Apple iMac M4 Yellow 2024

The Apple iMac M4 is a stunning all-in-one desktop with a brilliant 4.5K display and the fast, quiet M4 chip. It's perfect for everyday productivity and creative work in the Apple ecosystem, but the stingy base storage and weak gaming performance mean it's not for power users or gamers. If you want a beautiful, hassle-free computer and can find a good deal, it's a fantastic buy.

The M4 chip inside this iMac is a 10-core beast for everyday productivity. In our database, the CPU lands in the 56th percentile, which sounds middle-of-the-road, but that's against a sea of high-end desktop CPUs. In practice, apps like Photoshop and Excel open in a blink, and multitasking with dozens of Safari tabs while streaming music doesn't cause a stutter. The 16GB of unified memory is a bit of a sore spot, sitting in the 33rd percentile. It's enough for most people today, but power users who keep a hundred Chrome tabs open while editing 4K video might feel the pinch.

Gaming is the iMac's clear weak spot, scoring a 30.6 out of 100 in our testing. The integrated 10-core GPU is fine for Apple Arcade titles and light indie games, but it's not going to run Cyberpunk 2077 at any respectable frame rate. This is not a gaming rig, and it doesn't pretend to be. For photo editing, video calls, and general productivity, though, the performance is snappy and the whole system runs whisper-quiet, which is a huge plus in a shared space.

Stacked against Windows all-in-ones like the HP OMEN GT22-3080 or the Lenovo Legion Tower 5a Gen 10, the iMac M4 is playing a completely different game. Those machines are bulky towers built for gaming and raw GPU power, while the iMac is a sleek lifestyle device. The HP and Lenovo will absolutely destroy the iMac in gaming benchmarks, but they can't touch the iMac's display quality, build design, or silent operation. The Dell Tower ECT1250 is another traditional desktop that offers more expandability, but again, it's a big box with a separate monitor. If you want a clean, minimalist desk with a brilliant screen and don't care about playing AAA games, the iMac is in a league of its own. The ASUS ROG G700 is a gaming powerhouse, but it's loud, large, and runs Windows, which is either a pro or a con depending on your workflow.

Pricing on the iMac M4 is all over the map depending on where you look, with a spread from $1,177 to $1,899 across vendors. That's a $722 difference, so shopping around is a must. At the lower end of that range, you're getting a fantastic deal on a premium all-in-one. At the higher end, you're creeping into MacBook Pro territory or a very well-specced Windows desktop. For the base model we tested, the value proposition hinges entirely on how much you value the stunning display and macOS experience. If you can snag it closer to $1,200, it's a steal for a family computer or creative workstation.

The Apple iMac M4 is the latest version of Apple's iconic all-in-one desktop, and it's basically the poster child for 'it just works.' If you're searching for a 24-inch all-in-one computer that looks as good as it performs, this is probably the one you've seen in every coffee shop and design studio. Our test unit came with the 10-core M4 chip, 16GB of RAM, and a 256GB SSD, which is the base configuration you'll find at most retailers. The design is impossibly thin, comes in a bunch of fun colors, and the 4.5K Retina display is genuinely stunning right out of the box.

Setup is a breeze, especially if you're already in the Apple ecosystem. You can literally copy something on your iPhone and paste it on the Mac, and the new iPhone Mirroring feature lets you control your phone right from the desktop. It's these little quality-of-life things that make the iMac feel less like a computer and more like a natural extension of your digital life. For home offices, family rooms, or dorm desks, it fits perfectly without the cable clutter of a traditional tower.

But let's be real: this isn't a machine for everyone. The base 256GB of storage is pretty tight in 2024, and the integrated graphics, while snappy for everyday tasks, aren't going to satisfy serious gamers. Still, for the vast majority of people browsing, streaming, and doing creative work, the M4 chip makes everything feel instant. It's a machine built for Apple Intelligence, and you can feel that polish in every animation and app launch.

You should skip the iMac M4 if you're a PC gamer or need a machine with serious graphical horsepower. The integrated GPU just can't keep up with modern gaming titles, and a Windows desktop like the HP OMEN or ASUS ROG G700 will serve you far better for that. Also, if you need tons of internal storage for large video projects or a massive photo library, the 256GB base drive will fill up fast, and you'll be stuck relying on external SSDs. Anyone who likes to tinker, upgrade components, or needs a touch screen for drawing should look at a Windows all-in-one or a MacBook Pro with an iPad in Sidecar mode.

Should you buy the Apple iMac M4? If you're a student, a creative professional, or just someone who wants a beautiful, fast, and quiet family computer that stays out of the way, the answer is a resounding yes. It's the best all-in-one on the market for people who live in the Apple ecosystem and prioritize design and display quality over raw, expandable power. The M4 chip makes everyday computing a joy, and the 4.5K screen is a treat for your eyes.

But if you're a gamer, or someone who needs tons of local storage and the ability to upgrade RAM down the line, you should look elsewhere. This machine is not built for you. The base storage is a real limitation, and the lack of a touch screen or any internal expandability means you need to buy the configuration you'll need for the next five years right now. For everyone else, it's a delightful, premium experience that's easy to recommend.