macOS Ventura Drops Support for Older Macs, Works With 2017 and Later Machines

[Heat_Fan89]

Personally this is why I have been buying the cheapest entry Macs. I will run the 2018 Mini as long as it's supported then when it's not i'll buy the current base Mini at that time. I figure my 2018 Mini should still be supported for another 2-3 yrs.

 

[ADGrant]

Ouch!.. my 2015 15” rMBP Is my daily driver (I also have a 2019 16” that is secondary… I get it that some features probably require some elevated form of WIFI or BT technical spec that can’t be met, but still thats a big population of users out there and machines that will be boxed out.

My very similar 2014 15" rMBP was dropped at the Monterey upgrade.

 

[MallardDuck]

I bet it's related to the security chips.

anyone know if it finally kills off kexts?

 

[kwikdeth]

This should surprise absolutely no one. Apple will make every attempt to obsolete Intel machines as quickly as possible. Mac OS 15 will likely have zero Intel support.

 

[kwikdeth]

As brutal as the obsolesce is (they'll still run monetary security updates for a year or 2), the power pc to intel switch was faster and harder IIRC.

Nothing is as harsh as what happened to the poor folks who bought a PCIe G5, less than a year of sales and a whopping total of ONE major OS update.

 

[Bustycat]

Apple just resurrected Mac Studio.

 

[alien3dx]

Is it just me or does 2017 feel like yesterday? So that means my 2019 MacBook Pro probably has about 3 more years of support. Ugh.

i still used it for software development compare m1 . it easier for a team

 

[Bustycat]

Mac Studio 2022 vs Mac Pro 2019 and later

Upcoming new Mac Pro?

 

[mrr]

Totally miffed that my super sweet 2015 27” Retina 5k iMac won't run Ventura and there is no 27” iMac replacement. Designed obsolescence. Sux.

 

[redheeler]

Totally miffed that my super sweet 2015 27” Retina 5k iMac won't run Ventura and there is no 27” iMac replacement. Designed obsolescence. Sux.

I'm sure it'll be possible to update our Late 2015 5K iMacs but without Apple's blessing. Planned obsolescence is annoying :/

 

[collin_]

The 2016 MBP got dropped after just 5 major updates?

My guess is that they're eager to phase out all x86 Macs so that they can just write one version of macOS.

 

[MacDownunder]

I see so many comments along lines of OMG my Mac is no longer supported, its on borrowed time etc - yesterday you were probably using it happily doing what ever it was, and the reality is whilst you may not be able to upgrade the OS (and the fun that soimetimes involves) your Mac will still run for many, many years to come - I type this on a 2008 24" iMac running 10.11.16.
Now if want to truely get adventurous and its actually not all that scary seriously look at Open Core Lagacy Patcher, I own and daily drive a 2011 15" Retina MacBBook pro that runs monterey exceptionanlly well, heck my 2010 Mac Pro runs Big Sur also rediculalously well - both these machines support handoff and airdrop after relatively simple BT/WiFi card updates. Apple may not officially support it but there are ways. Back in the day I ran OS X 10.0 on a powerMac 9600 with G3 card and it also had FireWire and USB - so this type of thing has been around for a long long time

 

[oldmacs]

Not cool Apple. You were selling the 2017 MacBook Air until Mid 2019.

Not happy with this aggressive push to drop support for Intel Macs. I knew this 'support for years to come' line was rubbish.

 

[oldmacs]

I see so many comments along lines of OMG my Mac is no longer supported, its on borrowed time etc - yesterday you were probably using it happily doing what ever it was, and the reality is whilst you may not be able to upgrade the OS (and the fun that soimetimes involves) your Mac will still run for many, many years to come - I type this on a 2008 24" iMac running 10.11.16.

The reality is that as soon as Apple drops support, your Mac is on borrowed time. Yes it won't stop your Mac from booting and running, but Apple only supports 2 versions back for security updates, and they're very quick to drop support for iWork (For example) from MacOS, which then leads to you not being able to open documents from the new version.

The fact that you can use a patcher to install new versions of MacOS on dropped machines show how arbitrary this all is. (I write this from a 2012 MacBook Pro, that uses a patcher to run Monterey - no reason Apple couldn't have easily supported it, if people can make it work as a hobby).

All VERY rich coming from a company who claims to be green. At the end of the day, no matter how recyclable a machine is, the shorter its usable lifespan is (ie in terms of security/compatibility), the worse for the planet, due to the amount Co2 created in manufacturing a machine.

 

[Bustycat]

All VERY rich coming from a company who claims to be green. At the end of the day, no matter how recyclable a machine is, the shorter its usable lifespan is (ie in terms of security/compatibility), the worse for the planet, due to the amount Co2 created in manufacturing a machine.

You can let generous Apple recycle your outdated Macs for free.

 

[Scrubelicious]

For whom it may concern, your Mac will still work fine if not updated. 🤷‍♂️

 

[oldmacs]

For whom it may concern, your Mac will still work fine if not updated. 🤷‍♂️

It'll still boot up, but in 2 years it will loose security updates, and probably will loose the ability to open iWork files whenever Apple drops iWork support for Monterey.

So yes, it will 'work fine' for a time and then be essentially obsolete.

If there was a good reason, then it would be fine but it is clear that this is completely arbitrary.

 

[oldmacs]

You can let generous Apple recycle your outdated Macs for free.

Oh joy.

And enjoy the excess CO2 Apple pumps into the air to manufacture replacement devices that wouldn't have been required if they just did the right thing and supported devices until they were actually incapable of running the software.

 

[MacHeritage]

I bet it's related to the security chips.

anyone know if it finally kills off kexts?

I first thought that until I went through the list. Nope. 2017 MBP doesn't have the T2 and the 2016 is the same as the 2017 with the T1. The 2017 iMac doesn't have anything like that. These also have different CPUs too, so it can't be that either.

And after what they did to the iPod Touch, all of this makes no sense, even for Apple. I'm sure we will find out why in the weeks/months to come but it doesn't excuse why they are cutting OS support so quickly and suddenly. I mean the 2013 Mac Pro's that were purchased in 2019 are still under AppleCare. The iPod Touch's that were purchased a few weeks ago are in the same boat. So how much you spend, makes no difference to Apple. Whether you have AppleCare or not, doesn't either. Bizarre and very anti-consumer friendly!

 

[oldmacs]

doesn't either. Bizarre and very anti-consumer friendly!

It's very un-environmentally friendly as well!

Sad, a company as rich as Apple could do so much better.

 

[redheeler]

It's very un-environmentally friendly as well!

Sad, a company as rich as Apple could do so much better.

You say this every year but I agree with it every year. The amount of time Macs are supported doesn’t fit with Apple’s mission of being environmentally-friendly at all.

 

[Bustycat]

It's very un-environmentally friendly as well!

Sad, a company as rich as Apple could do so much better.

Another rich example is Microsoft. Windows 11 abandons all before 2017.

 

[antonrg]

Totally miffed that my super sweet 2015 27” Retina 5k iMac won't run Ventura and there is no 27” iMac replacement. Designed obsolescence. Sux.

Same here, I literally wouldn’t even be able to change to a new iMac if I wanted to. The 24 inch is a downgrade for me. Plus those white bezels are hideous.

 

[virgin71]

That’s crap. If the security updates will be delivered for 3-4 years it will be ok, but knowing Apple… oh, shame on you.

 

[George Dawes]

I was going to get a new iMac when they're updated but tbh I literally don't have the room plus my old late 27 2015 maxed out beast is still rockin' - even if it's stuck on mojave due to compatibility issues

Probably get an updated Mini when they eventually come out