Apple’s 24-inch iMac updated with a (thank goodness) M3 chip

As expected, at its “Scary Fast” event, Apple announced an updated 24-inch iMac with an M3 chip. 

Thankfully, that’s the case as some rumors said it would “only” have an M2 processor. However, the update doesn’t include any tweaks to the stand as some predicted.

The updated all-in-one with M3 is up to 2x faster than the prior generation with M1, according to John Ternus, Apple’s senior vice president of Hardware Engineering. And for those upgrading from an Intel-based iMac, the new iMac is up to 2.5x faster than the most popular 27-inch models, and 4x faster than the most powerful 21.5-inch model, he adds.

You can read all about the new M3 family of chips here. The M3 iMac also features an expansive 4.5K Retina display with 11.3 million pixels and over a billion colors, and faster wireless connectivity.

Ternus says that, for Intel-based upgraders, the  iMac with M3 delivers a huge difference in performance and features. Upgraders will experience 4x faster performance than the most powerful 21.5-inch iMac model, and up to 2.5x faster performance when compared to the most popular 27-inch iMac models.

New iMac customers will see up to 4x faster performance than the bestselling 24-inch all-in-one PC with the latest Intel Core i7 processor, adds Ternus. The 4.5K Retina display features 5x more pixels than the bestselling 24-inch all-in-one PC, he adds. 

The new 24-inch iMac with M3 is available to order today, Monday, October 30, on apple.com/store and in the Apple Store app in 27 countries and regions, including the U.S. It will begin arriving to customers and will be in Apple Store locations and Apple Authorized Resellers starting Tuesday, November 7.

The iMac with 8-core GPU starts at US$1,299 and $1,249 for education, and is available in green, pink, blue, and silver. It features an 8-core CPU, 8GB of unified memory, 256GB SSD, two Thunderbolt ports, Magic Keyboard, and Magic Mouse.

The iMac with 10-core GPU starts at $1,499 and $1,399 for education, and is available in green, yellow, orange, pink, purple, blue, and silver. It features an 8-core CPU, 8GB of unified memory, 256GB SSD, two Thunderbolt ports, two additional USB 3 ports, Magic Keyboard with Touch ID, Magic Mouse, and Gigabit Ethernet.

Additional technical specifications, configure-to-order options, and accessories are available at apple.com/mac. With Apple Trade In, customers can trade in their current computer and get credit toward a new Mac. Customers can visit apple.com/shop/trade-in to see what their device is worth.

Every customer who buys a Mac from Apple can enjoy a free Online Personal Session with an Apple Specialist, get their product set up in select stores — including help with data transfer — and receive guidance on how to make their new Mac work the way they want.