Apple’s M6 iMac starts at $1,499, and a new base 14-inch MacBook Pro starts at $1,999. The iMac holds the M4 model’s price, The Verge reports, while the laptop replaces the M5 base model, 9to5Mac says. Pre-orders open October 28 and both ship November 6, after yesterday’s OLED iPad mini and ahead of Apple’s Wednesday Pro and Tell event.
Key Takeaways
- M6 iMac starts at $1,499 with up to 5x faster on-device AI than M4.
- Base 14-inch MacBook Pro starts at $1,999 with a GPU up to 30% faster than M5.
- Pre-orders open October 28, and both computers ship on November 6.
- The iMac skips M5 and adds Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6, and an N1 wireless chip.
M6 iMac Specs Skip the M5 Generation
MacRumors says colors remain blue, green, pink, yellow, purple, orange, and silver, with a 24-inch 4.5K Retina display up to 500 nits. It still has a 12-megapixel Center Stage camera with Desk View, six speakers, three microphones, a headphone jack, and support for Apple Intelligence and Siri AI.
The Verge calls M6 Apple’s first 2nm chip and says this iMac skips M5, two years after the M4 overhaul. The chip, first used in the Mac mini in August, has a dual 16-core Neural Engine and Neural Accelerators in each GPU core. Memory bandwidth moves from 120GB/s on M4 to 170GB/s.
Apple’s press release, as quoted by The Verge, says the M6 iMac “delivers up to 5x faster on-device AI performance” compared to the M4 model. MacRumors reports that Apple also says graphics are up to 2× faster than the previous model. Separately, that outlet says Apple claims the new model is up to 12× faster than the M1 iMac and up to 18× faster than the final Intel-based iMac.
MacRumors also cites up to twice as fast SSD read and write speeds via PCIe 5.0. It points to Mac mini Geekbench results for up to around 40% faster CPU performance on the higher-end iMac versus M4.
The $1,499 iMac uses a 10-core CPU and 10-core GPU, with 16GB of memory, 256GB of storage, and two Thunderbolt 4 ports. The Verge says that price matches the 8-core M4 iMac. For $1,699, the chip moves to 12 CPU cores and 12 GPU cores, with four Thunderbolt 4 ports.
Base MacBook Pro Performance Claims
The base 14-inch MacBook Pro starts at $1,999 with 16GB of unified memory and 1TB of storage, in silver or space black, and replaces the M5 version. Apple is still selling M5 Pro and M5 Max models. 9to5Mac quotes Apple:
M6 features an advanced 12-core CPU with the world’s fastest CPU core, so everything from productivity tasks to more demanding pro workflows feels incredibly fast and responsive.
Against M5, and in places against an M1 laptop, Apple lists these gains:
- The 12-core GPU is up to 30% faster than M5.
- The dual 16-core Neural Engine is up to 1.9x faster than M5.
- LLM time to first token is up to 13x faster than the 13-inch M1 MacBook Pro and up to 1.3x faster than the 14-inch M5.
- Xcode project builds are up to 2.5x faster than the 13-inch M1 MacBook Pro and up to 1.3x faster than the 14-inch M5.
Wireless steps up to Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6, from Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3. Ports include HDMI, MagSafe 3, three Thunderbolt 4 ports, an SD card slot, and a headphone jack, plus a 12-megapixel Center Stage camera. Fast charging reaches 50% in 30 minutes with a higher-wattage USB-C adapter, such as the 96W Power Adapter.
Prices, Ports, and Configuration Fees
| Spec | iMac, $1,499 | iMac, $1,699 | MacBook Pro, $1,999 |
|---|---|---|---|
| CPU / GPU | 10-core / 10-core | 12-core / 12-core | 12-core / 12-core |
| Thunderbolt 4 ports | Two | Four | Three |
| Ships | November 6 | November 6 | November 6 |
The Verge reports that a Magic Trackpad instead of a Magic Mouse now costs $50, after a free swap on the prior model. A 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet adapter is a $30 option on the base iMac and standard at $1,699; the previous adapter was 1 Gigabit. 9to5Mac quotes a promise of “up to 2.5x faster wired connectivity than the previous generation.”
Thunderbolt still splits by chip: two ports on the 10-core iMac and four on the 12-core. The Verge says Apple will not configure a Touch ID Magic Keyboard without a numeric keypad, despite showing that layout on the announcement page. MacRumors says the included Magic Mouse and Touch ID keyboard are unchanged, with RAM up to 32GB and storage up to 2TB.
Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6 now come on the base iMac through the N1 chip, up from Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3. iMac pre-orders open October 28 at 10:10 a.m. Pacific, MacRumors and 9to5Mac report; The Verge lists 1:10 p.m. Eastern. The MacBook Pro also opens for pre-order that day, and both ship Friday, November 6.
What Buyers Should Weigh
The $1,499 iMac sticker needs context: MacRumors says the prior model hit that price only after a June increase from $1,299. A $50 trackpad swap or $30 Ethernet option can move the real price off the ad.
iMac owners on M4 get the clearer step, because this desktop skipped M5. Pro and Max shoppers may want Wednesday first. 9to5Mac says those laptops are rumored for a large upgrade, including OLED touchscreens, as soon as tomorrow. See expected MacBook Pro and Air updates, and treat the screens as a rumor.
