macOS 15: Intel Macs lack these features

The death knell is slowly ringing for Intel Macs: in the coming years, Apple may stop supporting x86 processors altogether. But macOS 15 aka Sequoia, which was released on Monday, can still run on these machines. But as usual, this does not apply to all tasks. Apple offers the main new features only for Macs with Apple Silicon, that is, for computers with M1, M2 or M3.

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Features you can do without

For several macOS versions, Apple has given all features only to computers with its own chips. This is no different in macOS 15. Apple Intelligence, which, unlike the iPhone and iPad, can also be used on Macs in Europe, is completely missing. There are no writing tools with macOS 15.1, which will be released in October, and there will also be no image generators. Apple will also not implement transcribing of English-language audio in the Voice Memos and Notes apps. The same applies to summaries of documents.

At least in other areas things are looking better. New password app, new window management, new integration of reminders and calendar and even iPhone mirroring (unfortunately not in the EU) are coming to Intel Macs. Apple could have gone “evil” here.

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Intel is still running — but probably not for long

macOS 15 is generally usable on all Intel Macs that have the T2 co-processor, which provides security features, among other things. However, there are some exceptions. Basically, the operating system runs on an iMac from 2019, an iMac Pro from 2017, a MacBook Air from 2020, a Mac Mini from 2018, a MacBook Pro from 2018, and a Mac Pro from 2019 (plus the Mac Studio from 2022, which it never does as an Intel version). There’s a full list to cross-check your own configuration can be found on apple.com,

At the moment it is unclear how long Apple will continue to release macOS for Intel machines. On average, Intel Macs received updates for six to seven years, which would mean that at least macOS 16 or macOS 17 are still compatible. Alternatively, Apple could only offer macOS 16 for some Intel machines and end support completely with macOS 17 in 2026. The most radical version would be to cut the Intel cord with macOS 16 in the autumn of 2025. In principle, switching to Apple silicon machines has long been worthwhile. The computers that have been on the market since 2020 are more powerful, run cooler and rarely need to activate the fan. Software issues are practically non-existent – there is no longer any Boot Camp for Intel Windows and of course only ARM Windows runs in virtual machines.

(B.Sc.)