Apple's next iMac might get a major upgrade, but you'll have to wait for it

iMac (24-inch, 2021) shown on top of a desk
(Image credit: Future)

The rumor mill is spinning again; this time, it’s to reports of a new iMac model that could be hitting store shelves as soon as late 2023.

According to Mark Gurman at Bloomberg, the iMac would skip the Apple M2 chip and jump up to the Apple M3 chip. In his newsletter, Gurman states: “I haven’t seen anything to indicate there will be a new iMac until the M3 chip generation, which won’t arrive until the tail end of this year at the earliest or next year.”

Apple relaunched the iMac in 2021 with a brand-new design and a gorgeous 24-inch screen. It made its debut with Apple’s then-brand-new silicon and received high marks from us in our iMac review for its excellent display, great webcam, and much better performance than its predecessor, so getting a new iMac model is definitely something we've been looking forward too. It's a shame if it'll be so late to hit the scene, though.

Is an M3 iMac release really possible?

This isn’t the first time this rumor has come up regarding the M3 iMac, as Gurman's asserted this same claim in 2022, down to the year of release. And Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has also chimed in on the past and present rumors, stating that a Mac Pro and iMac Pro would be released in 2023. 

He also noted that the M3 iMac will have a “similar form factor design,” which matches what Apple did with the Mac mini and the MacBook Pro by keeping the exterior mostly the same while changing the internal design.

And though there’s no official confirmation concerning the next iMac having an M3 chip or releasing this year, Apple hasn’t included the iMac in its suite of M2 products which feature the MacBook Air, Mac mini, and MacBook Pro.

It seems that an M3 iMac release is at least on track, with reports from such reliable sources, though without official confirmation it’s important to take this all with a heavy pinch of salt.

Allisa James
Computing Staff Writer

Named by the CTA as a CES 2023 Media Trailblazer, Allisa is a Computing Staff Writer who covers breaking news and rumors in the computing industry, as well as reviews, hands-on previews, featured articles, and the latest deals and trends. In her spare time you can find her chatting it up on her two podcasts, Megaten Marathon and Combo Chain, as well as playing any JRPGs she can get her hands on.