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iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2015) vs MacBook (Retina, 12-inch, Early 2015)

iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2015)1MacBook (Retina, 12-inch, Early 2015)2

Quick look

Quick look: iMac against MacBook
FigureiMac1MacBook2
Price£8993launch price£1,0494launch price
ChipCore i51.6GHz dual-core IntelCore M1.1GHz dual-core Intel
CPU2-coreCPU2-coreCPU
Memory8GBmemory, base8GBmemory, base
Storage1TBstorage, base256GBstorage, base
Battery life Not available5No batteryUp to10 hrsvideo playback, claimed
Released13 October 20153Released10 April 20156Available online; Apple gave no in-store day
Security updates16 September 20247Security updates ended2 February 20267Security updates ended
Price
The iMac is £899 at launch, per Apple Newsroom (UK); the MacBook is £1,049 at launch, per Apple Newsroom (UK).
Kind of Mac
The iMac is an all-in-one; the MacBook is a laptop. The MacBook has a battery, whereas the iMac has none.

True to scale

iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2015) · 528 × 450 mm frontMacBook (Retina, 12-inch, Early 2015) · 280.5 × 196.5 mm footprint

An all-in-one and a laptop are different shapes, so they stand side by side rather than superposed: the front face of one and the footprint of the other, from Apple’s published dimensions, at one scale. Corner rounding is our drawing convention, not a measurement.

Specifications

Each figure is from the source marked by its Mac’s name unless it carries its own small number, which links to where that figure was read.

Body

Body: Apple iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2015) against Apple MacBook (Retina, 12-inch, Early 2015)
SpecificationiMac1MacBook2
Dimensions450 x 528 x 175 mm3.5–13.1 x 280.5 x 196.5 mm
Weight5.68 kg0.92 kg
ColoursNot available8Silver, Gold, Space Gray
PortsTwo Thunderbolt 2 ports, four USB 3 ports, SDXC card slot, Gigabit Ethernet (RJ-45), 3.5 mm headphone jackUSB-C port, 3.5 mm headphone jack
Thunderbolt ports2No Thunderbolt ports.9
Thunderbolt versionThunderbolt 2Not available10
USB-A ports4No USB-A ports.9
HDMINo HDMI port.11No HDMI port.12
SD card slotYesNo SD card slot.12
Headphone jackYesYes
MagSafeNot available13No MagSafe port.12
KeyboardMagic KeyboardFull-size keyboard with LED-backlit keys
Touch IDNo Touch ID.11No Touch ID.12

Display

Display: Apple iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2015) against Apple MacBook (Retina, 12-inch, Early 2015)
SpecificationiMac1MacBook2
Display size21.5 in12 in
Resolution1920 x 10802304 x 1440
Pixel densityNot available8226 ppi
Display typeLED-backlit display with IPS technologyRetina display

Chip and memory

Chip and memory: Apple iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2015) against Apple MacBook (Retina, 12-inch, Early 2015)
SpecificationiMac1MacBook2
Chip1.6GHz dual-core Intel Core i51.1GHz dual-core Intel Core M
Apple siliconIntel processor, not Apple silicon.14Intel processor, not Apple silicon.9
CPU cores22
GraphicsIntel HD Graphics 6000Intel HD Graphics 5300
Chip options1.6GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 or 2.8GHz quad-core Intel Core i51.1GHz dual-core Intel Core M; 1.2GHz dual-core Intel Core M; 1.3GHz dual-core Intel Core M
Memory (base)8GB8GB
Memory (maximum)16GB8GB
Memory options8GB or 16GB8GB
Memory upgradeable by userNo, as Apple documents15No, as Apple documents16
Storage (base)1TB256GB
Storage (maximum)2TB512GB
Storage options1TB hard drive, 1TB or 2TB Fusion Drive, or 256GB flash storage (SSD)256GB or 512GB

Battery and power

Battery and power: Apple iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2015) against Apple MacBook (Retina, 12-inch, Early 2015)
SpecificationiMac1MacBook2
Battery capacityNot available539.7 Wh
Rated charge cyclesNot available51,000 cycles17
Video playback (claimed)Not available510 h
Wireless web (claimed)Not available59 h
Included power adapterNot available1829 W
Fast chargingNot available5No fast charging.12

Connectivity

Connectivity: Apple iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2015) against Apple MacBook (Retina, 12-inch, Early 2015)
SpecificationiMac1MacBook2
Wi-Fi802.11ac Wi-Fi802.11ac Wi-Fi
Bluetooth4.04.0
Ethernet10/100/1000BASE-T Gigabit Ethernet (RJ-45)No Ethernet port.12
External displays (base)11

Camera and audio

Camera and audio: Apple iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2015) against Apple MacBook (Retina, 12-inch, Early 2015)
SpecificationiMac1MacBook2
CameraFaceTime HD camera480p FaceTime camera
SpeakersStereo speakersStereo speakers
MicrophonesDual microphonesDual microphones

Platform

Platform: Apple iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2015) against Apple MacBook (Retina, 12-inch, Early 2015)
SpecificationiMac1MacBook2
Shipped withOS X El Capitan19OS X Yosemite20
Newest macOSmacOS Monterey21macOS Big Sur22
Model identifieriMac16,121MacBook8,122
Model year20152015

Sources

  1. Apple Support (UK) — iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2015) - Technical Specification · Default for iMac · Apple’s figure · read 15 Sep 2026

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  2. Apple Support (UK) — MacBook (Retina, 12-inch, Early 2015) - Tech Specs · Default for MacBook · Apple’s figure · read 15 Sep 2026

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  3. Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple Updates iMac Family with Stunning New Retina Displays · Apple’s figure · read 15 Sep 2026

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  4. Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple Unveils All-New MacBook · Apple’s figure · read 15 Sep 2026

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  5. Doesn’t apply: no battery

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  6. Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple Unveils All-New MacBook · Apple’s figure · read 11 Oct 2026

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  7. endoflife.date — Apple macOS · third-party figure · read 2 Oct 2026

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  8. Not published by Apple. Pages checked: Apple Support (UK) — iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2015) - Technical Specification; Apple Support (UK) — Identify your iMac model; Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple Updates iMac Family with Stunning New Retina Displays. Read 9 Oct 2026

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  9. MacBook (Retina, 12-inch, Early 2015): No Thunderbolt ports. No USB-A ports. Intel processor, not Apple silicon. Checked: Apple Support (UK) — MacBook (Retina, 12-inch, Early 2015) - Tech Specs. Read 15 Sep 2026

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  10. Doesn’t apply: no Thunderbolt port

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  11. iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2015): No HDMI port. No Touch ID. Checked: Apple Support (UK) — iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2015) - Technical Specification. Read 9 Oct 2026

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  12. MacBook (Retina, 12-inch, Early 2015): No HDMI port. No SD card slot. No MagSafe port. No Touch ID. No fast charging. No Ethernet port. Checked: Apple Support (UK) — MacBook (Retina, 12-inch, Early 2015) - Tech Specs. Read 9 Oct 2026

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  13. Doesn’t apply: MagSafe is a notebook charging port

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  14. iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2015): Intel processor, not Apple silicon. Checked: Apple Support (UK) — iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2015) - Technical Specification. Read 15 Sep 2026

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  15. Apple Support (UK) — Install memory in an iMac · Apple’s figure · read 18 Oct 2026

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  16. Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Pro: how to remove or install memory · Apple’s figure · read 18 Oct 2026

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  17. Apple Support (UK) — Determine battery cycle count for Mac laptops · Apple’s figure · read 15 Oct 2026

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  18. Doesn’t apply: internal power supply, no power adapter in the box

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  19. Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple Updates iMac Family with Stunning New Retina Displays · Apple’s figure · read 9 Oct 2026

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  20. Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple Unveils All-New MacBook · Apple’s figure · read 9 Oct 2026

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  21. Apple Support (UK) — Identify your iMac model · Apple’s figure · read 15 Sep 2026

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  22. Apple Support (UK) — Identify your MacBook model · Apple’s figure · read 15 Sep 2026

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Not published by Apple

iMac. Apple doesn’t publish for this Mac: brightness, refresh rate, wide colour (P3), nano-texture option, GPU cores, storage upgradeable by user, maximum continuous power. Geekbench 7: the Mac chart has no entry for this Mac, so no figures are shown (chart read 10 Oct 2026). Pages checked: Apple Support (UK) — iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2015) - Technical Specification; Apple Support (UK) — Identify your iMac model; Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple Updates iMac Family with Stunning New Retina Displays, read 9 Oct 2026.

MacBook. Apple doesn’t publish for this Mac: brightness, refresh rate, wide colour (P3), nano-texture option, GPU cores, storage upgradeable by user. Geekbench 7 Metal: the Mac chart has no Metal score for this Mac (chart read 10 Oct 2026). Pages checked: Apple Support (UK) — MacBook (Retina, 12-inch, Early 2015) - Tech Specs; Identify your MacBook Pro model; Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple Unveils All-New MacBook, read 9 Oct 2026.

If you own one of them

Whether to move is a different question from which is better. Each Mac has a page on it: what its successor changes (the newest Mac in its line where Apple sells one, otherwise the Mac this site treats as its replacement, which can be in another line), what it fetches and whether it still gets updates. Should I upgrade my iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2015)? · Should I upgrade my MacBook (Retina, 12-inch, Early 2015)?

The pairs a buyer of either Mac would also weigh. Any two Macs in the catalogue can be compared from the chooser.