Maxon's Redshift Now Available for macOS With Support for Metal and M1 Macs - MacRumors
Skip to Content

Maxon's Redshift Now Available for macOS With Support for Metal and M1 Macs

Maxon is bringing its GPU-accelerated renderer Redshift to macOS, with support for Apple's line of M1 Macs and Apple's Metal Graphics API for speedy performance on Apple's machines.

redshift for mac
Lunar Animation director James Rodgers says his company is seeing "crazy results" rendering with Redshift on a Mac Pro with Metal support. "A typical frame from the very effects heavy game cinematic we created for Mythic Legends, an action-packed strategy mobile game by Outfit7, previously took 26 minutes to render per frame," he said. "Now it's rendering in only 58 seconds!"

Redshift provides a wide range of features that include ray switches, flexible shading networks, motion blur, AOVs, deep output, and more. It is a biased renderer that allows artists to adjust each individual technique for the best performance and quality blend for production purposes.

Redshift is optimized for high-end performance on both Intel and ‌M1‌ Macs. Maxon says that Redshift for Intel-based Macs will be available this week, while Redshift for ‌M1‌ Macs will launch with the release of macOS Big Sur 11.3.

Popular Stories

Home Hub Command Center with Dome Base Feature

Apple Smart Home Hub to Feature iMac G4-Style Design

Wednesday September 30, 2026 4:36 am PDT by
Apple's long-rumored smart home hub will have an iMac G4-style design and a host of unique features, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports. The smart home hub is said to feature a square 6-inch display, with variants that can be placed on a countertop or mounted on a wall. It features a single FaceTime camera on the front, with microphones and speakers in its connected base. Gurman described the...
HomePod minis on gradient feature 1 1

Three New Apple Smart Home Products Coming on October 13

Wednesday September 30, 2026 4:04 am PDT by
Apple plans to introduce a series of new smart home products on Tuesday, October 13, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Apple reportedly plans to debut its long-awaited smart home hub device, a new HomePod mini, and a new Apple TV on the date. The new HomePod mini and Apple TV are set to retain their existing designs, but tout faster chips to support Siri AI. The new HomePod mini will...
Apple TV Sans Remote Feature

New Apple TV 4K Leaked

Friday September 25, 2026 8:16 am PDT by
MacRumors contributor Aaron Perris has uncovered an image file from Apple for an unreleased Apple TV 4K, suggesting that a new model will finally be released soon. The image is specifically for an "Apple TV 4K (4th generation)" model. Apple TV 4K (4th generation) image (on a gradient) The image reveals that the Apple TV will have the same external design as the current model, with all of its...

Top Rated Comments

71 months ago

I find that rendering claim really suspect and misleading. What is he comparing it to? Redshift is a GPU renderer and the 3090 card is the most powerful GPU and the change from the 20 series to the 3090 didn't see that sort of improvement. Octane on macOS has been pretty sluggish and, although Redshift is faster, it's not THAT much faster.
Yeah, seems like there is some important information missing there. What hardware were they using for the previous 26 minutes per frame render? Were they even using Redshift at all for the 26 minute version, or a different renderer altogether with CPU instead of GPU rendering? Something is very fishy with that...
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
71 months ago

I find that rendering claim really suspect and misleading. What is he comparing it to?
Before they got Redshift on the Mac, they were rendering their frames by hand. They shipped the data files to rural China and a 100 women and children would render them on abacuses (keeping them carbon neutral) and send back the data. These people are super fast and can render a frame in 3 minutes, the rest of the time was sending the frames back and forth over the net. :-)
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ChrisMoBro Avatar
71 months ago
I find that rendering claim really suspect and misleading. What is he comparing it to? Redshift is a GPU renderer and the 3090 card is the most powerful GPU and the change from the 20 series to the 3090 didn't see that sort of improvement. Octane on macOS has been pretty sluggish and, although Redshift is faster, it's not THAT much faster.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
kaisdaddy Avatar
71 months ago

Octane is amazing but reliability is a feature and it’s terrible in that respect. Redshift looks amazing, it’s fast and I know it’s not going to let me down. Whenever I go back to using Octane I realise how antiquated certain aspects of it are.
Agreed on Redshift stability compared to Octane but I still use the latter because it's so much easier to get great looking results compared to Redshift.

Now that Maxon owns it, maybe Redshift will get a UI overhaul that makes it more intuitive.
Until then, I'll keep using Octane knowing that it will crash from time to time but give me great looking output without requiring a PhD on my end.

Overall I'm just tickled that more than one 3rd party render engine supports Metal now.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
71 months ago

It's not apple's "amazing" hardware at work, it's code optimization. People here think the M1's have some legit graphics chips, lmao, it's about as good as the old as heck GTX 1050, which is pathetic in 2021.
Yeah, but M only seen on the lowest end macs to date.
I am giving Apple a chance with their more pro machines, but I still dont believe they will deliver anything like a 3080/90 level. Then I will happily bag them :).

In reality though I expect an above average gpu only, and nothing special in the forthcoming pro machines, with maybe the MacPro having some super expensive card thats good. The computers will most likely be great for FCP but not in 3D rendering like Octane and redshift. Alway love being proved wrong though.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
portland-dude Avatar
71 months ago

That's a crazy improvement!
It's not apple's "amazing" hardware at work, it's code optimization. People here think the M1's have some legit graphics chips, lmao, it's about as good as the old as heck GTX 1050, which is pathetic in 2021.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Latest Stories
Apple Shares Photos Shot on iPhone Duo
Apple Shares Photos Shot on iPhone Duo
17 minutes ago
Apple Says iPhone Duo Has Replaceable 'Cover Layer' Above the Display
Apple Says iPhone Duo Has Replaceable 'Cover Layer' Above the Display
1 hour ago
Apple's Smart Home Camera Will Apparently Have 'No Video Recording'
Apple's Smart Home Camera Will Apparently Have 'No Video Recording'
3 hours ago
Apple TV Just Updated Its Selection of 'Bonus' Movies
Apple TV Just Updated Its Selection of 'Bonus' Movies
5 hours ago
iPhone 18 Pro Colors Buyer's Guide: Which Should You Choose?
iPhone 18 Pro Colors Buyer's Guide: Which Should You Choose?
5 hours ago
Early Prime Big Deal Days: Best Discounts on Accessories, TVs, and More at Amazon
Early Prime Big Deal Days: Best Discounts on Accessories, TVs, and More at Amazon
5 hours ago
MacBook Pro With OLED Touch Screen Rumored to Launch in October or November
MacBook Pro With OLED Touch Screen Rumored to Launch in October or November
7 hours ago
Apple's All-New Home Hub Rumored to Launch in These Four Colors
Apple's All-New Home Hub Rumored to Launch in These Four Colors
7 hours ago
iPhone 18 Pro Aperture Control Goes Fully Manual in Halide 3.2
iPhone 18 Pro Aperture Control Goes Fully Manual in Halide 3.2
8 hours ago
Apple Stores Receive 'Do Not Open' Boxes Ahead of Smart Home Products Launch
Apple Stores Receive 'Do Not Open' Boxes Ahead of Smart Home Products Launch
9 hours ago
iPhone 18 Pro Sales Jump in China Ahead of iPhone Duo Launch
iPhone 18 Pro Sales Jump in China Ahead of iPhone Duo Launch
9 hours ago
Apple TV Still Down for Some Users Following Apple Services Outage
Apple TV Still Down for Some Users Following Apple Services Outage
10 hours ago
PSA: Apple Mail on Mac May Stop Syncing Microsoft 365 Accounts Today
PSA: Apple Mail on Mac May Stop Syncing Microsoft 365 Accounts Today
10 hours ago
Apple's Smart Home Hub: Everything We Know So Far
Apple's Smart Home Hub: Everything We Know So Far
21 hours ago
Apple's Home Hub Borrows From the iPhone Duo's StandBy Mode
Apple's Home Hub Borrows From the iPhone Duo's StandBy Mode
22 hours ago
Apple Invites App Updated With Three New Features
Apple Invites App Updated With Three New Features
1 day ago
Apple Event on October 13?
Apple Event on October 13?
1 day ago
Apple Watch SE 3 vs. Series 12 Buyer's Guide: Which Should You Buy?
Apple Watch SE 3 vs. Series 12 Buyer's Guide: Which Should You Buy?
1 day ago
iPad Mini 8 to Offer These 10 New Features
iPad Mini 8 to Offer These 10 New Features
1 day ago
DoorDash Unveils AI Food Ordering Through Apple's Messages App
DoorDash Unveils AI Food Ordering Through Apple's Messages App
1 day ago
Amazon Takes Up to $150 Off Select M5 MacBook Air Models
Amazon Takes Up to $150 Off Select M5 MacBook Air Models
1 day ago
Apple Still Plans to Release a New Full-Sized HomePod
Apple Still Plans to Release a New Full-Sized HomePod
1 day ago
Apple Working to Expand HomeKit
Apple Working to Expand HomeKit
1 day ago
Apple Smart Home Hub to Feature iMac G4-Style Design
Apple Smart Home Hub to Feature iMac G4-Style Design
1 day ago
Three New Apple Smart Home Products Coming on October 13
Three New Apple Smart Home Products Coming on October 13
1 day ago
Apple Pay Now Available in India With Axis Bank Cards
Apple Pay Now Available in India With Axis Bank Cards
2 days ago
OpenAI Launches Always-On 'Dots' Agents to Rival Meta's Muse
OpenAI Launches Always-On 'Dots' Agents to Rival Meta's Muse
2 days ago
AirPods 5 Teardown: Batteries Removable, Case Still Tough
AirPods 5 Teardown: Batteries Removable, Case Still Tough
2 days ago
iPhone 18 Pro Owners Complain of Speaker Crackling or Popping
iPhone 18 Pro Owners Complain of Speaker Crackling or Popping
2 days ago
You Can 'Get Ready' for iPhone Duo Pre-Orders on October 12
You Can 'Get Ready' for iPhone Duo Pre-Orders on October 12
2 days ago