Up next for Apple: New iMacs?

You didn't think last week's MacBook announcement was the last we'd heard from Apple this year, did you? The rumor mill is heating up yet again with talk of new iMacs, although I wouldn't expect any dramatic makeovers this time.

It's been more than a year since Apple refreshed its iMac line—and it was a pretty serious refresh, complete with an eye-catching glass-and-aluminum design that's been handed down to the just-unveiled new MacBooks and MacBook Pros.

The editors at AppleInsider (which has done a solid job this year of predicting Apple's 2008 product "road map") clearly think the time for new iMacs is nigh. They don't have any predictions for when—or indeed, if—another Apple event might take place (indeed, Apple may well skip a formal unveiling this time), but the site does have some educated guesses on CPU upgrades (likely moving to Intel's Montevina platform), new I/O ports (think DisplayPort), and graphics (maybe something new from Nvidia; current base iMac models use ATI Radeon HD 2400 and 2600 GPUs).

What about an iMac redesign? AppleInsider doesn't seem to think so, and I tend to agree. After all, the iMac line got a pretty radical glass-and-aluminum revamp last time around—and indeed, the new MacBooks and MacBook Pros fall in line with the new iMac look.

And what about the Mac Mini? Again, AppleInsider had nothing to add on that front, but I'd be surprised if the three-year-old Mini—which was last updated a year ago, and contines to hang arond after many had predicted its demise—didn't get a speed bump this year.

As far as the timing of any new announcements, AppleInsider notes that Apple has an investor call slated for Tuesday; however, my money's with Ars Technica, which is predicting a mid-November debut. Stay tuned.

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Due next from Apple: refreshed 20- and 24-inch iMacs [AppleInsider]