Apple's colorful new iMac gets an M4 chip and AI brain

Apple just upgraded its colorful all-in-one desktop, and the biggest news isn't even the new processor.

Apple introduced the new 24-inch iMac powered by the M4 chip. It keeps the razor-thin profile and seven vibrant colors, starting at the familiar $1,299 price point. But for the first time in years, Apple finally killed off the baseline 8GB RAM, shipping the new machine with 16GB of unified memory as standard.

M4 power meets 16GB base memory

Under the hood, the M4 chip delivers solid gains over older machines. Apple claims daily productivity tasks are up to 1.7x faster and demanding photo and video workflows are up to 2.1x faster compared to the M1 iMac.

More importantly, the Neural Engine is over 3x faster than M1. That extra headroom is designed specifically for Apple Intelligence, which rolls out with macOS Sequoia 15.1 in U.S. English, bringing Writing Tools and a redesigned Siri.

Later features like ChatGPT integration, Image Playground, and Genmoji are slated for December.

To make those local AI features actually usable without bottlenecking the system, Apple standardizes 16GB of unified memory across all configurations, with options up to 32GB.

Nano-texture display and USB-C accessories

Beyond performance, Apple fixed several long-standing hardware annoyances.

The 24-inch 4.5K Retina display now offers a nano-texture glass option for the first time. It dramatically cuts down glare and reflections, making the desktop much more practical in sunlit rooms or bright office environments.

The front-facing camera gets bumped to a 12MP Center Stage sensor with Desk View, letting educators and creators show their face and overhead workspace at the same time.

All four USB-C ports on higher-tier models now support Thunderbolt 4, capable of driving up to two external 6K displays.

And yes, the color-matched Magic Keyboard and Magic Mouse finally feature USB-C charging ports, quietly putting an end to the Lightning connector on Mac accessories.

Why it matters

For families, students, and light creators looking for a sleek home desktop, this is easily the most compelling iMac in years. Bumping the baseline to 16GB RAM without raising the $1,299 entry price removes the frustrating "Apple memory tax" that buyers had to pay just to keep their machines future-proof.

We think this move shows that local AI is finally forcing hardware makers to stop skimping on specs. Generative models demand substantial memory bandwidth, and keeping an 8GB baseline would have broken Apple Intelligence before it even got off the ground.

By setting 16GB as the new floor, Apple is effectively declaring that sub-16GB machines have no place in the AI PC era.

The only caveat right now is software pacing. Apple Intelligence is rolling out gradually, and users outside U.S. English will have to wait longer for the full feature set. You should buy this machine for the M4 speed and the 16GB memory today, not just for AI promises tomorrow.