Rumor: Apple may refresh iMac alongside new MacBook Pros

Citing its usual supply chain sources, DigiTimes reported on Tuesday that Apple may launch its new iMac desktop alongside new MacBook Pro models. The report said Apple "may make some changes over the screen size to allow panel cutting to reach its optimization."

While a flurry of reports have surrounded the anticipated MacBook Pro update, little has been said about an iMac update. In fact, the last indication of an iMac refresh came from the same publication in December 2010, when it said that Apple could release its new iMac in the first half of 2011. That report said the new iMac would have a "new panel size and price point for the mainstream market."

Apple's iMac line of desktops were last updated in July 2010 with Intel's Core i3, i5 and i7 processors and ATI Radeon graphics. The current lineup has a starting price of $1,199.

In Tuesday's report, DigiTimes added even more support to the belief that new MacBook Pros will launch before the end of February, likely this Thursday. The publication said that most IT malls in Taiwan do not have any MacBook Pro inventory in stock, but added that volume shipments of the new notebooks will not pick up "significantly" until March.

The MacBook Pro lineup is even more due for an update than the iMac, as Apple's high-end notebooks have not seen an update since April 2010. The systems were updated to what were then Intel's latest high-end Core i7, Core i5 and Core 2 Duo mobile processors.