Apple’s new M3 iMac is twice as fast and gaming-ready — and you can preorder now

Apple just unveiled the brand-new iMac with its speedy new M3 processor, which offers tons of performance gains against both the previous Apple silicon iMac and its Intel ancestors. I just received an early look at the new iMac in all of its different hues, so let’s break down why this news has me looking at my credit card (yes, it’s available for preorder now).

Usually, Apple’s computers only take one step forward at a time, going across single generations of its chips. Today, the 24-inch iMac leaps across a whole generation of Apple silicon, moving from the M1 to the M3.

So, what’s new? Apple boasts that the iMac with M3 (which has a release date of Tuesday, Nov. 7) is up to twice as fast as the previous generation. Of course, it’s even faster than the older Intel-based iMacs, so those holdouts who’ve yet to upgrade have more reason to step right up. The M3 iMac has a starting price of $1,299, the same as the M1 iMac.

The boldest new features of the new M3 chips should appeal to Mac owners who game, a subset of the user base that’s finally getting attention in the Apple silicon era. Unlike the new M3 MacBook Pro (also available with the M3 Pro and M3 Max), the iMac is just getting the standard M3, which looks to be enough for some solid gaming. This new chip offers hardware-accelerated ray tracing for natural lighting and shadows as well as hardware-accelerated mesh shading for increasingly complicated graphics in games. As for the actual games you’ll play on it, Apple’s been hyping up the Mac versions of major AAA titles, such as Death Stranding Director’s Cut and the Resident Evil 4 remake — plus, Baldur’s Gate just got its macOS release recently.

As for specs, the entry-level $1,299 iMac features an M3 chip with 8-core CPU and 8-core GPU, 8GB of memory and a 256GB SSD. As for input and output, it’s got dual Thunderbolt ports and Apple’s Magic Keyboard and Magic Mouse. You can upgrade to the $1,499 option with a 10-core GPU, a pair of USB 3 ports, a Gigabit Ethernet port and the Magic Keyboard with Touch ID. All models also feature Wi-Fi 6E connectivity, a 1080p FaceTime camera and a six-speaker sound system. And, of course, you get all the standard perks of using a Mac with an iPhone, such as easily sending files between devices.

The new 2023 iMac shares the same shocking and eye-catching design that we loved on the 2021 iMac, comprised of a thin 24-inch, 4.5K Retina display with a stand that will make you wonder, “Where did they put the computer?” Annoyingly, not every color is available on every model. Just like with the M1 iMacs, the $1,299 model is available in green, pink, blue and silver, while the $1,499 model is sold in green, yellow, orange, pink, purple, blue and silver. Personally, I like the looks of the pink and green models.

As for who the iMac with M3 is for, my best bet is on the people who don’t feel like they push their tech to the limits but still want enough power for some creative work and casual gaming. When I got my early look at the new iMac, I saw how impressively Final Cut Pro runs with four 4K streams of footage, and it looks to run all the standard productivity apps with a buttery-smooth nature that will have you forgetting to ever close anything.

But should you upgrade? Stay tuned for our full review of the M3 iMac to find out. If you want that M3 power in something more portable, check out our thoughts on the new M3 MacBook Pros, which look to be some of the top laptops and MacBooks.