chris rothgeb

lkrupp said:

Huge numbers? Bullshit. Running current versions of macOS on old hardware is a futile exercise in vanity. The old hardware can’t take advantage of  many of the features of the current OS so you wind up with essentially the same features as the last available macOS for that old hardware. And the Intel code will be going away soon enough, leaving the hackintosh crowd and ‘Ventura on a 15 year old Mac’ in the Jurassic Epoch of the computer universe. But hey, there are still Amiga users out there, right? And Ford Model A clubs, right?

There's more utility here than I think you realize. I can use the latest features in Monterey like Universal Control with my iPad on my iMac from 2012. I invested in the top of the line 10 years ago which means my experience with running OpenCore is going to be better than most, but still, it extends the usable life of the machine and gives near feature parity with my newer Apple devices running iOS and iPadOS. Now I'm still saving up for a new Mac, but until I can actually afford it, I'm still very happy with how responsive my system is. Your point about support for Intel processors is valid, but that won't be for at least another few years. Don't forget that Apple still sells Macs with Intel processors in 2022. 

JP234 said:

Mystifies me why anyone would want to do this. Running newer MacOS systems on Macs Apple classifies as "vintage" or "obsolete." They ALWAYS, and I mean always, run poorly, sometimes terribly. I worked for an Apple VAR as a service writer (what Apple calls a genius, but no way I'd make that claim), and we got many people who wanted us to restore their old OS, which Apple does not make easy for consumers. (We had the means, and we charged $129 for it.)

If you can't afford a new Mac, or iOS device, just keep the last authorized OS. If there's a feature you just must have, then bite the bullet and get a new model that can use it. Just a cautionary tale from someone who has seen what these hacks can do.

Apple only stops supporting certain models because the base configuration of those models in too underpowered to run the OS well. That's not necessarily true for more capable machines with superior specs. For instance, if my 27" iMac from late 2012 had been the base configuration it would probably struggle to run Big Sur, let alone Monterey or Ventura. But since my system has a quad core i7, 32GB of RAM, and dedicated graphics with 2GB of VRAM, there's no reason why my machine shouldn't be able to run the latest OS. Many Macs with lesser specs are fully supported. With OpenCore Legacy Patcher, I'm running Monterey 12.4 and the experience is smooth and more than satisfactory for my needs. That's not to say that I'm not saving up for a new Mac, but for the time being, I can enjoy feature parity with my newer Apple devices like my iPhone and iPad.