Which Macs Are Still Getting Software Updates
- Which Macs Are Still Getting Software Updates Windows 10
- Which Macs Are Still Getting Software Updates 2017
- Which Macs Are Still Getting Software Updates Free
The company is still expected to unveil the first look at the future of iOS, macOS, watchOS, and tvOS — the various suites of software that power all of Apple’s hardware. Apple patches Macs as it starts retirement clock for El Capitan About one in eight Mac owners still runs OS X 10.11, which may only get one more update before gertting bumped off the support list.
Apple fans have been disgruntled over the past few years with an apparent forced obsolescence of hardware. But how much truth is there in this? How long does Apple support their devices with up-to-date operating systems? By support I mean from the moment a Mac or iDevice is released until it is no longer supported by a version of Mac OS X or iOS.
For example, the first MacBook was released in May 2006 and came with Mac OS X 10.4. It was supported through 10.6, but it couldn’t run Mac OS X 10.7 Lion, which was released in July 2011. Therefore it had an officially supported life of 5 years and 2 months.
Does buying an expensive Mac Pro give you longer support life over the cheaper Mac mini, or does the higher price of a MacBook Pro reward you with longer support life over a consumer-aimed MacBook? Let’s find out. Below is a table listing each Mac product line.
For each product line, I have listed three versions (if available): the earliest version of each line to support OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard, 10.7 Lion, and 10.8 Mountain Lion. This gives the maximum support life of each product. Of course, if you buy one later on, nearing the release of the next version or purchase a used machine, you get less support. This should be reflected in the price you pay.
For Macs capable of running Mac OS X 10.8, I have included support life for 10.9 Mavericks, as all Macs that can run 10.8 will be able to run 10.9, which is due to be released later this year. Apple are releasing a new version of OS X each year, so 2014 should see 10.10, and nobody knows what the hardware requirements will be. I am assuming Apple will increase it and doubt very much that a 2007 iMac or a 2009 MacBook capable of running 10.8 and 10.9 will be supported in a 2014 operating system.
For the purpose of this article, we will assume those early machines running 10.8 (and soon 10.9) will end OS support in August 2014, which is roughly when 10.10 should be released.
The news that OS X 10.9 Mavericks will run on the same hardware as OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion is a huge boost for current Mac users. It is the first time since the release of Mac OS X 10.3 Panther in 2003 (which required built-in USB) that no hardware hikes have been included and extends a lot of Macs supported life by another 12 months at least.
Looking through the table, it seems the average supported life from Apple is just over five years, with a few exceptions. The original MacBook Air falls short at only 4 years and 6 months and the Mid 2007 Mac mini falls short of the five year mark also, both models due to not being able to run Mountain Lion.
The Mac mini is Apple’s budget Mac. It originally aimed at Windows users, hoping to entice them to switch. It came with no accessories, assuming you had a monitor and USB keyboard and mouse from your existing set up. Retailing from US$499 in 2005 for the original model and $599 for later ones, it was Apple’s cheapest Macs since the 2000 model iMacs and the ATI eMacs coming in behind at $799. For this reason, you can forgive Apple for not support it as long as a Mac that is double in price. However, the first Mac Pro – retailing at $2,499, nearly 5x the price of the Mac mini – only received 5 years and 11 months support, a little over a year more than the Mac mini.
The few exceptions to roughly five years of OS support – which must please their owners no end – are the Mid 2007 20” iMac at 7 years and the Mid/Late 2007 MacBook Pro at a whopping 7 years 2 months.
What does this all mean? Well, it should help you gauge what sort of machine will provide a better cost-per-year, and for those on a tighter budget this could give them an extra two years before they feel the need to replace it.
Okay, before you all scream This is Low End Mac and point out that many people still use older, non-supported Macs, just because a Mac loses support by Apple doesn’t mean it is useless. That is not what this article is about.
Snow Leopard Lives
A 2006 Intel Mac running OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard is still fully supported by most developers, and with a user base of around 30%, Apple cannot ignore it. [Editor’s note: Site analytics show 24% of Intel Mac users visiting Low End Mac are using OS X 10.6.] Apple in the past have taken a “current plus previous” approach to supporting Mac OS X, meaning when 10.5 Leopard was released they still released Security Patches for 10.4 Tiger – but not 10.3 Panther.
Which Macs Are Still Getting Software Updates Windows 10
However, Apple recently released a Snow Leopard Security update, despite it being two revisions back from today’s 10.8 Mountain Lion. Interestingly, there are more Snow Leopard users than Lion users [16% according to Low End Mac analytics, vs. 24% for 10.6], which shows both how good Snow Leopard was and how many early Intel Macs are still around that cannot run anything higher.
How Long for OS Support?
This provides an interesting look at just how long you get support for an Apple product. Support is meant as currently supported by Apple and able to run the latest OS. A first generation MacBook shipped in 2006, is now 7 years old, and is still used by a lot of people, still supported by developers, and still being offered security updates by Apple if it’s running Snow Leopard. It isn’t obsolete – far from it, it can still run the latest Flash and Firefox, unlike a G4 or G5 Mac.
However, there are still plenty of people who use a G4 and are happy with it. One interesting point about Intel Macs over PowerPC Macs is that once Apple do end all support for your Mac – it is Intel based – so it is possible to run Windows or Linux on it, as both tend to run on older hardware. As much as it pains me to say it, where Apple ditched Core Duo and early Core 2 Duo Macs, not allowing them to run Lion or anything higher, they will run Windows 8 or the latest Ubuntu with full support.
A device is useful depending on the needs of the user. Some people need a top-end brand new Mac, but some people can get by using a PowerBook G4.
To see how Apple supports iDevices in comparison to its Macs, see my companion article, How Long Will Apple Support Your iDevice.
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Which Macs Are Still Getting Software Updates 2017
Older versions of OS X don't get the newest fixes from Apple. That's just the way software works. If the old version of OS X you're running doesn't get important updates to Safari anymore, you're going to have to update to a newer version of OS X first. How far you choose to upgrade your Mac is entirely up to you. But it's definitely time to get things in order, because there are good reasons why you're getting the 'This version of Safari is no longer supported', and they typically have to do with security or capabilities that you're missing.
I have a 2009 MacBook Pro. It works fine but I keep getting messages that says 'This version of Safari is no longer supported. Please upgrade to a supported browser'. I also can't download certain programs or open some YouTube videos. Should I upgrade my browser, and if so, should I use Yosemite? Also, if I upgrade to another browser, will there be significants changes in what my my screen looks like. (I'm one of those people who doesn't like any kind of change.) Thanks for any help you can offer. — KC
I see this problem in the store I work in quite frequently. A customer will come in with a Mac that works fine except they can't do much on the web anymore because they keep getting that error message.
That error message is legitimate: Some web sites will block you from their content if they judge you to be a security risk or if the browser you're working with is too old to support the technology they are dependent on. Unfortunately, there's nothing you can do under those circumstances except get your Mac working with more modern software.
Some people reading this may be surprised to learn that you're not already running OS X Yosemite, after all, it should work just fine on a 2009-era Mac. But the fact is that many of us, like you, use our Macs with the software they came with, because that's what we're accustomed to and that's what we like to use. And as the old adage goes, if it ain't broke, don't fix it.
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You didn't tell me how your MacBook Pro was configured, but if it's a 13-inch model, and assuming you fall into the 'if it ain't broke' camp, I'm guessing that your 2009-era MacBook Pro came with OS X 10.5 'Leopard,' which is an elderly operating system by Apple standards.
The bad news is that you can't just arbitrarily jump to Yosemite. After all, you need the Mac App Store to do that, and you don't have the Mac App Store on your Mac, because that wasn't introduced until Snow Leopard came out later that year.
The good news is that Apple still offers Snow Leopard for sale — you can buy it on DVD directly from Apple for $19.99. It's also available from vendors on Amazon.com, though it'll cost you a bit more.
Getting Snow Leopard on your Mac, with the requisite security and app updates offered, may get you to the point where you're not seeing unsupported browser messages anymore; you can also download Firefox or Google Chrome at that point; both of those web browsers continue to support Snow Leopard as well.
The good news is that Snow Leopard is similar enough in look and feel to Leopard to be a very unobtrusive update for you. You should be able to apply it without any really jarring complications that will take out of what you're used to.
Bumping your Mac up to Snow Leopard and applying any software updates will provide you with access to the Mac App Store, and you can further upgrade your Mac from there, if you choose.
Can your Mac run Yosemite? Yes, it can — though there's a few caveats. First of all, you'll need at least 2 GB RAM, and I'd really recommend having 4 GB or more installed. (If you're not sure how much RAM your Mac has, go to the menu and click on 'About this Mac,' it should tell you there.) Secondly, Yosemite does introduce a lot of visual changes to the Mac operating system that you may not like. So Snow Leopard may be your best bet.
Regardless, Snow Leopard is your first stop before you go any further, because Leopard is definitely past its prime at this point.
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exposure notificationNational COVID-19 server to use Apple and Google's API, hosted by Microsoft
Which Macs Are Still Getting Software Updates Free
The Association of Public Health Laboratories has announced it is working with Apple, Google, and Microsoft to launch a national server that will securely store COVID-19 exposure notification data.