Update: Our own Mark Gurman seems to have put the kibosh on this one.

French language website MacBidouille claims to have some bad news from its retail sources. While they were expecting to see iMacs arrive Nov. 27 (we also heard a similar time frame—with availability beginning around Black Friday) for the 21.5-inchers and later in December for the 27-inchers, both may now miss the all-important holiday shopping season.

The source blames a welding process for the delays, which would push the iMacs into 2013. The new iMacs also have a redesigned display that features a new thinner lamination process.

We first noted the delays in new iMac production in October and questioned whether the devices would be announced at the iPad mini event. Interestingly, we also heard that Apple might introduce an updated Thunderbolt Display in the not-so distant future that may be tied to the launch of the 27-inch iMac. Stay tuned for more information on that soon.

[tweet https://twitter.com/reneritchie/status/268839249397284865]

  • Redesigned 21-inch iMac with updated screen, 13-inch retina MBP spotted in China
  • Zorro Macsk Review: Instantly add touchscreen gestures to your iMac with infrared sensors (Video)
  • As expected new iMac lineup sees delays, shipping in November and December
  • Significant shortages on iMacs for the holiday quarter anticipated by Tim Cook
  • New Mac minis and iMacs to retain same or very similar pricing to current models, Retina unlikely