macOS Meh

Upgraded to macOS Ventura 13.0.1 yesterday on my 2017 27-inch iMac, more out of a desire to at least be running a version that Apple might actually fix some bugs on it. The supported-for-three-years thing is sorta-correct, except that’s only for security updates.

I was telling someone the other day that I look at screenshots of older versions of macOS / OS X and remember how much I enjoyed using Macs back then. It might not have been perfect, and there were plenty of problems in various corners and use cases, but the user interface was, without being overdramatic, a joy to work with.

These days, however, it feels like I’m using something that looks kinda like the macOS I knew, but with most of the personality removed. It’s not just the flatness, the user interface is so devoid of colour and contrast.

But what about all the shiny new features that Apple adds every year? Well, the unfortunate reality is that a lot of that shiny newness is contingent on you have both the latest Apple hardware and (mostly, but not always) other Apple devices of similar age. Which is fair enough, if those features require resources that older machines can’t muster. But it feels like features are being added more in service to keeping folks on the upgrade treadmill than towards actually helping users with real needs.

And I mentioned at the top of this post the matter of bug-fixing. Frankly, Apple should have the balls to say okay, we’re moving to two-year macOS major version updates. This obsession with having a new version every autumn needs to end. As things stand now, you may get some bugs fixed in the first year after release, then some security patches for two year after that… and then Apple expects you to upgrade to a newer version if you can, or buy a new machine if you can’t (because Apple have decided your Mac is too old.)

My 2011 iMac lasted six years before giving up the ghost.

My mum’s 2014 iMac soldiered on for eight years.

I fully expect her new iMac to go the same distance, easily.

This is reality.

Apple might prefer we throw away working machines to keep their profits rising, but the fact is that many can’t afford to do that, and the planet definitely can’t afford the levels of resource extraction needed to fuel this overabundance.