The M4 iMac has one new key feature that makes it worth upgrading

The M4 iMac has a few new features: a faster chip, some new shades of the existing colours, and the option to get it with Nano-textured glass, which gives it a matte display that reduces glare. There’s also a new webcam that looks pretty great during video calls.

There are arguments to be made for the chip upgrade, but to me, it’s the new glass that really makes an impact. Since these computers are generally in family rooms or bright waiting rooms, I think this is a huge upgrade. It also came to the new M4 MacBook Pro and the M4 iPad Pro this year, and it’s easily one of the best upgrades for usability on a computer I’ve experienced in years.

If you have an existing M-series iMac, I don’t think you need to jump at this upgrade since the power of all modern iMacs is nothing to scoff at, but if you get annoyed by glare, this new display option can make a big difference.

When I benchmarked the new M4 iMac (10-core version), it actually surpassed the M3 Pro (12-core) in both single- and multi-core performance tests, so it’s safe to say that this thing flies. When it comes to GPU performance, the M3 Pro still outperforms the M4 chip, but the 10-core version we had still handled creative apps with relative ease, especially since the base models now come with 16GB of RAM.

In day-to-day use for the tasks, I expect people to be using the M4 iMac for it’s more than enough. While I’ve been testing the 10-core version, I actually expect most people could easily get away with the 8-core base model and spend their money on more storage space since that should help you use the computer for a longer period of time. If you plan to do any light creative work in apps like Photoshop or Final Cut Pro, perhaps it’s worth getting the extra cores, but for web browsing, spreadsheets, and running a small handful of apps at a time, the 8-core is enough.

The only other difference between the eight and 10-core CPU versions is that the latter has four Thunderbolt 4 ports on the back, and the 8-core option only comes with two. Again, for the type of user I expect to buy this default option, it shouldn’t matter, but if you plan to have a lot of accessories, the 10-core will allow you to do so with fewer adapters. The power button is also on the back in the opposite corner of the ports, and the headphone jack is on the left edge.

The new colours are nice, and the green model I tested fits into my home perfectly. The colours are subjective, but I would push most people to get whatever colour they think fits best in their homes and avoid the grey one. It’s minimal and looks nice, but there are very few computers you can get with fun colours like this, so I think you should take advantage of it while you can. Another thing that’s really grown on me and my girlfriend now that we have an iMac in the house is the white bezels. It’s a small thing, but since pretty much every other display on the market has black bezels, the white front on the iMac seems more friendly, and we like how unique it is.

Tucked in the top of the bezel is a 12-megapixel camera that supports Centre Stage so the camera can pan and move around as you shift in your chair to keep you in the centre of the frame. Personally, I find webcams all have a pretty distinct low-bitrate look, so I could care less about these small updates, but at the end of the day, the new one is better and has support for ‘Desk View’ which means you can use it to demo something on your desk over a call pretty easily.

The colour-matched accessories are also very fun and help make the iMac setup feel cohesive. It’s a little unfortunate that you can’t buy the iMac bundled with a trackpad and a mouse anymore, but I assume most people are just using one or the other, so I’m likely in the minority for wanting both. A nice plus this year is that all the magic accessories use USB-C to charge, and the iMac comes with a nice colour-matched braided USB-C to C cable to power them up.

This is my first time using a Magic Mouse, and while I think the hatred for it is overblown online, it’s not my favourite mouse ever. The gestures you can use on it are really handy, but personally, I still find myself using Zoom and Mission Control shortcuts on the keyboard, so I don’t take advantage of the gestures as much as I can. I really wish I could swipe sideways on the Magic Mouse to scroll left and right on apps/websites that call for it. Without that gesture, I would recommend that most people go for a Magic Trackpad and buy a third-party mouse that’s a bit more ergonomic, like a Logitech Mx Master, since it has more controls than the Magic Mouse and is a bit more comfortable to use. That said, after using the Magic Mouse for a week, it’s not bad by any means and will easily work for most. Just make sure you turn on the secondary click option in the settings app to right-click with it.

The best-looking computer around

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When it comes down to it, I think a lot of people will love the M4 iMac. It has fun colours and a great design, and it comes with all the accessories you need right out of the box, so setup is super easy. If I were recommending a desktop computer to my mom or Alex’s parents, this would be at the top of my list.

For most, I’d also recommend springing for the Nano-texture display. Even in darker rooms, it’s just so much less reflective, helping the display maintain a uniform look no matter the lighting conditions. That said, you do need to get the 10-core version to have this option, so you’ll have to weigh whether paying $250 for the chip upgrade and then another $250 for the display upgrade are worth it for you.

Overall, I really like this computer. The display is a little small for me since I like a big canvas for photo/video work, but my girlfriend Alex is mostly using her computers for email and writing right now. She loves the iMac because it looks so cute and clean with its matching accessories. There’s something nice about it being an all-in-one unit, and even the speakers on it are phenomenal.

If you want to get an iMac, the base model starts at $1,699 in Canada, which is a little high, but to get a Mac mini with a comparable monitor, mouse and keyboard, you’re in the same ballpark, so I think the price is justified. You could get a crappier 1080p screen, cheaper plastic accessories and basic speakers to bring the price down if you go the mini route, but for the all-in-one sleek look, this price makes sense.