I buy a lot of Apple products and hate when it doesn't come with the current OS upgrade. Considering some of the issues people have had upgrading Monterey and Big Sur how do I ensure I get the latest OS upgrade from the factory that leaves tested?
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How do I ensure latest OS
- Thread starter omeletpants
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You have no control over the software that’s installed at the factory. When you buy a new machine, run Software Update if System Prefs to verify or update the OS.
Correct. What is the big deal with that scenario? You can’’t dictate to Apple what version of OS you want during the purchase process.
If you buy a new product, check the forums for any possible problem with the latest OS update.
the original operating system is what launches until one quest for an update
if i buy an eBay late MacBook air 2012, mountain lion is that OS
and will let me load that and go from there if i need to restore the MacBook air
what are you wanting to do?
Maybe a small thing to you but I dont want to invest and hour doing the upgrade. This may seem irrational but I want them to do it and "certify" when it leaves the factory versus me doing it over the internet
Your position is irrational.
Not the first time I have heard that
This is like being upset that the sun rises. Literally no amount of being upset is going to change this. Products come with whatever was installed on them at the factory. Period. This is not an Apple thing. It's an everything ... thing.
I'm an old man, I also yell at clouds
The OP didn’t ask how to run a software update… nor how to reverse one.
And it will be an equally successful undertaking.
Realistically, though, that is not how things work. There may be thousands of machines rolling off the factory lines at a given point in time and then shipped around the world to locations where they can be purchased at a store or in some instances, shipped directly to a customer's home. In the meantime Apple may have developed a new software or firmware update which isn't going to be on any of these machines because they're already in transit.
In some instances, machines land at a store and they will be incorporated into the store's inventory but not necessarily sold right away. This happens not only at Apple retail stores but other stores which also sell Apple machines such as Best Buy, Costco, B&H, etc., etc. So one day a customer purchases what for him or her is a brand-new machine, and indeed it is -- but in the interval of time between the day that machine was given its initial OS setup back in the factory in China and the day the customer, in his or her own home or office in some other country around the world, actually fires up the machine for the first time there may well be at least one, if not more, software/firmware updates to immediately be installed. So? Why is that such a big deal? Suck it up, just do the update and move on.....
Cause I read all kinds of posts where people have issues upgrading. Maybe that's a reason to want to have it done at the factory
Yes, but... then what do you do if you know your brand-new Mac up-to-date (you asked the store to check for updates), then drive home and find out that Apple has released an update after you left the store with your now woefully-out-of date, brand new Mac.
What would be your strategy then?
(There's always anecdotes about users who have issues with software and OS updates. Many other users update with minimal, or no issues at all. It's part of life with "computers". Apple products are certainly not unique with reports of possible issues with updates.
What would be your strategy then?
(There's always anecdotes about users who have issues with software and OS updates. Many other users update with minimal, or no issues at all. It's part of life with "computers". Apple products are certainly not unique with reports of possible issues with updates.
The comments here about upgrade issues is more than antecdotal
There are issues with upgrading not necessarily because people are upgrading improperly but because the updates have bugs. So in many cases, you're better off with a model that needs updating as opposed to one that's been updated to a newer, less stable version of the OS.
No, they’re pretty much exactly anecdotal. As we all know, people post when something goes wrong. Next to no one posts “news flash: I successfully updated my mac this morning!”
So out of curiosity, in this hypothetical (and logistically impossible to achieve) world where you could ensure that your Mac’s software was 100% up to date when you purchased it, would your intent be to never do another software update after buying the Mac?
Because otherwise, it’s utterly irrelevant when you do the first one.
"to invest an hour of updating" is a bit exaggerated , just click and go for a coffee (if the update is not set to auto).
Besides how many hours will you "invest" to work/play with this device just to get a workflow and/or simply understand its possibilities?
I see about 20 posts here of people wasting their precious time, to point out how things work in real life.
You could consider to hire a person to do the updates for you and pay him/her for it.
To avoid updates over the internet, try to get an Apple employee directly in Cupertino.
You think every device is booted into the OS before leaving from the factory?
It’s far more likely they have a system that connects via usb and does a hardware and screen test, it will then probably install the MacOS image after the tests complete and it will then be packaged up.
I’d be very surprised if they’re booting into macOS, so you won’t get the new OS “tested” from factory it’s no different than installing yourself
Completely understandable, but just think, you can initiate the upgrade on your new computer, and then while it's going through the upgrade process, just come here and browse the forums and post your thoughts on this and that, and before you know it that hour has already gone by and the upgrade is completed! (And you've had the enjoyable experience of interacting with other forum members here).
Happy Thanksgiving!
Some people feel that the operating system that shipped when a particular Mac was introduced is the best one for that Mac. For example, the 2018 Mini originally shipped with Mojave pre-installed and a fair number of people have stayed with that (in this case, there could be a good reason since it's the last version that supports 32-bit apps).
The 2018 Mini is still being sold, but (I assume) would be shipped with Monterey now. That's 3 versions away from the original. I have a 2018 Mini but it shipped with Catalina pre-installed. It has always worked fine for me, so I've just stayed with it. Can't see any advantage to upgrading for my own use, as long as Catalina is still supported (presumably, one more year).
But getting back to the original question... as others have said, when you buy a new Mac, you simply don't have a choice in what has been pre-installed.
The 2018 Mini is still being sold, but (I assume) would be shipped with Monterey now. That's 3 versions away from the original. I have a 2018 Mini but it shipped with Catalina pre-installed. It has always worked fine for me, so I've just stayed with it. Can't see any advantage to upgrading for my own use, as long as Catalina is still supported (presumably, one more year).
But getting back to the original question... as others have said, when you buy a new Mac, you simply don't have a choice in what has been pre-installed.
If you don’t want to upgrade the OS on an Apple Silicon Mac after purchase and have the machine as clean as possible, use another Mac and Apple Configurator 2 to apply the latest IPSW image to it. That’s as factory as possible.