Your complete guide to the best Apple hardware and third-party accessories

EDITED BY ROB MEAD-GREEN

iMac

From £1,049

The iMac’s all-in-one design combines power and poise - especially in the higher-end 27in models.

= Retina display

Ever since the famous Bondi Blue iMac debuted in August 1998, Apple’s all-in-one desktop computer has been setting standards in gorgeous design and powerful performance. Apple’s innovation was as clear back then as it is today - the iMac was the first Macintosh to drop the floppy drive in favour of USB, and its colourful aesthetic set it apart as a playful option in a world of beige boxes.

The current entry-level 21.5in iMac is unchanged from 2017. Intel processors in the other models range from a quad-core, eighth-gen Core i3 up to a six-core, eighth-gen i5 as standard. A six-core, ninth-gen Core i5 comes as standard on the top-end 27in iMac, and is available as an option on the mid-range 27in - it’s pricy, though.

All but the entry-level iMac have a Retina 4K or 5K display with a wide P3 colour gamut, a Fusion Drive (which marries a traditional hard drive with an SSD), and AMD Radeon Pro graphics processors.

We suggest opting for a solid-state drive from the Build to Order list as the performance gains can be considerable. Adding a 512GB SSD to the top-spec 27in model only costs an extra £100, although the £700 asking price for the 2TB version is just silly.

iMac super power

If you love the iMac form factor, but want even more oomph, the iMac Pro is an impressive step up.

Prices start at £4,899 for a 27in iMac Pro with a Retina 5K display, eight-core Intel Xeon W processor 32GB of RAM, 1TB SSD and AMD Radeon Pro Vega graphics - and rise inexorably from there, thanks to an extensive Build to Order list.

A fully kitted out iMac Pro - equipped with an 18-core Intel Xeon W CPU, 256GB of RAM, Radeon Pro Vega 64X graphics and a 4TB SSD will set you back a cool £14,199.

The iMac Pro also gets four Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) ports and an exclusive Space Grey finish.

Choose aniMac

MacBook Pro

From £1,299

The MacBook Pro 16-inch features the Magic Keyboard and an improved graphics chip.

In November 2019, Apple replaced the 15in model with a MacBook Pro 16-inch. The larger screen machine comes with a Magic Keyboard with a redesigned scissor mechanism, and a six-speaker sound system. The notebook also brings back a physical œ key, while retaining the Touch Bar.

The MBP 16in can be configured with a six- or eight-core ninth-generation Intel processor and 64GB of memory. There are 512GB, 1TB, 2TB, 4TB or 8TB storage options. A new thermal design increases airflow and an AMD Radeon Pro 5000M series GPU helps boost graphics performance by 2.1 times. Powering all this is a larger 100Whr battery, the largest possible in a notebook, offering up to 11 hours of browsing and video playback time.