You can also pick between different variations of the M4. If you don’t need all the processing power, the entry-level model has an eight-core CPU and an eight-core GPU. You can upgrade to a 10-core CPU and a 10-core GPU. All models start with 16 GB of RAM instead of 8 GB, with the option to go up to 32 GB (depending on the processor). As for storage, you can upgrade up to 2 terabytes for an additional cost, but you start with 256 GB.
Photograph: Apple
The increase in RAM will allow for a smoother experience with Apple Intelligence (it’s why Apple increased RAM to 8 GB on the iPhone 16 models). Available with macOS Sequoia 15.1, you’ll have access to features like Writing Tools, an overhauled Siri, Summaries for transcriptions in the Notes app, Smart Reply in Messages, and more. You can read all about these features, along with all the other new additions in Sequoia, in our roundup.
Apple Intelligence isn’t exclusive to the M4, but it’s clear that Apple is on a crusade to update all of its hardware so that Apple Intelligence is at the forefront of its operating systems. As Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman pointed out in his Power On newsletter, it took Apple three years to update the iMac with an M3 chip—the company launched the M4 version in 12 months.
Still, like the M3 iMac, the latest model is largely another spec bump. If you have a recent iMac—even the one from 2021—you can at the very least upgrade to the USB-C peripherals separately if you don’t need the bump in performance but want to finally ditch those Lightning accessories.
