Apple has upgraded its two most familiar Macs without changing much on the outside. The new 14-inch MacBook Pro and 24-inch iMac use the M6 processor, promising quicker graphics, stronger performance for demanding work and improved wireless connectivity. The bigger question is whether any of that justifies replacing the Mac you already own.
Announced on 27 October 2026, both machines became available to pre-order in the UK on Wednesday 28 October. Sales begin on Friday 6 November. The MacBook Pro starts at £1,999 and the iMac at £1,499.
An Intel Mac owner could have plenty to gain. Anyone already using an M4 or M5 machine, meanwhile, will need a better reason than a fresh chip name to spend four figures.
Apple M6 MacBook Pro and iMac: UK prices and release date
Apple has announced three starting configurations, with education discounts for eligible buyers. Memory and storage upgrades cost extra, and those choices may be more important than a small difference in chip performance.
| Model | UK price from | Education price from |
|---|---|---|
| 14-inch MacBook Pro with M6 | £1,999 | £1,899 |
| 24-inch iMac M6, 10-core CPU and GPU | £1,499 | £1,449 |
| 24-inch iMac M6, 12-core CPU and GPU | £1,699 | £1,599 |
The £200 gap between the two iMacs also covers differences in ports and configuration options. It is worth looking beyond the processor before deciding which one represents better value.
MacBook Pro M6: more speed in a familiar 14-inch laptop
The new MacBook Pro has a 12-core CPU, a 12-core GPU with Neural Accelerators and a Dual 16-core Neural Engine. It starts with 16GB of unified memory, can be configured with up to 32GB and offers memory bandwidth of 170GB/s. The extra memory bandwidth could be useful when an editing project, software build or local AI model is pushing an older machine hard.
In its official MacBook Pro announcement, Apple claims up to 30% faster graphics and up to 25% faster performance for selected AI tasks than M5. The tests were carried out by Apple, and the size of the improvement will vary between applications. A faster rendering benchmark does not mean everyday email and browsing suddenly feel 30% quicker.
Elsewhere, Apple has largely kept the hardware that made the 14-inch MacBook Pro appealing. It has a Liquid Retina XDR display with up to 1,600 nits of peak HDR brightness, an optional nano-texture finish, a 12MP Center Stage camera and six speakers. Connections include HDMI, an SDXC slot, three Thunderbolt 4 ports and MagSafe 3.
Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6 are added to the specification. Apple also quotes up to 24 hours of battery life and fast charging to 50% in roughly 30 minutes with a compatible high-wattage USB-C adapter. Those battery figures are best treated as upper limits rather than promises for people rendering video or running demanding software all day.
The finishes remain silver and space black. There is no larger screen or striking new chassis to tempt existing owners. Instead, Apple is relying on a familiar mix of display quality, battery life and useful connections.
M6 iMac: the cheaper model has some important limits
Apple has kept the iMac’s thin 24-inch all-in-one design, 4.5K Retina display and seven colours. It still makes sense for someone who wants a good screen, a capable computer and built-in audio without finding room for a separate desktop tower.
The £1,499 iMac combines a 10-core CPU with a 10-core GPU. The £1,699 version takes both to 12 cores. Each starts with 16GB of memory and 256GB of storage, but the lower-priced model tops out at 24GB and 1TB. The 12-core version can be configured with up to 32GB of memory and 2TB of storage.
The connections matter just as much. The 10-core version has two Thunderbolt 4 ports; the 12-core iMac has four. The 12-core iMac includes 2.5Gb Ethernet. Apple’s technical specifications also list it as a configurable option for the 10-core model, so buyers should check the exact connections on the machine they order. Both support Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6. Anyone relying on wired networking, external displays or several drives should check the exact specification before ordering.
Apple claims up to twice the graphics performance of the M4 iMac in selected tasks. It also quotes up to five times faster on-device AI prompt processing in a specific test. These are not blanket improvements across every app; the M6 iMac announcement sets out the comparisons.
The 12MP Center Stage camera, built-in speakers and colour-matched accessories help preserve the iMac’s appeal as an uncluttered home or office machine. The 256GB base storage is less appealing if you keep years of family photographs or work with large video files. Budgeting for storage at the outset may matter more than moving from ten cores to twelve.
What do macOS 27 and Siri AI add?
Both Macs run macOS 27 and support Apple Intelligence, including Siri AI. Apple says Siri can handle more conversational requests, find information across supported apps and carry out certain actions. Some features run locally, while others use server-side models and may be subject to usage limits.
Siri AI is still described as a beta feature in macOS 27.2, with language and regional conditions. If a specific AI tool is essential to your work, check that it is available before buying a new Mac for it. The rollout also affects iPhone owners, as covered in our iOS 27 and Siri AI report.
On-device AI is one area where M6 could make a genuine difference, especially in applications that use its graphics accelerators. Even so, enough memory and well-designed software matter more to most people than a big multiplier in a launch presentation.
Should you upgrade from M1, M4 or M5?
An older Intel Mac is the most convincing case for a change. Modern Apple silicon can provide substantial gains in responsiveness and efficiency, while newer software features may not be available on the machine you have now. An early M1 Mac may also be worth replacing if memory limits or slow exports are becoming a regular frustration.
For M4 and M5 owners, the decision is harder to justify. If a current Mac handles everything comfortably, buying another one merely to shave a little time off a task makes little financial sense. A replacement becomes more tempting when slow exports, tight memory or poor battery life are costing you time every week.
People buying their first Mac should think about the wider setup too. Working between an iPhone and Mac can be genuinely convenient, thanks to features such as AirDrop and Continuity, described in our Apple ecosystem guide. Those features are not exclusive to M6, though, and should not be mistaken for new hardware benefits.
Tech Torque Verdict
Apple has made two established Macs more capable without disturbing what makes them popular. The MacBook Pro offers portable performance, a strong display and a generous selection of ports. The iMac remains an attractive all-in-one, though its cheaper configuration deserves particular scrutiny over storage and connectivity.
Intel and some M1 owners have a sound reason to consider the new models. Owners of recent M-series Macs can afford to be more selective. Tech Torque Media has not independently tested either machine, and Apple’s performance and battery figures still need to be judged against real-world use.
