Apple says macOS Tahoe 26 will be the last OS to support Intel Macs, as Rosetta 2 sunsets one year later
Just yesterday, following Apple’s WWDC 2025 Keynote address, we shared a post outlining which devices would support Apple’s upcoming software updates later this Fall, which included a rundown of what Macs would be able to run macOS Tahoe 26.
While macOS Tahoe 26 will support a small subset of Intel-equipped Macs, an Apple Developer support document available online reveals that this will be the final major software release for these machines, which infers that macOS 27 and onward will drop Intel support completely in favor of Apple silicon-equipped Macs.
While this probably isn’t want Intel-equipped Mac owners wanted to hear, the good news is that Apple will continue to support security updates on these machines despite not launching major future releases for them. This means that when Apple inevitably announces and launches macOS 27 next year, these machines will remain on macOS Tahoe 26 and only receive critical security patches as determined by Apple.
Interestingly, Apple also plans to continue supporting Rosetta 2 – a translation layer that allows apps containing x86_64 instructions to run on machines equipped Apple’s ARM-based silicon – for at least the next two major macOS releases, ending with macOS 27 next year. This means that once macOS 28 launches, Rosetta will no longer be supported.
Apple claims its rationale for this decision is that Rosetta 2 was intended merely to “ease the transition” of apps from x86_64 to Apple silicon, not to be a “substitute.” Some developers have undoubtedly relied entirely on Rosetta 2 to make older apps work on Apple silicon, but Apple doesn’t want to be stuck holding that crutch for too much longer. Instead, the company signals that app developers should work to support Apple silicon.
Apple first introduced Apple silicon back in 2020 with the M1 chip, and Apple has been all-in on Apple silicon not only for its Macs, but also its iPad lineup. We are currently on the M4 generation of chips.
Are you upset to see the sunset of Intel-based Macs just over the horizon? Let us know in the comments section down below.
Source link: https://www.idownloadblog.com/2025/06/10/apple-says-macos-tahoe-26-will-be-the-last-os-to-support-intel-macs-as-rosetta-2-sunsets-one-year-later/
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