Apple iMac 24″ (M4) vs Apple Macintosh Plus

Every spec side by side, from each maker's published figures.

Better figure, where one is clearly better

iMac 24″ (M4) compared with Macintosh Plus
AppleiMac 24″ (M4)AppleMacintosh Plus
Overview
ReleasedNovember 2024January 1986
Performance
ProcessorApple M468000 8 MHz (Macintosh Plus)
CPU cores8 or 101
Graphics8-core GPU or 10-core GPU–
AI engine (NPU)38 TOPS–
Memory16 GB, 24 GB or 32 GB (better)1 MB
Storage256 GB to 2 TB–
CPU8-core CPU with 4 performance cores and 4 efficiency cores (two-port model), or 10-core CPU with 4 performance cores and 6 efficiency cores (four-port models)8 MHz 68000 with 16-bit data path; no PMMU, FPU, cache or second processor. BYTE descriptive coverage identifies Motorola and 7.8336 MHz; maker's nominal 8 MHz retained
Memory type–1 MB standard, expandable to 4 MB using four 30-pin SIMM slots; maker lists 256K or 1 MB modules installed in pairs, minimum speed 150 ns, and excludes two-chip 1 MB SIMMs. 128K ROM
GPUHardware-accelerated ray tracing–
AI engine16-core Neural Engine–
Memory bandwidth120GB/s–
Storage typeSSD800K removable floppy drive with automatic loading; no internal hard drive or hard-drive interface. External storage connects over SCSI
Expansion slots–None
Media engineHardware-accelerated H.264, HEVC, ProRes and ProRes RAW; video decode engine; video encode engine; ProRes encode and decode engine; AV1 decode–
Display
Screen size24″9″
Resolution4480 × 2520 (better)512 × 342
PanelIPS LCDCRT
Refresh rate60 Hz–
Brightness500 nits–
Display type4.5K Retina display; actual diagonal 23.5 inchesBuilt-in one-bit monochrome CRT; 9-inch diagonal confirmed in Apple's original SE/30 owner manual, Macintosh product-line appendix. Maker's explicit 512 × 342 note corrects its generic 512 × 384 table
Pixel density218 ppi–
Display features1 billion colours; wide colour (P3); True Tone; nano-texture glass option on four-port models–
Connections
Ports2 × Thunderbolt 4, headphone jackHeadphone jack
External displaysUp to 1–
Wi-FiWi-Fi 6E–
Bluetooth5.3–
Camera12MP Center Stage–
Back ports2 × Thunderbolt / USB 4 (two-port model) or 4 × Thunderbolt 4 (four-port models), each with Thunderbolt 4 and USB 4 (up to 40Gb/s), USB 3.1 Gen 2 (up to 10Gb/s) and DisplayPort; Gigabit Ethernet on the power adapter, standard on four-port models and optional on the two-port modelDB-25 SCSI, DB-19 external floppy, printer and modem serial ports, speaker/headphone output; separate keyboard and mouse connections. No Ethernet or external video
External displaysTwo-port model: one at up to 6K 60Hz; four-port models: two at up to 6K 60Hz, or one at up to 8K 60Hz–
Camera12MP Center Stage camera with Desk View; 1080p HD video recording; advanced image signal processor with computational video–
SpeakersHigh-fidelity six-speaker system with force-cancelling woofers; wide stereo sound; Spatial Audio with Dolby Atmos–
MicrophonesStudio-quality three-mic array with high signal-to-noise ratio and directional beamforming–
Keyboard and mouseMagic 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 insteadSeparate mouse and keyboard; BYTE describes the keyboard's numeric keypad and cursor keys
Design and power
TypeAll-in-oneAll-in-one
Weight4.42 kg–
Width × depth × height547 × 147 × 461 mm–
Operating systemmacOSmacOS
Size and weight detail–Maker 16.5 lb; 13.6 in height × 9.6 in width × 10.9 in depth, retained in original units
Power supply143W external power adapter; power lead (2 m)Maximum 60 W, 105–125 V, 50–60 Hz, 0.5 A; 4.5 V alkaline
Materials100% recycled aluminium in the stand; more than 15% recycled content overall–
ColoursBlue, Purple, Pink, Orange, Yellow, Green, Silver–
In the boxiMac, Magic Keyboard (with Touch ID on four-port models), Magic Mouse, 143W power adapter, power lead (2 m), USB-C Charge Cable, polishing cloth (nano-texture glass only)Original system software 1.1; maker introduced 16 January 1986, discontinued 15 October 1990. Release month from Macworld's historical timeline; exact first-sale day unverified

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