Apple is expected to hold another keynote this fall, likely in October. The company is anticipated to update some Mac and iPad models, including the iMac, which is expected to get a new M4 chip.
The new chip, based on TSMC’s second-generation 3nm process, should upgrade the iMac from an 8-core CPU to a 10-core CPU, representing a roughly 20-25% performance gain. Though there haven’t been any concrete rumors, Apple does need to transition all of its new devices from Lightning to USB-C by the end of this year to comply with new regulations.
Therefore, we should expect USB-C on the Magic Mouse, Magic Keyboard, and Magic Trackpad bundled with the next iMac. Bloomberg has indicated that all M4 Macs would start with at least 16GB of RAM, according to information seen in developer logs. This would also apply to the M4 iMac, so we are likely to see 16GB of RAM across the board with all of the base model iMacs, with the option to upgrade to 32GB of RAM.
Upcoming iMac improvements and features
The iMac previously had 24GB of RAM, and its port situation has always been limited.
There’s a chance that all four ports on the higher-end models will be Thunderbolt rather than a mix of Thunderbolt and standard USB-C. Analysis of an M4 die shot indicates that Apple’s M4 chip is equipped with four Thunderbolt controllers, compared to two on the M3 chip and earlier. Apple might ship four Thunderbolt ports on the upcoming M4 iMac.
Apple will likely support the Wi-Fi 7 standard on the upcoming M4 iMac. Wi-Fi 7 supports speeds of up to 46 Gbps, which is over five times faster than Wi-Fi 6E’s 9 Gbps. Wi-Fi 7 operates on 320 MHz channels and supports the 6 GHz band, which can reduce interference and signal congestion.
Although the update is a minor refresh, there are several exciting improvements to look forward to if you’re in the market for a new iMac. Unfortunately, no rumors are indicating that Apple is working on a larger iMac or any sort of iMac Pro at this time.
