Apple Does Not Plan to Bring Back a 27-Inch iMac With Apple Silicon: Report

Apple refreshed the 24-inch iMac at its ‘Scary Fast' showcase event in October, bringing its latest M3 chipset to the sole iMac product. The company first introduced the M1-powered 24-inch model in 2021 and discontinued the Intel-based 27-inch iMac a year later. Now, Apple has reportedly confirmed that it does not plan to bring back the larger model with Apple Silicon onboard. The Cupertino, California-based company instead will remain focused on the 24-inch iMac.

According to a report in The Verge, Apple will not make a 27-inch iMac with its in-house chip onboard. The company confirmed its intentions to The Verge and said that it plans to focus the iMac line around the 24-inch model.

The company also reportedly urged customers waiting to buy a larger iMac to instead get Apple's Studio Display, which features a 27-inch 5K Retina panel, and pair it with a Mac Studio or a Mac Mini. This would, however, not be an all-in-one machine like an iMac.

While plans for a 27-inch iMac seem to be on the back burner, Apple could be working on a larger Pro variant of the iMac. According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, the company will introduce the biggest iMac it has ever released in late 2024 or 2025. The iMac Pro will reportedly sport a 32-inch screen and will likely be powered by higher-end (Pro and Max) Apple Silicon. Ming-Chi Kuo, a prominent Apple analyst, also confirmed the same last month and added that the 32-inch iMac Pro would sport a mini-LED display.

The 27-inch iMac, which was discontinued in 2022, was powered by 10th-generation Intel Core processors paired with AMD graphics. The model packed SSD storage across the lineup.

The 27-inch iMac featured a 1080p FaceTime HD webcam
Photo Credit: Apple

The current 24-inch iMac is powered by Apple's base M3 chip and features a similar design to the M1-powered iMac twin from 2021. Launched on October 30 at Apple's showcase event for Mac computers, the refreshed iMac M3 model comes with an 8-core CPU and up to a 10-core GPU. The 24-inch iMac, with an 8-core CPU, 8-core GPU, 8GB of memory, and a 256GB SSD storage, starts at Rs. Rs. 1,34,900. The higher-end model with a 10-core GPU starts at Rs. 1,54,900.

Apple is also reportedly planning to launch new iPad models around March 2024. The company is reportedly working on refreshes for iPad Air, the entry-level iPad, and iPad mini. A new iPad Pro could also arrive further down the line.