visible next to it, so you can always see what the sources said before anyone voted.
Leave a review on the live pageEvery complaint and every piece of praise above traces back to these. The summaries are ours; nothing is quoted, and no link, quote or username anywhere on this site is invented.
Confirms the $1,999 base config (12-core CPU, 30-core GPU, 32GB, 512GB), measures roughly 18–20% CPU gains over M1 Max, and praises the GPU, ports, HDMI 2.1 and quiet fans; the con is non-upgradeable memory and storage.
Rates it 92% as a quiet, well-built desktop with strong performance, but criticises zero maintenance options, the 512GB base SSD, non-Thunderbolt front ports on the Max and the high price.
Owners who replaced older iMacs and Macs report being satisfied with its performance in apps like Final Cut Pro and Logic, and none describe regret; some note newer chips add AV1 and ray tracing.
Owners find the 2023 model much quieter at idle and under load than the M1 Studio, though some units still show an intermittent whine attributed to quality control or power supplies.
Says the 2023 model is more than sufficient for the foreseeable future and still worth buying refurbished or used, while the M4 Max adds Thunderbolt 5, ray tracing, AV1 decode and a faster Neural Engine for AI work.