How long will M1 Max be supported?

[Qedty]

Given 8TB 32GB ram M1 Max by insurance. specs are like a million times better than my M1 Pro I had. I only had 512GB hard drive too Lol. I'm very grateful I just want to use what is gonna be have a good time of support left in it or if i should sell.

 

[Rnd-chars]

I expect M-based Macs will follow roughly the same support model as other Apple Silicon devices, but it’s anyone’s guess. Personally, I bet you’ll receive full support from an OS, security and feature perspective for 6 years (so 2027), followed by several more of security only updates.

That might be conservative, though, since the M1 Max has significantly higher memory bandwidth and CPU/GPU compute than later M-base models. The biggest gating factor would be the neural engine, so I’d expect ML features to be the first to drop.

 

[PotentPeas]

I'd actually put it at "at least" 7 years from launch, because I don't see them supporting Apple Silicon Macs for a shorter time than they support iPhones. That said, I'd say the M1 generation actually launched in late 2020 (before M1 Pro / Max were out). I think that it is likely that they'll drop support for all M1 systems at the same time. So, the first OS which "might not" support your system would be macOS 18, releasing in late 2027. Also, it is likely that you will get OS updates but miss out on features going to newer systems for some of this time — like how there are still Intel Macs that can upgrade to Sequoia but they won't be able to use Apple Intelligence.

Apple doesn't announce their support timeframe for products in advance, and their "methodology" for deciding which systems to support and not support with each new OS release is not entirely predictable. So, you've just got to tune in after WWDC each June and see which Macs are getting chopped off.

But, after Apple stops offering new major OS updates for your system, you still get security updates for two more years.

 

[ignatius345]

Ars Technica has done a great dive into the supported lifespan of Macs going back 20 years. The article is focused more on Intel Macs, but could help inform speculation about M1 Macs. No Apple Silicon machines have yet stopped receiving updates (let alone reached "unsupported" status) so it remains to be seen whether they follow the same timelines as previous Macs.

How long will the last Intel Macs be supported? macOS Sonoma gives us some hints

Nearly 20 years of data show how Intel Macs are faring as Apple switches chips.

arstechnica.com

 

[benwiggy]

The article is focused more on Intel Macs,

The article shows how Apple has been dependent on other companies, including Intel, who in turn provide support to Apple for their hardware.

I would hope that now Apple has brought most of the hardware in-house, they can provide longer support.

By 2028, anyone who's still rocking an M1 will want to buy the M8, which has the neural processing hardware needed to run the latest AI features in macOS Compton.

 

[ignatius345]

The article shows how Apple has been dependent on other companies, including Intel, who in turn provide support to Apple for their hardware.

I would hope that now Apple has brought most of the hardware in-house, they can provide longer support.

I hope so too! So far I have to say my M1 Macs (an M1 Air and iMac at home, and an M1 Mini at work) are holding up really well and running Sequoia quite smoothly. Not sure what that means behind the scenes, but I'm happy with the results. But I think a lot remains to be seen with the Apple Intelligence stuff and how taxing that ends up being.

By 2028, anyone who's still rocking an M1 will want to buy the M8, which has the neural processing hardware needed to run the latest AI features in macOS Compton.

Right now I'm thinking M4 or 5 might be where I finally am driven to upgrade? But if a compelling form factor came along (a 27" iMac or an ultraportable MacBook, for my needs) I'd probably jump on that more quickly.

 

[tim1000]

1 more year.