Apple’s series of incremental improvements continues with the 2024 iMac. This time around, Apple’s all-in-one features the latest M4 chip and a couple of other upgrades worth considering. Here’s what’s new in the M4 iMac and how it compares to the previous-generation M3 iMac.

A Similar Design With Slightly Different Colors

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Like the M3 iMac, the M4 iMac is also available in seven colors: blue, purple, pink, orange, yellow, green, and silver. However, Apple has used slightly lighter shades for all the colors, giving them a different appearance. Beyond the colors, the overall dimensions and weight of the iMacs remain similar (except that the M4 iMac is 1.28 oz lighter).

The M4 iMac Offers an Optional Display Upgrade

The iMac M4 features the exact same display setup we saw on the iMac M3. It uses a 23.5-inch Retina display with a 4,480 x 2,520 resolution (with a pixel density of 218 PPI), 500 nits of peak brightness, and P3 wide color. As with other devices, Apple has also equipped the iMac M4 with its True Tone display technology. So what’s different?

The M4 iMac is configurable with nano-texture glass for an additional cost of $200. For those upgrading, the Cupertino team introduced nano-texture glass with the M4 iPad Pro that went on sale earlier this year. Etched at the nanoscale, the glass scatters ambient light, making distractions like reflections or glare significantly less visible “without losing exceptional image quality.”

While not a huge improvement, nano-texture glass could give buyers the flexibility to place their iMac anywhere in a room without worrying about glare and reflections due to ambient lights, windows, or skylights.

Both iMacs come equipped with a high-fidelity six-speaker system for wide stereo sound (with support for Spatial Audio) and a three-microphone setup for studio-quality audio.

M4 iMac vs M3 iMac: Incremental Speed Improvements

Beneath the vibrant exterior, the 2024 iMac is powered by M4 silicon. In fact, the device features two variants of the M4 chip: one with an eight-core CPU (four performance cores and four efficiency cores) and an eight-core GPU, and another with a 10-core CPU (two additional efficiency cores) and a 10-core GPU. Fun fact: There’s a third M4 variant powering the 2024 iPad Pro; it features a nine-core CPU.

Compared to the M4 iMac, the 2023 iMac featured an M3 chip with an eight-core CPU and either an eight- or ten-core GPU. Additionally, the new iMac features 16GB of unified storage (configurable up to 32GB), double the 8GB of storage available on the previous-generation iMac (configurable up to 24GB). However, base storage remains the same for both models at 256GB (configurable up to 2TB).

The iMac M4 also features a 16-core Neural Engine, which is up to 2x faster than the one in the M3 chip. This will help the CPU handle all of Apple’s intelligence features (as they arrive) well. Finally, memory bandwidth on the M4 has been improved to 120GB/s (up from 100GB/s on the M3). The iMac M4 has the same multimedia engine as its predecessor.

Thanks to more CPU cores, a better GPU (with a 2x faster ray tracing engine), and more RAM, the M4 chip in the latest iMac should offer appreciably better performance. But is it enough to upgrade? In my opinion, you should only upgrade if there's some aspect of the M3 iMac that's holding you back. Otherwise, the 2023 iMac is still a performance beast.

I/O, External Displays and Camera

The higher-spec iMac M4 (with 10 CPU cores and 10 GPU cores) offers four Thunderbolt 4 ports (up to 40 Gbps), USB 4 and USB 3.1 Gen 2 (up to 10 Gbps) connections. The all-in-one PC is also configurable with a Gigabit Ethernet port. In contrast, the iMac M3 had two Thunderbolt 4 ports and two USB 3 ports, even on the highest-spec version.

Both models do feature a 3.5mm headphone jack with support for high-impedance headphones, though. Wireless connectivity options include Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth v5.3 on both. Additionally, both computers come with the Magic Keyboard and Magic Mouse in the box, with the option to upgrade to the Magic Keyboard with Touch ID and Numeric Keypad and Magic Trackpad (all upgraded to USB-C).

While the M3 iMac supports one external display with up to 6K resolution at 60Hz, the base M4 iMac also supports the same. However, the upgraded M4 iMac can drive up to two external displays with 6K resolution at 60Hz or one external display with 8K resolution at 60Hz. This could be a worthwhile upgrade, especially for users who need to work with multiple monitors.

The 1080p FaceTime HD camera on the M3 iMac has been replaced by a 12MP camera with Center Stage on the M4 iMac. For those unaware, Center Stage is a feature that keeps your face in the center of the screen by making real-time framing adjustments. Additionally, the new camera supports Desk View, a feature that allows users to record an overhead view of their desktop.

Both iMacs Support Apple Intelligence

With macOS Sequoia 15.1, Apple has launched the first set of its AI features, called Apple Intelligence. Right out of the box, these include system-wide Writing Tools, improved Siri, notification and email summary, and a couple of other additions.

While the M4 iMac will come with macOS 15.1 out of the box, the M3 iMac can install the update over the air. In theory, both iMacs support Apple's GenAI, but given the better Neural Engine in the M4, GenAI features should be a bit faster on the new machine.

The iMac M4 Costs the Same as the iMac M3

He iMac M4 base, with an eight-core CPU and an eight-core GPU, is priced at $1,299. Although the iMac is available for pre-order on the company's official website, it will go on sale starting November 8, 2024.

Last year, the iMac M3 also launched with the same launch price for the base variant with an eight-core CPU and an eight-core GPU.

Apple has been on a roll since September. First, it launched the iPhone 16 series with the A18 processor and a new camera control button. The September launch was followed by the new iPad mini, iMac M4, the new Mac mini, and now some new MacBook Pro models.