Mac transition to Intel processors: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 03:00, 13 August 2023

Revision as of 05:02, 13 August 2023

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[[Mac OS X Snow Leopard|Mac OS X Snow Leopard (10.6)]], released in August 2009, was the first version of Mac OS X (later [[macOS]]) to require a Mac with an Intel processor, ending operating system support for Power PC Macs three years after the transition was complete.<ref>{{cite web |title=Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard Installation and Setup Guide |url=https://manuals.info.apple.com/MANUALS/1000/MA1172/en_US/Snow_Leopard_Installation_Instructions.pdf |website=[[Apple Inc.]] |access-date=25 June 2020 |date=2009 |quote=To upgrade to Snow Leopard or install Snow Leopard for the first time, you must have a Mac with: An Intel processor |archive-date=November 27, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201127111822/https://manuals.info.apple.com/MANUALS/1000/MA1172/en_US/Snow_Leopard_Installation_Instructions.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Apple to Ship Mac OS X Snow Leopard on August 28 |url=https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2009/08/24Apple-to-Ship-Mac-OS-X-Snow-Leopard-on-August-28/ |website=[[Apple Inc.]] |access-date=25 June 2020 |date=24 August 2009 |archive-date=December 9, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191209130359/https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2009/08/24Apple-to-Ship-Mac-OS-X-Snow-Leopard-on-August-28/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Support for Rosetta was removed from Mac OS X with the release of [[Mac OS X Lion|10.7 Lion]], which was released in July 2011, five years after the transition was complete.<ref>{{cite news |title=Inside Mac OS X 10.7 Lion: Missing Front Row, Rosetta and Java runtime |url=https://appleinsider.com/articles/11/02/26/mac_os_x_lion_drops_front_row_java_runtime_rosetta.html |access-date=25 June 2020 |work=[[AppleInsider]] |archive-date=November 27, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201127150940/https://appleinsider.com/articles/11/02/26/mac_os_x_lion_drops_front_row_java_runtime_rosetta.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Mac OS X Lion Available Today From the Mac App Store |url=https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2011/07/20Mac-OS-X-Lion-Available-Today-From-the-Mac-App-Store/ |website=[[Apple Inc.]] |access-date=23 June 2020 |date=20 July 2011 |archive-date=July 10, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180710135400/https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2011/07/20Mac-OS-X-Lion-Available-Today-From-the-Mac-App-Store/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The last Apple application to support PowerPC processors was iTunes 10.6.3, which was released on June 11, 2012.<ref>{{cite web |title=iTunes 10.6.3 |url=https://support.apple.com/kb/dl1575?locale=en_US |website=[[Apple Inc.]] |access-date=25 June 2020 |date=11 June 2012 |archive-date=January 25, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210125061255/https://support.apple.com/kb/DL1575?locale=en_US |url-status=live }}</ref>

Apple has a policy of placing products that have not been sold for more than five years, but less than seven years, as "vintage", meaning hardware services from Apple Stores and service providers are subject to availability of inventory, or as required by law. AAfter a product is considered "obsolete" after it has not been sold for more than seven years, andit areis considered "obsolete", meaning it is not eligible for hardware support.<ref name="AppleVintageObsolete">{{cite web |title=Vintage and obsolete products |url=https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201624 |website=[[Apple Inc.]] |access-date=25 June 2020 |archive-date=November 16, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181116063147/https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201624 |url-status=live }}</ref> All PowerPC-based Macs were obsolete by 2013.

In spite of the PowerPC architecture being considered obsolete, use of the systems remains popular in [[retrocomputing]]; multiple community projects exist that aim to allow PowerPC Macs to carry out modern tasks, such as the [[Classilla]] and [[TenFourFox]] web browsers.