The 27-inch iMac with a nano-texture display is unavailable from Apple in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and several other key markets until late March, possibly due to more advanced manufacturing processes needed to achieve the glass coating.
The updated 27-inch iMac released in 2020 offers customers a nano-texture glass option that helps reduce reflectivity by etching the display with a nano-texture at a molecular level. Apple says this coating results in "beautiful image quality that maintains contrast while scattering light to reduce glare to the barest minimum."
Upon checking Apple's online store in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and elsewhere, the 27-inch iMac configured with a nano-texture display shows an estimated delivery date of seven to eight weeks, or in other words, towards the end of March. The standard display option with certain storage and memory configurations is estimated to ship in two to three weeks.
Given the anomaly that only the nano-texture display option is significantly back-ordered, it's plausible that Apple and its suppliers are experiencing production issues with the more advanced display coating. Due to the ongoing chip shortage and pandemic-related restrictions, Apple is struggling to keep up with demand for the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros.
For customers looking to purchase Apple's largest all-in-one Mac desktop computer, it might be a safe bet to wait a little bit longer anyway. Apple is expected to be holding an event sometime in March or April to announce a slew of new products, including an updated iPhone SE, a new iPad Air, and possibly a completely redesigned iMac to replace the existing Intel-based 27-inch model.
The iMac family was last updated in April 2021 with the 24-inch model sporting a colorful new design and the first all-in-one desktop Mac computer to feature an Apple silicon chip. The 27-inch iMac has kept the same overall design for almost ten years, and rumors suggest the upcoming redesign could resemble the Pro Display XDR, feature a mini-LED ProMotion display, and start at around $2000. Learn more about what we expect to see in the 2022 iMac redesign using our guide.