What have you done with an early Intel recently?

[Madr]

The HP Thunderbolt Dock G2 does work with Thunderbolt 3 Macs. It can work with Thunderbolt 1/2 Macs if there's a Thunderbolt 3 device between the Mac and the dock. Maybe @Madr will be able to confirm.

Thanks all for the good info! I can't confirm because the g2's are still not here yet and the only other tb device hub i have is an amazon basic tb4 that i haven't tested yet but may not be seen as tb3 dock so chances maybe low.

If i'm correct the g2's can extend my mac mini m4 tb ports so i don't lose an extra tb4 port for my tb4 NVME and have at least 2 screens total. I have an usbc to hdmi but i doubt that works as a 3rd screen.

Anyway too bad that the g2's do not work with a 2013 imac. 2012 mac probably be the same but i think i have read there are firmware updates but not sure if that help things because it's almost a legacy product.

Hope i can get the 3rd screen working then i can sell them as M4/5 docks and get working ones named here instead. But i will try.

And nice dock that Sonnet Echo Express III-D (Thunderbolt 3 Edition) It reminds me of the cheapish tb3/4 Egpu's cases without power supply on aliexpress that i once saw. Anybody know or read people used them with macs? I should dive into it but maybe later.

edit: another crazy idea i had if these g2's were working is to use them also as usb c 20 volt 100 watts power source and other DC power options. Not sure how that 230 watts are distributed but i don't have any laptops that can take an usb c charge so it may be interesting to supply other things with it. Like my Amazon basic tb4 dock but that may be 5 volts, i have to check. I did order the g2's with the seperate cables so that makes it also easier than those with 1 cable and 2 connectors always stuck nex to each other.

 

[Nightphase]

I've finally decided to repaste my Mid-2011 MacBook Air "11 after 14(!) years. I've also decided to downgrade it back to Mavericks because High Sierra ran too "hot" on it.

 

[Madr]

I've finally decided to repaste my Mid-2011 MacBook Air "11 after 14(!) years. I've also decided to downgrade it back to Mavericks because High Sierra ran too "hot" on it.

Did you measure on heavy load before and after? Luke Miani did some tests but made no difference.

I have a weird theory that repasting doesn't work because everything changes once it gets hot. And that it doesn't matter that much how the state of the paste is, once it's cold.

If i remember correctly Luke said Apple uses industrial paste that lasts for years or longer.

Haven't repasted my MBP 2012 or 2012 macmini's. Haven't had real temp problems. Yes the first time you realize a MBP cpu goes to 100 degrees C without any problems.

 

[Madr]

The HP Thunderbolt Dock G2 does work with Thunderbolt 3 Macs. It can work with Thunderbolt 1/2 Macs if there's a Thunderbolt 3 device between the Mac and the dock. Maybe @Madr will be able to confirm.

G2's are in and quick testing on mbp 2015 with tb2 through Apple tb1/2 to 3/4 adapter doesn't work. Don't have pc's with thunderbolt 3 or 4 to run firmware updates. I do have a X99 motherboard and a matched TB2 card + internal cable but haven't tried it. Google AI says i can use the Apple adapter but i doubt it works but i need to test the tb2 card anyway so good motivation to try.

Edit: got 3 screens working though. 1 from main hdmi, 1 through displayport and 1 with cheap usb c from tb3/4 port to hdmi.

 

[Nightphase]

Did you measure on heavy load before and after? Luke Miani did some tests but made no difference.

I have a weird theory that repasting doesn't work because everything changes once it gets hot. And that it doesn't matter that much how the state of the paste is, once it's cold.

If i remember correctly Luke said Apple uses industrial paste that lasts for years or longer.

Haven't repasted my MBP 2012 or 2012 macmini's. Haven't had real temp problems. Yes the first time you realize a MBP cpu goes to 100 degrees C without any problems.

Not really, but the paste on mine was completely dry and flaking apart. One thing i noticed is that the top of the keyboard (the part near the display frame) is a little bit cooler now

 

[occupant]

Well instead of doing anything useful with my early Intel Macs (see sig) I purchased another one. Thought, well, I like the 2015 iMac but it doesn't have an optical drive, and I'd love to have a slightly larger screen, so found this 2009 24 inch iMac 2.93 GHz C2D for forty bucks. No power cord (I am using a regular chunky PC power cord which is fine) and I have my own keyboards and mice, so now it sits here to my right unable to do much. Too old of an OS with Leopard to use any https websites, so now I have to change OS to get anything out of it.

So after watching a few YT videos, I guess I need a Snow Leopard DVD to upgrade to that so the firmware gets updated right, then upgrade through App Store to El Capitan which should also do some firmware updates, then I can break out the OCLP and get Ventura on it. Or maybe there's another step in between there, I may have to watch the videos again. Either way, I'm debating skipping all that and running some flavor of Linux. There's themes and icon packs out there to make it FEEL like MacOS, and honestly that would be fine. I could even play San Andreas on it with Steam that way. So maybe it's time to get minty fresh on the short desk to my right here...

Or I could put XP on it...that didn't sound like a lot of fun either but it would let me use it with auto repair software I've had for many years and haven't used in forever.

Or maybe since it's a 4GB machine with a HDD I should upgrade that hardware first (16GB of RAM is like $23 as long as AI datacenters don't start hoarding DDR3 too, which is sad because that kit was only $15 in October, and I guess I could live with a $30 240-250GB SSD because the 480-512 have gone over $50 again).

I am loving having the C2D MacBook Pro with its SSD and 16GB RAM (before the price jumped, yay) and it's perfect to keep at my stepson's house and I can use flash drives to go back and forth to the shop here.

I don't know, maybe I should buy 2 or 3 more machines before doing things. I need MOAR...

 

[joevt]

Edit: got 3 screens working though. 1 from main hdmi, 1 through displayport and 1 with cheap usb c from tb3/4 port to hdmi.

Need more clear description of all the pieces in this setup. What Mac? Docks? Adapters?

 

[Madr]

The old psu might be repairable. Might be worth cracking it open and taking a look. Could be something obvious and simple.


I have heard that many HP, Dell and Lenovo TB-docks do not work with Macs. No personal experience on those though. Belkin and Elgato docks do work and are dirt cheap too.

You think any Belkin or Elgato tb dock works? Both their Pro docks have tb pass throughs. The mini elgato has no tb pass through but in the end i only need 10 Gb USB 3 for my 3 2012 macs and 20Gb for my 2015 mbp. So even a tb2 dock with faster usb than 5Gb would work. But i doubt they exists so for me 2 cheap pcie 10Gb usb 3 cards inside the 2 coming tb2 pcie docks should work.

1 Ebay usa seller had some cheap 63 dollar owc pro docks with 10Gbit ethernet but are sold out. Don't know if they run with tb 1/2 macs but those specs were ideal for older macs.

Belkin and Elgato are around the 50 euro mark here in the EU. HP g2 could be found cheaper.

I also want to look into thunderbolt networking. I have some stupid idea about a 4 machine firewire miniDV capture setup. I know tb 3/4 can do it. Maybe 1 dock be enough then.

And i have 1 pcie slot reserved for fast net working on my 2 mac pro 1,1's and i still wonder if you can run 25Gb fiber on those old pcie slots. But i doubt it works.

Last i need a 3d printed case for 2 extra 2,5 inch to use the 2 extra ports.

Need more clear description of all the pieces in this setup. What Mac? Docks? Adapters?

Sorry should have added that they were working on the m4 with 3 screens total. Not on tb1/2 macs.

 

[TheShortTimer]

You think any Belkin or Elgato tb dock works? Both their Pro docks have tb pass throughs. The mini elgato has no tb pass through but in the end i only need 10 Gb USB 3 for my 3 2012 macs and 20Gb for my 2015 mbp. So even a tb2 dock with faster usb than 5Gb would work. But i doubt they exists so for me 2 cheap pcie 10Gb usb 3 cards inside the 2 coming tb2 pcie docks should work.

I've bought numerous Belkin TB1/2/3 docks and they've all worked with my TB equipped early Intel Macs. From my experience, you can't go wrong with a Belkin. 🙂

What have I done with an early Intel Mac recently? I re-watched my favourite Korean film using VLC and a mid-2012 13" MBP:

I became a fan of world cinema before I even reached double digits but this flick introduced me to Korean films - and what an introduction it was! JSA ranks amongst my top ten of greatest films and it covers so many genres: whodunnit, war, gallows comedy, mystery, suspense and thriller, with an overarching presence of pathos.

One of these days I'll pick up the Blu-ray…

 

[Sh3ldon]

A question (maybe someone has already answered this in these nearly six thousand posts.): does anyone use these early Intels as their primary machine, or do they only use them occasionally for specific purposes (old software that only runs on old machines), or are they just fond of the look and feel of old Mac operating systems?

 

[TheShortTimer]

A question (maybe someone has already answered this in these nearly six thousand posts.): does anyone use these early Intels as their primary machine, or do they only use them occasionally for specific purposes (old software that only runs on old machines), or are they just fond of the look and feel of old Mac operating systems?

In my case - primary machines and I'm running recent versions of macOS on many of them. 🙂

 

[MacInTO]

A question (maybe someone has already answered this in these nearly six thousand posts.): does anyone use these early Intels as their primary machine, or do they only use them occasionally for specific purposes (old software that only runs on old machines), or are they just fond of the look and feel of old Mac operating systems?

I used a 2012 15" MacBook Pro for the longest time. I use it for Aperture and Photoshop (CS6) which is a one time licence not monthly. The OS was High Sierra up until last year when I replaced it with a 2017 iMac with Mojave. I have since installed Mavericks Forever in the 2012 MBP.

 

[Sh3ldon]

In my case - primary machines and I'm running recent versions of macOS on many of them. 🙂

I think you are using Open Core Legacy Patcher, am I right?

 

[MacInTO]

I should mention that I also have a 2014 Mac mini. I use it as a media server. I have Monterey on it and run iTunes/music most of the time thorough my home stereo. I sometimes watch DVDs with it. I have a DVD drive and a projector connected to it. I didn't realise until recently that it only outputs 4k@30hz from the HDMI port. Apparently with the correct dongle it can output 4K@60hz from the Mini DisplayPort.

 

[MBAir2010]

I became a fan of world cinema before I even reached double digits but this flick introduced me to Korean films - and what an introduction it was! JSA ranks amongst my top ten of greatest films and it covers so many genres: whodunnit, war, gallows comedy, mystery, suspense and thriller, with an overarching presence of pathos.

One of these days I'll pick up the Blu-ray…

check out The Isle, 2001ish Korean movie which is very good!

that would look nice o n any "early intel" Mac!

 

[Sh3ldon]

In addition to my previous question, I just wanted to clarify that what I'm curious about is whether anyone is using these early Intel processors with the latest Apple-supported macOS as primary machines, without using the Open Core legacy patcher. Personally, I'm convinced that if you use a VPN and a supported browser, and only visit trusted sites, these Macs can be used without any problems even if they're no longer officially supported, whether they're High Sierra, Mojave, Catalina, or even Mavericks. And I mean for any use, even online banking. Am I wrong?

 

[Wowfunhappy]

In addition to my previous question, I just wanted to clarify that what I'm curious about is whether anyone is using these early Intel processors with the latest Apple-supported macOS as primary machines, without using the Open Core legacy patcher. Personally, I'm convinced that if you use a VPN and a supported browser, and only visit trusted sites, these Macs can be used without any problems even if they're no longer officially supported, whether they're High Sierra, Mojave, Catalina, or even Mavericks. And I mean for any use, even online banking. Am I wrong?

I’m using Mavericks on my two primary machines (a desktop and a laptop), although the hardware does theoretically support newer versions of macOS. (One is a 2014 Macbook Air, one is a Hackintosh purpose-built for Mavericks compatibility). And yes I use it for everything, including online banking.

My only other computer is a "gaming PC” with a really powerful CPU and GPU but literally without a web browser installed—it is for one thing and I keep it free of any other distractions.

 

[TheShortTimer]

I think you are using Open Core Legacy Patcher, am I right?

You are indeed. 🙂

I'm also using the dosdude patcher in one case.

check out The Isle, 2001ish Korean movie which is very good!

Thanks for the recommendation. I'll seek it out. 🙂

In addition to my previous question, I just wanted to clarify that what I'm curious about is whether anyone is using these early Intel processors with the latest Apple-supported macOS as primary machines, without using the Open Core legacy patcher.

As in the most recent macOS version that's officially supported on the machine?

Yes, I'm running High Sierra on an i5 2010 10" MBA and I used it throughout this year to hold Zoom video conferences for the meetings of my trade union branch.

Personally, I'm convinced that if you use a VPN and a supported browser, and only visit trusted sites, these Macs can be used without any problems even if they're no longer officially supported, whether they're High Sierra, Mojave, Catalina, or even Mavericks. And I mean for any use, even online banking. Am I wrong?

Put them behind a dedicated hardware firewall (an old PC with a reasonable spec will suffice) and you should be fine with a supported browser. Personally, I'd recommend that setup even on new/recent OS versions.

 

[rampancy]

A question (maybe someone has already answered this in these nearly six thousand posts.): does anyone use these early Intels as their primary machine, or do they only use them occasionally for specific purposes (old software that only runs on old machines), or are they just fond of the look and feel of old Mac operating systems?

Starting in 2017 I used to daily drive a 2009 A1181 MacBook running OS X El Capitan for about six years until I got my friend's 2013 iMac running Catalina, which I continue to use as my main desktop machine. As my "beater" laptop I use a 2015 MacBook Air, also running Catalina.

I've used and continue to use early/mid-Intel Macs because they work, and they work well. I don't have to worry about a fancy new UI bogging down my hardware with unnecessary transparency/translucency or animation effects, or AI being shoved in my face. After working on my M2 MacBook Air with Sequoia, or the M1 MacBook Air running macOS 26 at work, using Snow Leopard on my 2006 MacBook 2,1 feels like a badly needed breath of fresh air.

 

[Sh3ldon]

I wanted to thank everyone who wrote for taking the time and effort to answer my questions.

 

[Sh3ldon]

In this thread (and there certainly could be others), it's strongly advised against using unsupported Macs. The recommendations are to use a supported browser and a VPN, even using Open Core Legacy Patcher. But if, for example, I wanted to continue using my unsupported Mac as my primary machine with Mojave (for its compatibility with 32-bit programs), I could use Firefox ESR and use a paid VPN and be fine, right?

 

[roronl]

@Sh3ldon How long are you going to use 32-bit programs? ;-)
Is this only for hobby on unsupported Mac's, I hoop so

 

[Sh3ldon]

@Sh3ldon How long are you going to use 32-bit programs? ;-)
Is this only for hobby on unsupported Mac's, I hoop so

It's true, I rarely use it anymore, but why should I replace an iMac that's still fine for my needs? I hate this planned obsolescence. The fact that I could run Windows or Linux on it proves the machine's still valid, but I want to keep using a Mac.

 

[MBAir2010]

In this thread (and there certainly could be others), it's strongly advised against using unsupported Macs. The recommendations are to use a supported browser and a VPN, even using Open Core Legacy Patcher. But if, for example, I wanted to continue using my unsupported Mac as my primary machine with Mojave (for its compatibility with 32-bit programs), I could use Firefox ESR and use a paid VPN and be fine, right?

My Mojave MacBook Air 2010, MacBook Pro 2012 does not run a VPN as I really am careful with my browsing habits.
both have the firewall enabled, ad blockers and tracker protection.
Last summer I used my MBP to purchase my monthly chewed cat orders, cycling parts from 3 distributors and several  music replacements from Klispch and Sony.

seems to me that storing a credit card on a website can be stolen on any commuter since that info is in their data base.
there fore I keep my cards off line and manual type in the 3 digit code on autofill.

also Mojave runs CS4, adobe packaged graphic design software and Dreamweaver.
perhaps next next I month I might launch a website created on dreamweaver 4.
though that is HTML5 with tables and fun design stuff from 2010!

therefore using Mojave can be safe if the user uses useful caution!

 

[TheShortTimer]

Thanks for the recommendation. I'll seek it out. 🙂

@MBAir2010 Today, I sought out The Isle and watched it on my 13" mid-2012 MBP via VLC under Ventura. 😀

The ending is interesting, to say the least! I was impressed by the lead protagonist commanding so much of the narrative structure without uttering a single word. Thanks again for the recommendation. 🙂