The brand new macOS Tahoe 26 is a part of Apple’s push for a unified UI, however some Mac house owners is not going to get to expertise it as Tahoe drops assist for sure Intel-powered Macs. And whereas some Intel-powered Macs will get Tahoe, that is the final macOS model that they are going to obtain.
When macOS Sequoia was unveiled final yr, it dropped assist for 2018 MacBook Airs, however 2020 ones (with tenth gen Intel CPUs) have been nonetheless capable of replace. Come subsequent yr, solely Apple Silicon Macs will likely be getting up to date.
Above is the record of which Macs are getting up to date to Tahoe 26 – all Apple Silicon Macs, plus some Intel-powered ones. However Apple’s bizarre naming scheme requires some clarification as it may be exhausting to determine which mannequin is which.
Here’s a desk that reveals the distinction between final yr’s Sequoia and this yr’s Tahoe:
| macOS Sequoia | macOS 26 Tahoe | |
|---|---|---|
| iMac | 2019 | 2020 |
| iMac Professional | 2017 | – |
| Mac Studio | 2022 | 2022 |
| Mac mini | 2018 | 2020 |
| Mac Professional | 2019 | 2019 |
| MacBook Air | 2020 | 2020 (Apple) |
| MacBook Professional | 2018 | 2020 (Apple) 2019 (16″, Intel) 2020 (13″, 4 TB ports) |
Let’s attempt to clear issues up – 2020 MacBook Airs with Intel CPUs can’t be up to date, solely Apple-powered Airs get Tahoe. Intel-powered Mac minis additionally lose assist (the final one was the 2018 mannequin, from 2020 onward they use Apple M chips). The iMac Professional (which by no means bought an Apple Silicon refresh) can also be staying behind on Sequoia. Nonetheless, iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2020) with tenth gen Core i5, i7 and i9 may be up to date to Tahoe.
The MacBook Professional (16-inch, 2019) with Intel Core i7 and i9 in addition to the MacBook Professional (13-inch, 2020, 4 Thunderbolt 3 ports) (sure, that’s the mannequin identify) with tenth gen Core i5 and i7 additionally get macOS Tahoe 26. Nonetheless, older MacBook Execs are out of luck. Their successors will quickly be a part of them – once more, Tahoe is the final macOS for Intel-powered Macs.
Word that whereas they are going to not obtain main OS updates, the Intel-powered Macs on Tahoe will nonetheless get safety patches for 3 extra years. This can give customers extra time to replace their computer systems.
Apple is transferring away from x86 on the whole. Subsequent yr’s macOS 27 will nonetheless embrace Rosetta 2 – that’s the translation system that runs x86 software program on Apple’s new ARM processors. Going ahead, the plan is to maintain Rosetta as a compatibility layer for legacy video video games, however Apple is encouraging builders to transition to ARM for his or her Mac software program.
