The Upgrades in Apple's New iMac Are Small but Worthwhile

The iMac M4 still features multiple variants, starting with the $1,299 model that includes an 8-core CPU, 8-core GPU, 16 GB of RAM, and 256 GB of storage—and just two USB-C Thunderbolt 4 ports. (Sorry, there’s no Thunderbolt 5 available on the iMac unlike the MacBook Pro or Mac Mini with M4 Pro.) At least it supports two 6K external displays now instead of one. Note that Apple’s fancier peripherals still cost extra no matter how you configure the machine, including the Magic Keyboard with Numeric Keyboard ($30) and Magic Trackpad ($50).

Photograph: Christopher Null

Tick up the price ladder and you’ll add additional power and storage space, USB ports, a better keyboard (with a Touch ID fingerprint reader), and more. My tested configuration—a full $1,000 pricier at $2,299—included a passel of upgrades comprising a 10-core CPU and GPU, 24 GB of RAM, 1 TB of storage, four USB ports, gigabit Ethernet on the power brick, and Apple’s new nano-texture glass upgrade for the 24-inch screen.

This lattermost option alone is a $200 upgrade, but it's the best of the bunch and the one you should absolutely put on your iMac. Much as I said in my review of the MacBook Pro M4 Pro, it makes the 4,480 x 2,520-pixel display look like a glare-free photograph. It’s hard to imagine using the machine without it—though I’m still baffled as to why the iMac does not feature a touchscreen, which is all but standard among competing all-in-ones smaller than 30 inches in size.

Another notable upgrade is the webcam, which is now an impressive 12-megapixel sensor, up from a lowly 2.1-megapixel version in the iMac M3. The Center Stage feature is effective, auto-centering the frame during video calls, even if you’re moving around. Apple’s new Desk View feature is also in the mix. Designed primarily for education purposes, this lets you add a top-down view of your desk to your video stream so you don’t have to hold things up to the camera lens. It’s certainly a niche feature, but some may find it useful. The three-microphone and six-speaker setup from the iMac M3 hasn’t changed, and they both remain sharp.

There are only two things on my colleague Stolyar's 2023 iMac M3 “Tired” list that Apple didn’t address with this 2024 release. The first is the lack of screen height adjustability, which I’m willing to give Apple a pass on. Adjustable height is uncommon on 24-inch all-in-ones across the board, and the iMac does at least have a tilt feature, which is about as much as I expect in a machine of this size.

The other issue is thornier: the price. Even at its base price of $1,299, the iMac is expensive compared to other smaller all-in-ones. And with all the bells and whistles, it’s considerably more expensive than many Windows all-in-ones with nearly twice the LCD surface area. That’s a tough challenge to overcome.

If you’ve made it this far in the review, there’s a strong chance you already have an Apple silicon iMac on your desk. That's another issue. Do the upgrades in the M4 edition merit junking (er, trading in) your old computer to get your hands on this new one? Only your accountant can help you answer that one.