Mac Week is officially here, and Apple’s kicked it off with an iMac announcement.
As of Oct. 28, the M4 Apple iMac is available for preorder, starting with 16GB of unified memory, 256GB of storage, and an 8-core CPU and GPU for $1,299. So far, you can pre-order the Apple desktop from the Apple’s online store, but we’ll be updating this post as it becomes available from more retailers. The computer officially launches on Friday, Nov. 8.
The 24-inch iMac doesn’t come with major upgrades from the M3 iMac, which was released almost one year ago to the date, after no M2 iMac was released in 2022. However, there are three major differences: the M4 chip, new colorways, and Apple Intelligence features the brand has been teasing out since June. On that last point, Apple also announced today that some of these features are already live for folks with more recent iPhones, iPads, and Macs, but even more will become available in December.
Like the M3 iMac, the M4 iMac supports up to 24GB of unified memory, 10-core GPU, and sports a 4.5K Retina display. As for how their speeds compare, Apple focused on the performance difference between the M4 and M1 chip (which was two generations back on the iMac). In its press release, Apple claims the M4 iMac is up to 1.7 times faster than the previous model — in the release for the M3 iMac last year, Apple wrote the “iMac with M3 is up to 2x faster than the prior generation with M1.” While it’s hard to glean how the two most recent models compare, one thing is clear: They’re both faster than the M1 iMac.
M4 iMac users will also get a 12MP Center Stage camera, four USB-C ports, and the ability to connect up to two 6K external displays.
