Apple's M4 iMac: What to Expect

[Phil77354]

There is absolutely no reason for anyone ever to get an Apple Studio Display. You can get a 4k 42" tv for a third the price, and have vastly more real estate and flexibility. Failing that, third party computer monitors.

You posted this just to see how many reactions you would get, right?

There might be absolutely no reason for YOU to ever get an Apple Studio Display, but there are lots of others who have different opinions and have been very happy with their choice!

 

[hagar]

I’m still on my 27 inch iMac from 2015. That’s how much I don’t want to upgrade to the 24 inch.

 

[devinher]

Apple is planning to refresh the 24-inch iMac as soon as 2024, so we could see a new model with an M4 chip before the end of the year. Apple is working to overhaul the entire Mac line with AI-focused M4 chips, iMac included.

This guide includes everything we know about Apple's plans for an M4 iMac.

M4 Chip

The next-generation 24-inch iMac is expected to get the M4 chip, which is the same chip that Apple used for the latest iPad Pro models. iMacs right now have the M3 chip, so the M4 will be a direct update.

The M4 is built on the same 3-nanometer technology as the M3, but it is a second-generation chip with some speed and efficiency improvements. In a Geekbench benchmark test, the M4 proved to be up to 25 percent faster than the M3 chip, which is a notable jump in performance.

The M3 had a single-core score of 3,087 and a multi-core score of 11,702, while the M4 had a single-core score of 3,695 and a multi-core score of 14,550.

Apple's M4 chip has a 10-core CPU and a 10-core GPU, featuring six efficiency cores and four performance cores. There is a variant of the M4 with a 9-core CPU that Apple has used in the iPad Pro, but it is unlikely that this chip would be offered in the iMac.

Other Macs will get upgraded M4 Pro, M4 Max, and M4 Ultra chips, but the 24-inch iMac is an entry-level product on par with devices like the MacBook Air, so it will only be offered with the M4 chip.

Design

Apple last redesigned the iMac in 2021, and there are no signs that a new look is on the horizon. It's likely that the 2024 refresh of the iMac will focus on the internals rather than any outward-facing design changes.

The iMac is an all-in-one machine that combines a computer and a display. It measures in at just 11.5mm thick, and has a slim profile that fits easily on a desktop. It comes in a range of bright colors, with a matching chin in a pastel color.

So far, we don't know of any updates coming to the iMac except for the M4 chip.

Larger iMac?

There have been persistent rumors of a larger-screened iMac that has a display that's around 30 inches in size, but that device was still in the early stages of development in mid-2023, and there is no word on when a larger iMac might come out.

There is a possibility that we could see it sometime in 2025, but it won't be coming in 2024. Apple this year will stick to the 24-inch iMac, as it has done since discontinuing the 27-inch model in 2022.

Release Date

Back in April, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said that the 24-inch iMac would likely see an M4 chip update "around the end of the year." Apple sometimes holds events in October or November when new Macs are expected, so we could see the iMac around that timeframe.

Apple is also expected to update the MacBook Pro models and the Mac mini before the end of the year. The iMac was last updated in October 2023, so an October 2024 launch would come right at the year mark.

Article Link: Apple's M4 iMac: What to Expect

Apple really needs to redesign the iMac. Jobs said about Apple products when he returned to the company, “The products suck! There's no sex in them anymore!” This iMac is a sex-appeal black hole of blandness. The previous generation is pure art by comparison.

 

[HiVolt]

I wouldn't bet on the iMac getting M4. They skipped M2 and wen from M1 to M3, now the mini is stuck on M2 and was not given an M3 upgrade, so the mini hopefully gets M4. This is where i may finally upgrade from my 2018 Intel.

 

[nutmac]

8 GB of RAM, no doubt.

I am hoping on-device AI will push Apple to increase the base RAM.

 

[sleeptodream]

For anyone who wants a 27" or larger iMac, I hear a very strong rumor that it will be released exactly 15 days after I bite the bullet and buy an M4 Pro Mac Mini with a Studio Display. You're welcome.

thanks for taking one for the team 🫡

 

[Realityck]

Apple is planning to refresh the 24-inch iMac as soon as 2024, so we could see a new model with an M4 chip before the end of the year. Apple is working to overhaul the entire Mac line with AI-focused M4 chips, iMac included.

I guess Apple now has set the bar for themselves in such a way that they disadvantage current Apple products with older processors.

 

[RustyIron]

No way I'll be running a dinky 24" display. My current setup is a 7 year old 27" iMac with a 27" LG secondary display. The LG has better color than the iMac. Maybe a Mac Mini will be in my not-too-distant future.

 

[ambientdaw]

Larger iMac...."still in the early stages of development in mid-2023".....what is it a flying car? I know Apple is a small, broke, garage-based business with two employees but I'm sure they can work faster this

 

[Algr]

Yay fractional scaling. My favourite eye-buster.

Because Macs look kinda bad on 4k displays, and it becomes more obvious once you've seen one on a 5k display. Guess what? Hardly anyone makes 5k displays except Apple, and the other options are almost as expensive as the Studio Display with lower quality everything.

Nope, no fractional scaling! The specific reason I chose 42" is because that gives you 100 dpi. I did NOT get the cheapest 4k I could find. What I have has excellent color and meets my needs.

once you have it it's really hard to go back.

Well then I'll have [retina display] when 8k 42" monitors come out. You have to be creative to get around Apple's BS.

 

[Realityck]

No way I'll be running a dinky 24" display. My current setup is a 7 year old 27" iMac with a 27" LG secondary display. The LG has better color than the iMac. Maybe a Mac Mini will be in my not-too-distant future.

The 24" is fine for most usage. I previously used 27" iMacs. It could stand to be brighter 600 nits and support HDR.

 

[Algr]

There might be absolutely no reason for YOU to ever get an Apple Studio Display, but there are lots of others who have different opinions and have been very happy with their choice!

The 24" is fine for most usage. I previously used 27" iMacs. It could stand to be brighter 600 nits and support HDR.

I know these are not the same poster, but I think these two posts go well together.

 

[hoodlum90]

Apple killed the idea of a 27” iMac last November.

Did Apple just crush our dreams of a big-screen iMac with Apple Silicon? - 9to5Mac

At its “Scary fast” October event, Apple refreshed the 24-inch iMac for the first time since its release in 2021....

9to5mac.com

Apple’s senior vice president of Hardware Engineering John Ternus attempted to spin the 24-inch iMac as the “perfect” replacement for the 27-inch iMac. The 4.5K resolution of the 24-inch iMac should be plenty for 5K iMac users looking to make the switch to Apple Silicon, Ternus suggested.

“You’ll love seeing everything come to life on the beautiful, large, and immersive 24-inch 4.5K Retina display. It’s the perfect size and resolution to replace both the 4K and the 5K Intel-based models,” Ternus said.

 

[Algr]

I know Apple is a small, broke, garage-based business with two employees but I'm sure they can work faster this

IKR! There must be a ton of toxic infighting going on inside Apple given how slow and wasteful they are to develop simple things. I often hear about how nobody buys pro-macs and Mac desktops are not big sellers. Don't they think it might be because of how those users have been treated for so long? I know I often look longingly at the windows side, and have to think long and hard about why I still use macs that have lost most of their advantage.

 

[Chuckeee]

Apple killed the idea of a 27” iMac last November.

Did Apple just crush our dreams of a big-screen iMac with Apple Silicon? - 9to5Mac

At its “Scary fast” October event, Apple refreshed the 24-inch iMac for the first time since its release in 2021....

9to5mac.com

But they left open the possibility of something even larger. Although I’m dubious about that.

 

[mrr]

Why no 27” iMac?

 

[sleeptodream]

I am hoping on-device AI will push Apple to increase the base RAM.

Maybe not, the base iPad has 8gb still, though there was that one rumor that it actually had 12gb… I’m not sure I understand the chip binning. How did they know all of the 8gb chips would be binned 9 core, and all of the 16gb chips would have all 10 cores?

Maybe the M4 macs will all have 12 gb to start, and they’re just using the bottom binned 9c-8gb ones for the iPad since iPadOS is lighter?

 

[Algr]

Why no 27” iMac?

Because it would be about $100 more than the Studio Display alone.

I’m not sure I understand the chip binning. How did they know all of the 8gb chips would be binned 9 core, and all of the 16gb chips would have all 10 cores?

It could be that they can test the chiplets before they put them together into the die assembly.

 

[UK-MacAddict]

Imagine nerfing one of your most popular products.

 

[entropys]

Apple makes a whole tonne of money selling a studio display and a Mac mini. A 27 inch 5K imac would have a much tighter margin.

Twenty years ago apple made money to make great computers.
These days they make computers to make great money.
There is a difference. And not a small one.

 

[lostfezil]

I'd love to have an iMac at work, but without 4TB or 8TB storage options, it's out of the question.

 

[entropys]

Those M4 specs: would not the M4 be underclocked in an iPad Pro? An iMac would happily operate at higher clock speeds.

 

[Sippincider]

Either offer the M4 iMac in 27", with non-laughable base memory, or don't even bother.

 

[Realityck]

Either offer the M4 iMac in 27", with non-laughable base memory, or don't even bother.

I really prefer a M4 Pro iMac 24" or larger. That would allow 18 or 36 GB RAM. The base M3 in present conf still can't drive more then 1 external 6K display just as the base M1 couldn't. Because off that its TB port can't be ID'ed as a TB4 port. (requires dual 6K display capable)

 

[Siliconguy]

I guess Apple now has set the bar for themselves in such a way that they disadvantage current Apple products with older processors.

Yep. "No on-board AI capability? how sad. Upgrade now!"

The good news is that there should be a flood of M1 to M3 Macs available cheap as people dump their instantly obsolete machines for the new AI goodness.

Microsoft is making the same push, even more so since so many are still sticking with Windows 10.