You Shouldn't Still Be Buying Intel-based Macs - The New York Times

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There are only a few Apple computers left that come with Intel processors, and most people shouldn’t buy them. In November 2020, Apple began making a big change to its Mac lineup. Although Macs have used processors from Intel since 2006, new Macs from here on out will feature Apple-designed chips like the ones in iPhones and iPads. Apple says that using its own “Apple silicon” chips will improve performance and battery life for Macs and provide less tangible benefits relating to security and privacy.

As of Spring 2022, Apple has dropped Intel from new models of the

• MacBook Air (13-inch)
• MacBook Pro (13-inch, 14-inch, 16-inch)
• Mac Mini
• iMac

That leaves the Mac Pro as the last Intel-only model, while Mac Minis are available with either processor. Apple started the transition in the Fall of 2020, and they stated an expectation that the full lineup would be changed over by the end of 2022.

During this transition period, Apple will support both Intel Macs and Apple silicon Macs with new features and software updates, before eventually dropping Intel Mac support in favor of focusing on newer, faster models with its own chips. With fewer Intel options available, most people will have their mind made up for them on which versions to choose. And only in a few specific cases should anyone consider seeking out the remaining Intel models.

What’s the problem?

Apple’s processors and Intel’s processors can’t just run the same software. Each uses a different “instruction set,” meaning (very simply) that software needs to talk to them in different ways to get them to perform the same tasks.1 Because of this, software developers will need to do extra work to optimize their applications to run well on both Intel and Apple processors. Eventually, as Intel Macs age and Apple silicon Macs become more prevalent, those developers may stop working to make their apps run on Intel Macs at all.

If you’ve been using Macs since the turn of the millennium, you might remember something similar happening when Apple transitioned from PowerPC chips to Intel processors in the mid- to late 2000s. Apple and third-party app developers supported both PowerPC and Intel Macs for a couple of years, but the last PowerPC Macs didn’t get updates for nearly as long as the earlier PowerPC Macs, a development that shortened their useful lifespans. The concern is that history will repeat itself, and that the last few Intel Macs will be worse investments than both the Intel Macs that preceded them and the Apple silicon Macs that will follow.

Why you should buy Apple silicon

The Apple silicon Macs that Apple has released so far have been very good—as fast as or faster than the Intel Macs they replace, but with much better battery life (for laptops) and lower power usage (for desktops). The 24-inch iMac and the 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pros also received more comprehensive redesigns and updates like added ports and better screens.

Apple silicon Macs will also get new macOS releases for longer than Intel Macs, and an increasing number of macOS features will be exclusive to newer, Apple silicon Macs as new versions are released. Apple silicon Macs are the only models that can also run iOS and iPadOS apps. Some features of the October 2021 release of macOS Monterey, such as Portrait mode for FaceTime calls, will work only on Apple silicon Macs.

Intel Macs will continue to receive at least some new macOS features “for years to come,” and they won’t suddenly become bad now that Apple is changing processors. If you have an Intel Mac you’re happy with, especially one released in 2018 or later, you don’t need to run out and upgrade. But if you’re able, you should definitely put off buying any new Macs until you can buy one with Apple silicon in it.

Who should still buy an Intel Mac right now

The main reason to buy a new Intel Mac model right now is if you need it for a specific task that isn’t supported by Apple silicon processors, which leaves you to choose between the Intel Mac Mini, the Mac Pro, or older refurbished models of the MacBook Air and MacBook Pro.

You might consider an Intel Mac if you make extensive use of professional apps that haven’t been updated yet and you need those apps to run quickly right out of the box (many of Adobe’s apps, including Premiere Pro, Photoshop, Lightroom, Illustrator, and InDesign, have been optimized for Apple silicon as of Spring 2022). Apple’s Rosetta translation software—which allows software made for Intel chips to run on the new Apple silicon chips—is good, and for tasks like compiling code or transcoding video, where the processor just needs to crunch on data, Apple silicon Macs running Intel code can actually outrun Intel Macs running Intel code. But in our tests, Intel apps that rely on you to do a lot of scrolling, clicking, and interacting with the user interface—web browsers, for instance, or software for editing photos, audio, and video—were definitely less responsive on an Apple silicon Mac. This problem will gradually go away as developers update their apps to work with Apple silicon, and it might not bother you if you’re replacing a years-old Intel Mac that struggles with this software. But the transition could take months or years, depending on the apps you use, and the performance penalty might be annoying in the meantime.

If you run Windows on your Mac via Apple’s Boot Camp software and want to continue to do so, you have to buy an Intel Mac. Boot Camp won’t be available on Macs with Apple processors at all. If you use virtualization software, it depends on your performance expectations. Parallels has been updated to run on M1 Macs, and VMware Fusion will be soon, but we haven’t tested either.

How long will Intel Macs get new updates?

The last time Apple transitioned processor platforms, the final version of the old platform had full OS support for 3 years after it was discontinued, and another two years of security updates. Apple CEO Tim Cook has promised software updates for Intel Macs “for years to come,” but that’s a pretty vague statement to hang a multi-thousand-dollar purchase on. Apple is also notoriously secretive about its future plans, so past history is our best guidance.

Apple announced the transition from PowerPC to Intel processors at its developer conference in June 2005. The company then released the first Intel Macs in 2006 and completed the hardware end of the transition by the end of that year, ahead of its original schedule. That meant you could still buy PowerPC Macs as late as 2006. Three years later, the Mac OS X 10.6 update dropped support for PowerPC Macs entirely, and those computers stopped getting new features or access to then-new apps like Google Chrome. PowerPC Macs did receive security updates until 2011, five years after they had last been sold, but no new features or other upgrades.

More recently, when Apple has dropped support for older Mac models in new versions of macOS, it has stuck to its timelines for “vintage and obsolete products.” For purposes of hardware and software support, Apple considers a product “vintage” if it’s between five and seven years old and “obsolete” if it’s more than seven years old. Macs on either of these lists are the most at risk for being dropped when new macOS versions are released; for example, when macOS Big Sur came out in November 2020, Apple dropped support for all Macs released in 2012 and a handful from 2013. When macOS Monterey is released in the fall of 2021, the company will drop support for almost all Macs released in 2013 and 2014, as well as 2015’s 12-inch MacBook; for the record, this is a shade more aggressive than Apple has been about dropping support for older Macs in the recent past.

Without confirmation from Apple, we can’t say how long Intel Macs will continue to be updated. But judging from the Intel Macs that Apple dropped in Big Sur and Monterey, we’d expect Intel Mac models released in 2020 to receive at least three or four years’ worth of new macOS updates and security updates for a couple of years after that. Apple has also sold many, many more Intel Macs than it ever sold PowerPC Macs, so third-party software developers should be inclined to support those Intel Macs for as long as Apple is still releasing new updates for them.

Footnotes

1. PC processors from Intel and AMD use an instruction set called “x86_64” or just “x86,” a reference to the original Intel 8086 processor used in some of the earliest modern PCs. Phone and tablet processors from companies like Apple, Qualcomm, and MediaTek use an instruction set called “ARM,” a reference to the company that invented it.

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Meet your guides

Andrew Cunningham

Andrew Cunningham is a former senior staff writer on Wirecutter's tech team. He has been writing about laptops, phones, routers, and other tech since 2011. Before that he spent five years in IT fixing computers and helping people buy the best tech for their needs. He also co-hosts the book podcast Overdue and the TV podcast Appointment Television.

Wirecutter Staff

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