Apple iMac (21.5-inch, Mid 2010) vs Apple iMac 24″ (M3)

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iMac (21.5-inch, Mid 2010) compared with iMac 24″ (M3)

	AppleiMac (21.5-inch, Mid 2010)	AppleiMac 24″ (M3)
Overview
Released
Released	July 2010	November 2023
Performance
Processor
Processor	Intel Core i3-540, Intel Core i3-550 or Intel Core i5-680	Apple M3
CPU cores
CPU cores	2	8
CPU threads
CPU threads	4	–
Graphics
Graphics	ATI Radeon HD 4670 (256 MB GDDR3) or ATI Radeon HD 5670 (512 MB GDDR3)	8-core GPU or 10-core GPU
Memory
Memory	4 GB or 8 GB	8 GB or 24 GB (better)
Storage
Storage	500 GB to 2 TB	256 GB to 2 TB (better)
CPU
CPU	3.06 GHz dual-core Core i3-540 or 3.2 GHz dual-core Core i3-550, both with Hyper-Threading and 4 MB L3 cache; the higher model offers a 3.6 GHz dual-core Core i5-680 with Hyper-Threading and Turbo Boost. Exact processor identities cross-checked with EveryMac; unpublished optional boost figures omitted.	8-core CPU with 4 performance cores and 4 efficiency cores
GPU
GPU	3.06 GHz model has ATI Radeon HD 4670 with 256 MB GDDR3; 3.2 GHz and optional i5 models have ATI Radeon HD 5670 with 512 MB GDDR3	8-core GPU (two-port model) or 10-core GPU (four-port models); hardware-accelerated ray tracing
AI engine
AI engine	–	16-core Neural Engine
Memory bandwidth
Memory bandwidth	–	100GB/s
Memory type
Memory type	4 GB standard as two 2 GB modules, with factory upgrade to 8 GB in the UK launch release. Four user-accessible SO-DIMM slots support up to 16 GB of 1333 MHz DDR3; the user maximum is distinct from the published factory options.	–
Storage type
Storage type	Base model has a 500 GB 7200 rpm hard drive; higher model has 1 TB, configurable to 2 TB. Slot-loading 8x SuperDrive with double-layer DVD burning.	SSD
Media engine
Media engine	–	Hardware-accelerated H.264, HEVC, ProRes and ProRes RAW; video decode engine; video encode engine; ProRes encode and decode engine; AV1 decode
Display
Screen size
Screen size	21.5″	24″
Resolution
Resolution	1920 × 1080	4480 × 2520 (better)
Panel
Panel	IPS LCD	IPS LCD
Refresh rate
Refresh rate	–	60 Hz
Brightness
Brightness	330 nits	500 nits (better)
Display type
Display type	Glossy LED-backlit IPS widescreen display, 1920 × 1080 pixels; maker typical brightness 330 cd/m². Refresh rate unpublished and omitted.	4.5K Retina display; actual diagonal 23.5 inches
Pixel density
Pixel density	–	218 ppi
Display features
Display features	–	1 billion colours; wide colour (P3); True Tone
Connections
Ports
Ports	DisplayPort, 4 × USB-A, Ethernet, SD card slot, headphone jack	2 × USB4, headphone jack
Ethernet
Ethernet	1 Gb/s	–
External displays
External displays	Up to 1	Up to 1
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi	802.11n	Wi-Fi 6E
Bluetooth
Bluetooth	2.1 + EDR	5.3
Camera
Camera	iSight camera	1080p FaceTime HD
Back ports
Back ports	Mini DisplayPort audio/video output, four USB 2.0 ports, FireWire 800 at 7 W, Gigabit Ethernet, SDXC slot, headphone/optical digital output and line-in/optical digital input. FireWire and audio input appear here because the main port list has no fields for them.	Two-port model: 2 × Thunderbolt / USB 4 with DisplayPort, Thunderbolt 3 (up to 40Gb/s), USB 4 (up to 40Gb/s) and USB 3.1 Gen 2 (up to 10Gb/s), Gigabit Ethernet optional; four-port models add 2 × USB 3 (up to 10Gb/s) and Gigabit Ethernet as standard; 3.5 mm headphone jack with advanced support for high-impedance headphones
External displays
External displays	Full built-in resolution and one external display up to 2560 × 1600 simultaneously; extended desktop and mirroring, optional DVI/VGA/dual-link DVI adapters	One at up to 6K 60Hz
Camera
Camera	–	1080p FaceTime HD camera; advanced image signal processor with computational video
Speakers
Speakers	Built-in stereo speakers with two internal 17 W amplifiers, microphone and support for iPhone headset microphones	High-fidelity six-speaker system with force-cancelling woofers; wide stereo sound; Spatial Audio with Dolby Atmos
Microphones
Microphones	–	Studio-quality three-mic array with high signal-to-noise ratio and directional beamforming
Keyboard and mouse
Keyboard and mouse	Apple Wireless Keyboard and Magic Mouse; Magic Trackpad available separately	Magic Keyboard (two-port model) or Magic Keyboard with Touch ID (four-port models), and Magic Mouse; Magic Trackpad or Magic Keyboard with Touch ID and Numeric Keypad available instead
Design and power
Type
Type	All-in-one	All-in-one
Weight
Weight	9.3 kg	4.43 kg (better)
Width × depth × height
Width × depth × height	528 × 188.5 × 451 mm	547 × 147 × 461 mm
Operating system
Operating system	macOS	macOS
Power supply
Power supply	Maximum continuous power 241 W; 100–240 V AC, 50–60 Hz single phase	143W external power adapter; power lead (2 m)
Colours
Colours	–	Two-port model: Blue, Green, Pink, Silver; four-port models also Yellow, Orange, Purple
Materials
Materials	Aluminium and glass enclosure, arsenic-free display glass and mercury-free LED backlight; BFR-free and PVC-free components, with PVC-free AC cord availability limited to named regions	–
In the box
In the box	iMac, Apple Wireless Keyboard, Magic Mouse, cleaning cloth, power cord, install/restore DVDs and documentation; Mac OS X Snow Leopard and iLife at launch	iMac, Magic Keyboard (with Touch ID on four-port models), Magic Mouse, 143W power adapter, power lead (2 m), USB-C to Lightning Cable