How old is too old?

[loophole52]

My 2015 MBP might be starting to show it's age. Running Monterey 12.7.6 Strange things are occurring including distorted email (font beyond tiny). I'm also having difficulty posting in Facebook groups. Could these symptoms indicate that my MBP is due for replacement?

 

[BKDad]

My 2015 MBP might be starting to show it's age. Running Monterey 12.7.6 Strange things are occurring including distorted email (font beyond tiny). I'm also having difficulty posting in Facebook groups. Could these symptoms indicate that my MBP is due for replacement?

I am no expert, but I'd think that perhaps your software needs an early spring cleaning.

Have a tried a "Safe" boot? How about using a good housecleaning application like Onyx?

If you want to stick with Monterey - and there's lots of arguments each way - perhaps a complete back-up of your apps and data and a "clean" install of Monterey would be just the thing if the two above don't help.

All this might be an hour of your time, about the same as if you choose to migrate that existing data and all to a new Mac.

 

[Anonymous Freak]

I would argue that any OS that is no longer receiving security updates is too old. Which at this point means anything older than macOS 14 Sonoma, as it's the oldest Mac OS still receiving security updates.

On the hardware side, there basically is no such thing as "too old" when running Linux. I have a 2008 MacBook as my "hacking rig" running the current version of Kali Linux. (Yes, I work in security research.)

 

[MacMorrison]

Make sure to back up your data before making any system changes.

I'd run the cleanup functions in OnyX to see if they make a difference in your issues: https://www.titanium-software.fr/download/12/OnyX.dmg

I installed macOS 15 Sequoia on an external SSD with OpenCore Legacy Patcher and boot to that from my 2015 MacBook Pro.

Almost everything works on it seamlessly except a few Microsoft 365 apps (Outlook and OneNote - trouble connecting with Microsoft servers) and Swift Playground.

The main thing to fix on your 2015 MacBook Pro is the battery. See if you have a local vendor with experience swapping the battery and you'll be able to keep using it for years to come.

And ditto regarding peoples' suggestions above - OnyX 4.2.7 or AppCleaner 3.6.8 are good for keeping your system clean. You might be overdue for a reinstall of Monterey if the system hasn't been maintained for a long time

Also look at the NVRAM (non-volatile RAM) and the SMC (system management controller) resets to fix any hardware and startup irregularities - they are harmless and commonly recommended.

Reset NVRAM: https://support.apple.com/en-us/102539

Reset SMC: https://support.apple.com/en-us/102605

Apple tips for retiring a Mac: https://support.apple.com/en-us/102773

 

[BigBlur]

Strange things are occurring including distorted email (font beyond tiny).

This usually doesn't happen due to age. There's probably something else that changed. Did you accidentally change the zoom level?

I'm also having difficulty posting in Facebook groups.

Are you using Safari? If so, yes... Safari could be too old, as it is no longer receiving updates. Facebook recommends using the most up-to-date version (link). You could try some other modern browser like Chrome, Edge, or Brave that still receives updates.

I would argue that any OS that is no longer receiving security updates is too old. Which at this point means anything older than macOS 14 Sonoma, as it's the oldest Mac OS still receiving security updates.

Agreed. I would at least stop using Safari and switch to some other web browser to stay on top of browser security.

 

[F355fan]

I'm actually still running Big Sur on my 2015 MacBook Pro, but I stopped running Safari a long time ago. I'm now primarily using Firefox.

Though I am looking to finally upgrade to an M-series when the M5 MBAs come out in a month and a half or so.

 

[ger19]

I would argue that any OS that is no longer receiving security updates is too old. Which at this point means anything older than macOS 14 Sonoma, as it's the oldest Mac OS still receiving security updates.

On the hardware side, there basically is no such thing as "too old" when running Linux. I have a 2008 MacBook as my "hacking rig" running the current version of Kali Linux. (Yes, I work in security research.)

I agree with this. However it's measured, I see a 10 year run as a good run. I doubt I'll get 10 years out of my m1 imac, but I bought it right after they discontinued it and I bought a base model contemplating something more like 5 years.

 

[MBAir2010]

my MacBook Air 2020 safari Version 17.6 is better since my upgrade last week.
I don't Facebook or other social media expect here.
although Vivaldi is much better at web pages function than Safari.

 

[loophole52]

Thanks to everyone for the advice and recommendations.

 

[Amazing Iceman]

I would say it becomes “too old” when you are unable to run apps you need to run on it.

 

[sotosoul]

I'm also still using a MBP late 2013, which is stuck with Big Sur.

Personally, I'd advise you to be very careful with those OCLP hacks. In my experience, they work well enough until something goes wrong, such as broken graphics acceleration. Not catastrophic, but practically unusable until you fix it by reinstalling the kexts via the OCLP app. Also, performance-wise, the machine becomes slower to the point that some demanding applications that worked fine on the official OS do not do so on the newer OS.

As other people wrote, Safari is outdated but other browsers, such as Firefox, is still up-to-date.

 

[Luis Ortega]

My 2015 MBP might be starting to show it's age. Running Monterey 12.7.6 Strange things are occurring including distorted email (font beyond tiny). I'm also having difficulty posting in Facebook groups. Could these symptoms indicate that my MBP is due for replacement?

My 2008 Mac Pro started having multiple organ failures in 2019 and then I bought an iMac.
I’d say about 10 years is a good lifespan.

 

[maflynn]

too old, is when you cannot run the apps you need, or the physical hardware is starting to fail

 

[adrianlondon]

Lots of advice above basically saying that a 2015 MBP should be fine for what you're using it for.

As also mentioned (such as by @BigBlur ) some of the issues you list are configuration ones, not related to performance.

If it were my laptop I'd do the following:

1. Reset SMC and NVRAM (see @MacMorrison 's post)
2. Boot into Safe mode and then reboot back to "normal"
3. Try a different browser such as Firefox if clearing ALL cookies and data from Safari doesn't help
4. Check your disk isn't close to full; that can really drag down performance
5. Ask a good friend with MacOS experience to check your system (e.g. using "top -o cpu") to work out what's going on.


Well, to be fair, if it were my laptop I would have replaced it anyway as I like to run the latest OS 😁. I currently have the M4 MBP and my old late-2013 MBP now runs very well with Ubuntu on it.

 

[sotosoul]

too old, is when you cannot run the apps you need, or the physical hardware is starting to fail

...or when support is dropped and/or when security assessments indicate that a particular system's vulnerabilities are too significant.

In many professional settings, hardware is fine (because demanding ops run on remote servers), software is fine, but the supplier SLA was set at 3 years so they'd rather replace the employee's workstation that risk downtime until mama company fixes it.

Right now I'm swimming in decomissioned but perfectly good laptops with Comet, Coffee, and Ice lake CPUs, 8-32 GB RAM and good to good-ish batteries. We'll gift them to employees for personal use.

So @maflynn has a point, I guess. Too old for business, not old in general.

 

[maflynn]

...or when support is dropped and/or when security assessments indicate that a particular system's vulnerabilities are too significant.

No, not really

There's no reason to get rid of a computer simply because no more updates. For the same reasons mac users don't use anti-virus, as you long as you practice safe computer habits you can keep using older macs to your hearts content.

 

[boppin]

Hi there,

I would say when you can't run current software like Google Chrome, MS Office, macOS etc.

Except when you have old Software which runs only in old hardware. The last white MacBook I own still runs Mac OS X 10.6 and Windows XP Professional but not connected to the Internet. Because I still want to run older Windows games.

 

[padams35]

How old is too old?

Intel is too old for leading-edge users and AI features, but is still good enough for home office.

Sonoma is now too old for a new-purchase since you need one of the two newest versions of MacOS to install Pages/Numbers/etc for the first time as a new user on a new-to-you machine.

Ventura is now too old for security updates, cloud software, and some name-brand 2026 edition programs but otherwise works fine.

Big Sur is now too old for the average 3rd party web browser, but if you like Firefox you are still good to go.

Mojave... is probably just too old for anyone not intentionally using old 32-bit software.

My 2015 MBP might be starting to show it's age. Running Monterey 12.7.6 Strange things are occurring including distorted email (font beyond tiny). I'm also having difficulty posting in Facebook groups. Could these symptoms indicate that my MBP is due for replacement?

13" or 15"? I am of the opinion that Monterey was the point where dual-core laptops became too slow. It is probably worth getting a newer Mac just for performance. Otherwise post #5 already said it best.