Several Macs have been cut off the support list for macOS Sonoma

AppleInsider

Apple's forthcoming macOS Sonoma will not support the same range of Macs as macOS Ventura, with a few models years chopped off the compatibility list.

It had been expected that macOS 14 would be a sufficiently minor update that it might well run on the same Macs as its predecessor, macOS 13. However, perhaps in order to support features across Macs, iPhones, and iPads, Apple has cut out some previously supported devices.

This means that macOS Ventura is now the final macOS that the MacBook will be able to run. Similarly, the 2017 iMac and 2017 MacBook Pro must remain on that OS.

The Macs confirmed by Apple to be able to run the new OS are:

• iMac 2019 or later


• iMac Pro


• MacBook Air 2018 or later


• MacBook Pro 2018 or later


• Mac Pro 2019 or later


• Mac Studio


• Mac mini 2018 or later

It's possible that Apple's list of compatible Macs will change as the final release of macOS Sonoma nears.

Read on AppleInsider

john-useless

It's no surprise, really, that Mac models from 2017 or earlier aren't on this list. That's how it goes with technology. There are two looming questions for which it will be years before we have answers:

- The first Apple silicon-based models arrived with the M1 chip in November 2020. When will M1-based Macs no longer be supported by a future version of macOS? 2025? 2026? Or I wonder if Apple silicon-based models, even the oldest ones, will have a longer-than-usual lifespan in terms of being able to run the newest macOS version. Will M1-based Macs be supported into, say, 2027 or 2028?

- The very last Intel-based Mac model was available for purchase through yesterday (June 4, 2023) … and it was the Mac Pro, obviously a model that cost anywhere from $5,999 all the way up to around $53,000 with every available option. How long will Apple maintain support for Intel-based Macs, including the Mac Pro? Given the high cost of this model (even at the entry level), some people will be quite vocal in their discontent if its software lifespan doesn't extend into perhaps 2027 or 2028.

juanjoseluisgarcia

This leaves WWDC2024 as the last Intel supported OS and WWDC 2025 will be the starting of Apple Silicon Only OS. I supposed knowing that, it will be a big release. Leaving out legacy Intel code like  Kexts, etc. 

canukstorm

juanjoseluisgarcia said:

This leaves WWDC2024 as the last Intel supported OS and WWDC 2025 will be the starting of Apple Silicon Only OS. I supposed knowing that, it will be a big release. Leaving out legacy Intel code like  Kexts, etc. 

Is this based on past history or just a guess?

daven

Well I’ve been cut off for a while. My newest Mac is a 2012 mini.

macxpress

juanjoseluisgarcia said:

This leaves WWDC2024 as the last Intel supported OS and WWDC 2025 will be the starting of Apple Silicon Only OS. I supposed knowing that, it will be a big release. Leaving out legacy Intel code like  Kexts, etc. 

That seems a little soon. I think it really depends on how many Apple Silicon Macs there are in the wild. There are still tens of millions of Intel Macs out there that are still active today (some fairly new). I'm thinking you'll see 2 more macOS releases that are Universal binary macOS releases. Mac Pro just came out today to replace the Intel version. That only gives companies and others 1yr to transition over. Also, there are still companies out there with 3-4yr EOL cycles so those Macs wouldn't support the latest OS come next year should that happen. 

xixo

daven said:

Well I’ve been cut off for a while. My newest Mac is a 2012 mini.

snow leopard forever!

swat671

That really pisses me off! I have a nice 15" 2017 MacBook Pro, and just saw it got dropped off. It's a great machine, and I have absolutely no reason to want to upgrade it. It runs great! Why are they dropping support for it? I'm surprised Apple started dropping support for the TouchBar and USB-C based Mac's already. The first came out in 2016. That's not a long time ago. Especially for the higher end models like mine. Really bugs me.  

a_harold

This is an aggressive and unwelcome drop off. My top spec 2017 iMac won't be supported but still handles many tasks better than my base level Studio M1.  

timmillea

There is a huge difference between 'no longer supported' and not running the latest version of the OS. The latest versions of the OS are designed to exploit new hardware features not present in older machines, while older machines are still supported with updates to the latest versions of the OS that they run. Apple have an excellent record on this. 

I have an M1 MBA 16GB/2TB. I hope to get another 10 years of life out of it. I regard it as the finest Mac Apple made and there is little sign of that changing at present. 

marc g

juanjoseluisgarcia said:

This leaves WWDC2024 as the last Intel supported OS and WWDC 2025 will be the starting of Apple Silicon Only OS. I supposed knowing that, it will be a big release. Leaving out legacy Intel code like  Kexts, etc. 

I actually think it will be at least another 3-4 years before Intel macs are no longer supported. I think any of the few remaining people to purchase Mac Pros in the last 18 months would be really angry at the prospect. On the other hand, now that I’m saying this out loud, I’m rethinking perhaps 2-3 years is more likely. After all, I’m sure there are people out there who waited as long as they could before making the purchase. Heck, many people started to wondered if Apple had decided that the studio was the new Mac Pro. 

saarek

swat671 said:

That really pisses me off! I have a nice 15" 2017 MacBook Pro, and just saw it got dropped off. It's a great machine, and I have absolutely no reason to want to upgrade it. It runs great! Why are they dropping support for it? I'm surprised Apple started dropping support for the TouchBar and USB-C based Mac's already. The first came out in 2016. That's not a long time ago. Especially for the higher end models like mine. Really bugs me.  

Don't worry about it. My good old 2008 MacBook Aluminium is happily running macOS Monterey, I've got a 2012 Retina MacBook using Ventura with no issues. Simply wait for some nice people to create a patch that lets your MacBook run Sonoma, it won't take long for the community to do so, there is no technical reason whatsoever that your MacBook can't run it happily.