Apple Launches M6 iMac From $1,499 With Faster AI and Wi-Fi 7

Apple has refreshed the 24-inch iMac with its M6 chip, faster wireless connectivity and more processing power for local AI tasks. The all-in-one desktop starts at $1,499 in the United States, with pre-orders opening on 28 October and availability from 6 November. Buyers should note that the entry price is for a 10-core CPU and 10-core GPU configuration. The 12-core version starts at $1,699.

In its 27 October announcement, Apple says the M6 iMac offers up to a 12-core CPU and 12-core GPU, two more cores in each than the previous generation’s maximum. Neural Accelerators in the GPU and a dual 16-core Neural Engine are meant to speed up image processing, local language models and other AI workloads. The chip also brings memory bandwidth of up to 170GB/s.

Apple claims up to twice the graphics performance and up to five times the on-device AI performance of the M4 iMac in selected tests. Its comparison with the most popular Intel-based iMac reaches up to 18 times faster overall performance. Those are company benchmarks with specific applications and configurations, not a promise of the same improvement in every task. For most households and offices, the useful gains may be shorter waits when opening large files, editing photos or working across several apps.

The display remains a 24-inch-class 4.5K Retina panel with 500 nits of brightness. Apple has kept the slim all-in-one design and seven colour choices: blue, green, pink, yellow, purple, orange and silver. A 12MP Center Stage camera supports Desk View for showing a work surface during calls, alongside three microphones and built-in speakers with Spatial Audio. These are practical details for a computer that often sits in a shared office, home workspace or classroom.

Wireless connectivity moves to Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6. Apple also says SSD read and write speeds can be up to twice those of the M4 model. Depending on configuration, the desktop offers up to four Thunderbolt 4 ports, support for two 6K external displays and 2.5Gb Ethernet. The Ethernet option and all four Thunderbolt 4 ports are tied to the 12-core model, so the cheaper starting price should not be read as including every connection listed in the announcement.

The 10-core CPU and 10-core GPU iMac starts at $1,499 in the US, or $1,449 for eligible education customers. The 12-core CPU and GPU configuration starts at $1,699, or $1,599 with education pricing. Pre-orders begin on 28 October in 35 countries and regions, and devices are due to arrive on 6 November. Local pricing and availability will vary.

The iMac ships with macOS 27, including Apple’s newer Siri AI and other Apple Intelligence tools. Apple positions the M6 as a stronger platform for running some models locally, where data can remain on the machine. That is useful, but it does not mean every AI feature is entirely on-device or available in every region. Buyers should check the software and language requirements for the features they intend to use.

For readers following Apple’s wider desktop and laptop refresh, the iMac arrives alongside the M6 MacBook Pro. TechBooky had previously examined what Apple might show at its October event; the official specifications now replace that pre-launch uncertainty. The iMac’s appeal remains straightforward: a screen, computer, camera and speakers in one tidy package. The upgrade decision turns on whether the M6 performance and newer connectivity justify replacing a still-capable older machine.