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Are there any downsides to installing a newer (unsupported) macOS on an older MacBook Pro?
I happen to be in possession of a 2013 MacBook Pro that runs macOS 11 Big Sur and it's decent for that.
Let's say I wanted to run the latest apps and macOS on it, things that don't work on Big Sur. I know there are unofficial ways to get those on the MacBook, OpenCore Legacy Patcher is what most articles recommend that I've seen.
Has anyone here tried that, and were there any big problems with that setup? Were there any broken apps or features after upgrading? Did everything become slower?
I have a late 2012 13" MBP. After using OCLP to install macOS
SonomaVentura, I now experience significant lag in VS Code with the vim plugin enabled. It was usable before the reinstall. Typing and touchpad seem normal everywhere else. I'm not doing that much programming right now, so I took the opportunity to finally configure neovim with language server/completions and just use it from a terminal.Things seem slightly slower, but one massive upside is that Screens 4 (remote desktop client) doesn't eat up CPU anymore. The new OS (and updated build of the app) must include hardware acceleration.
Updating to Sonoma with OCLP led to some unfortunate wakeups from sleep that were draining my battery to zero. I decided to downgrade to Catalina to save my battery health. It is decidedly snappier.
If you really need an up-to-date Safari, modern versions of apps, and/or homebrew, then maybe it's worth it. In my case, I'm fine with Firefox, macports, nix, and the old version of Screens 4.
I have a mid-2014 13" MBP. I upgraded to Big Sur and it did not like it. Felt sluggish. I ended up downgrading back to Catalina and even then it was slow with newer versions of programs. It's been retired from daily use like a year and a half.
So I'd be surprised if more recent versions run well. But I'd be interested in the answer to this. Won't bring it back as my daily driver, but I could see it as a fun side project.
Time to break out a Linux distribution that'll make this feel like new again.
But I want the MacOS experience! I'm sure there's some "hackintosh" thing that emulates it, but I want the real deal. I've been trying to convince myself for the last year or so that I don't need a new Mac, that I just want one. I have too many computers as it is!
For clarity, a hackintosh doesn't emulate the experience, it runs regular MacOS on non-standard parts.
Though I'm not sure of any Linux distro that aims to replicate MacOS, most have levels of customization that allows you to replicate the environment.
Can't comment on the speed part, but with regards to broken features, these do exist.
See Legacy Non-Metal GPUs and macOS Big Sur - Sonoma for an example.
I'd still give it a shot if I were you, mind you. Can't hurt and you can always revert.
My guess is that it’s very specific to the device, for example if you have a non-metal GPU or low ram etc. In my case, I use a 2010 MacBook Pro (7.1) with Mac OS Monterey, and it runs well. It has a intel CPU, non-metal GPU (nvidia), 8 GB of RAM and an SSD. It’s also one of the devices still using USB 1.1 for the internal keyboard and trackpad, which is why I didn’t try Ventura, but maybe Sonoma has some improvements which make the jump and hassle with USB 1.1 worth it.
My MacBook runs smoother on Monterey compared to Catalina. Basic activities are no problem, such as text editing, browsing the web etc. Didn’t notice anything broken, however, with a device this old, stuff like airdrop or sidecar wasn’t supported on official releases anyway.
Action Retro has a video on the install process on a MacBook Air, it is very easy to do.
Thanks for the replies everyone, it's helpful to learn from your experiences. I'm still working up the courage to give this a shot, so don't hold your breath if you were hoping for a report on my attempt! I'm planning to look at all my options first, including unofficial ways to upgrade individual apps while keeping Big Sur, and/or replacements for each app.
I could end up deciding it's not worth the trouble, turning a perfectly usable computer into a slow one with issues that I won't know how to deal with. I have a lot of respect for people who can tinker and have the ability to fix everything or learn to live with it, but I'm not sure if that's me in this situation.