Update: Apple at its "Scary Fast" event on October 30 announced an updated M3-powered 24-inch iMac, as well as new 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models with M3 series chips.
Apple is likely planning a new iMac launch event this month that will take place on either Monday, October 30 or Tuesday, October 31, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
The well-connected reporter's prediction is based on information obtained from sources with apparent knowledge of Apple's plans, as well as the fact that some existing Mac models are in short supply online and at Apple retail stores.
Gurman notes that several configurations of Apple's 24-inch iMac are facing shipping delays running into mid-November. This delay alone is "a clear sign that something is about to happen," says Gurman.
Another reason leads the reporter to believe a Mac announcement will happen next week: Apple's earnings call is due to take place on Thursday, November 2. The last time the company posted its quarterly results in the month of November was in 2018, and that followed an October 30 launch event that saw new iPads and Macs.
M3 iMac?
Gurman reckons that the most likely Mac to be announced this month is a new 24-inch iMac. Launched in April 2021, the current iMac has not been updated for more than 900 days, and it is the only remaining model in Apple's Mac lineup still using the M1 chip.
The reporter's latest report reveals little about what improvements the new iMac will bring, but he has previously said that Apple's next iMac will leapfrog the M2 and instead adopt the rumored new, as-yet unannounced M3 chip.
Apple's M3 chip is widely expected to be fabricated with TSMC's 3nm process for significant performance and power efficiency improvements compared to the current 5nm-based M2 chip, which debuted in June 2022.
MacRumors received information in early October indicating that Apple was preparing to accept some of its latest Mac models for trade-in, suggesting it may be proceeding with plans to release new Mac models. Whether this correlates with the launch of a new iMac in October remains to be seen.
