Apple refreshes the iMac with M6 chips: Apple is updating the iMac with M6

Apple is updating the iMac with M6 chips, giving the all-in-one desktop a more powerful chip. The Verge's report, by Jess Weatherbed and published at 1:05 PM UTC on October 27, 2026, says the new generation was introduced today, ahead of Apple's "Pro and Tell" event scheduled for Wednesday. The performance boost uses the same chipset Apple launched with the Mac Mini in August. Prices start at $1,499, and the design otherwise appears largely unchanged. Weatherbed, who started at TechRadar covering news and hardware reviews, writes about creative industries, computing, and internet culture.

This piece covers the two M6 configurations, the $1,499 and $1,699 starting prices, Apple's on-device AI claim versus the M4 iMac, and the Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and Thunderbolt details. It is for shoppers comparing an 8-core CPU M4 iMac with this refresh, and for anyone timing a purchase to preorders at 1:10 PM ET on October 28 and full availability on November 6.

Apple refreshes the iMac with M6 chips: what actually changed

The change in this iMac is the chip. Apple introduced the new generation today with M6 chips, a more powerful chip in the all-in-one, and the design otherwise appears largely unchanged. The colorful M4 overhaul was two years ago, and Apple is skipping the M5 series entirely on this hardware. Jess Weatherbed writes that skipping M5 should make the upgrade more meaningful. The M6 here is the same chipset Apple launched with the Mac Mini in August, with prices starting from $1,499.

Apple detailed two configurations. A 10-core CPU and a 10-core GPU start at $1,499, the same price as the 8-core CPU-equipped M4 iMac. A 12-core CPU and a 12-core GPU start at $1,699. The base model now has Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6, which had been limited to the higher-spec variant. Thunderbolt ports match the M4 iMac: two ports on the 10-core version and four on the 12-core upgrade. Preorders open at 1:10 PM ET on October 28, and the iMac is fully available starting November 6.

Apple refreshes the iMac with M6 chips: how it works

The M6 is Apple's first 2nm chip. In the iMac it includes a dual 16-core Neural Engine that can boost performance when running on-device AI tasks. Apple's press release says the M6-powered iMac "delivers up to 5x faster on-device AI performance" compared with the M4 model. That figure is Apple's on-device AI comparison with the M4 iMac. The chipset is the one Apple launched with the Mac Mini in August, carried into the all-in-one two years after the M4 overhaul.

The $1,499 iMac pairs a 10-core CPU with a 10-core GPU. The $1,699 iMac pairs a 12-core CPU with a 12-core GPU. Both are M6 configurations, and both include the dual 16-core Neural Engine that can boost on-device AI tasks. Port count follows the chip the way it did on the M4 iMac: two Thunderbolt ports on the 10-core version and four Thunderbolt ports on the 12-core upgrade. Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6 come on the base model, the $1,499 10-core machine. Those had been limited to the higher-spec variant.

Apple refreshes the iMac with M6 chips: why it matters now

Two years separate this iMac from Apple's colorful M4 overhaul, and Apple is skipping the M5 series entirely on this hardware. Jess Weatherbed writes that skipping the M5 series should make this upgrade more meaningful. The entry price stays $1,499, the same price as the 8-core CPU-equipped M4 iMac, while the entry M6 configuration moves to a 10-core CPU and a 10-core GPU. The design appears largely unchanged. The chipset is the M6 Apple launched with the Mac Mini in August.

Apple's press release supplies the AI number: the M6-powered iMac delivers up to 5x faster on-device AI performance than the M4 model. The silicon behind the claim is Apple's first 2nm chip and a dual 16-core Neural Engine that can boost on-device AI tasks. Besides the chip upgrade, the iMac gets little other new hardware. Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6 reach the base model after being limited to the higher-spec variant, and the Thunderbolt count stays at two ports on the 10-core iMac and four ports on the 12-core iMac.

Apple refreshes the iMac with M6 chips: who is affected

Shoppers looking at the model starting at $1,499 get a 10-core CPU, a 10-core GPU, and Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6 on the base model. That starting price matches the 8-core CPU-equipped M4 iMac. The 10-core machine has two Thunderbolt ports. Shoppers who want a 12-core CPU and a 12-core GPU start at $1,699, and that configuration has four Thunderbolt ports. The port split matches the M4 iMac Thunderbolt limit. Both of these configurations use Apple's first 2nm M6 chip.

People comparing an M4 iMac have the line in Apple's press release. It says the M6-powered iMac delivers up to 5x faster on-device AI performance than the M4 model. The M6 is Apple's first 2nm chip and includes a dual 16-core Neural Engine. The same chipset launched with the Mac Mini in August and now comes to this all-in-one. Preorders open at 1:10 PM ET on October 28, full availability starts November 6, and Apple's "Pro and Tell" event is set for Wednesday, after today's October 27 introduction.

Apple refreshes the iMac with M6 chips: what to watch

Wednesday is the next mark on Apple's calendar: the "Pro and Tell" event, which this iMac introduction on October 27, 2026, precedes. Preorders for the M6 all-in-one open at 1:10 PM ET on October 28. The computer is fully available to buyers starting November 6. At those preorders, the 10-core CPU and 10-core GPU model starts at $1,499, and the 12-core CPU and 12-core GPU model starts at $1,699. The same M6 chipset launched with the Mac Mini in August.

The design appears largely unchanged from the colorful M4 iMac overhaul of two years ago, and Apple skipped the M5 series on this hardware. Thunderbolt ports stay as they were on the M4 iMac, with two on the 10-core version and four on the 12-core upgrade. Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6 are on the base model now, after being limited to the higher-spec variant. Apple's press release says the M6-powered iMac delivers up to 5x faster on-device AI performance than the M4 model.