Key takeaways
- Older MacBook models may have trouble keeping up with macOS versions, or may not fully support them, but that doesn’t mean you need to upgrade.
- Windows 10 has more lenient system requirements and therefore may work better on older Macs than on newer versions of macOS.
- It’s possible to upgrade to Windows 11 on a MacBook, but it involves bypassing the TPM 2.0 requirements and installing drivers manually.
Apple’s move to Apple Silicon has paid off, as the company’s in-house systems-on-chips are industry leaders in power efficiency. Leaving Intel behind was the obvious choice after a rough few years in which the chipmaker failed to innovate. However, we lost a handful of useful features following the Apple Silicon transition, like Boot Camp. This was a feature built into Intel Macs that could easily partition your computer’s drive and allow dual booting of macOS and Windows. Most people use Boot Camp just for that: switching between Windows and macOS interchangeably as needed. But my favorite use of Boot Camp is to revive old Macs that can’t run newer versions of macOS or that seem to have hardware limitations.
Unlike Windows, macOS relies on annual software upgrades. When support runs out, a MacBook or desktop Mac can quickly become unusable. This is what happened to my 12-inch MacBook, which Apple officially declared “obsolete” in June 2023. With a meager Intel m3 processor and integrated graphics, the latest version of the operating system supported by this MacBook – macOS Monterey – is released in 2021. And to call it supported This is completely exaggerated. It was slow, crashed frequently, and now only supports newer versions of a few apps a few years later. The fact is, when a MacBook reaches this state of decrepit, it’s not the time to toss it aside and buy a new Mac. It’s time to install Windows.
Parallels Desktop 19 for Mac review: Virtualization software powerful enough to replace Boot Camp
Apple has discontinued Boot Camp on Apple Silicon Macs, which means Parallels 19 might be your best chance to run Windows on a Mac. Is he good?
Windows 10, even though it is nearing its end of life, remains a very capable operating system. Since Microsoft first released Windows 10 in 2015, it can run on hardware that would be considered old by today’s standards. Every Intel MacBook supports a version of Windows through Boot Camp, and many support Windows 10. If you’re considering upgrading your Mac because of slower speeds or a lack of macOS support, try Windows first.
This MacBook couldn’t survive on macOS
Old Metal GPU doomed my 12-inch MacBook
Before finding some stability with Apple Silicon, the company’s history with GPUs on Macs was nothing short of absolute chaos. Some MacBooks were released with integrated Intel graphics, discrete Nvidia graphics, and later discrete AMD graphics. The problem has been compounded by the transition to Metal, the software that powers hardware-accelerated graphics on supported GPU models for Apple computers. Apple found itself in a difficult situation where it had non-metallic, old metal, and metallic GPUs from three manufacturers (not counting Apple itself with Apple Silicon), which made software support impossible. Some MacBooks were excluded from new versions of macOS due to their reliance on Metal, and others were poorly optimized or experienced slow speeds.
Metal remains an obstacle today, as it is one of the main obstacles preventing developers from bringing their apps and games to macOS. Apple has essentially fixed this problem with the Game Porting Toolkit, but the hardware issues persist. Essentially, just because your MacBook doesn’t work well on macOS doesn’t mean it’s ready to be replaced. A system that is a decade old, give or take a few years, could malfunction due to the presence of a non-metal or old-metal GPU.
Apple’s Game Porting Toolkit opens up a whole new world of gaming on your Mac
Apple’s solution to the lack of games on MacOS is essentially taking the Steam Deck approach.
This was the case with my 12-inch MacBook. It used integrated Intel Skylake graphics, specifically Intel HD Graphics 515. Although it is a Metal GPU, it is considered “Legacy Metal”, which means you may still experience issues. On my MacBook, running macOS Monterey, some apps completely refused to render graphics and the operating system slowed to a crawl. Others were simply no longer supported on the 2021 OS, and the MacBook’s old Metal GPU meant that using OpenCore Legacy Patcher to hack a newer version of macOS wasn’t a great option. While this is possible, there are major stability and usability issues. There was only one option left: install Windows.
Windows 10 saved this MacBook
Overall stability, speed and application support improved immediately
As I mentioned earlier, Windows 10 is uniquely positioned to save older MacBooks that can’t keep up with modern versions of macOS. He keeps on Nothingand if you don’t believe me, just take a look at Microsoft’s minimum system requirements for Windows 10:
- Processor: 1 gigahertz (GHz) or faster processor or SoC
- RAM: 1 gigabyte (GB) for 32-bit or 2 GB for 64-bit
- Hard disk space: 16 GB for 32-bit operating system or 20 GB for 64-bit operating system
- Graphic card: DirectX 9 or later with WDDM 1.0 driver
- Display: 800×600
Almost every MacBook you’ll find supports Windows 10 because of these lenient system requirements. I was able to use Boot Camp to install Windows 10 and all its necessary drivers on my 12-inch MacBook in less than half an hour without any problems. After installing it, my MacBook immediately felt faster. Apps that didn’t work on macOS Monterey, like Slack, worked just fine on Windows 10. Many programs that refused to support the three-year-old macOS Monterey still had excellent support in Windows 10. This is not surprising, since Windows 10 still covers more than double the market share of Windows 11, even in 2024. However, this means that your unsupported MacBook will work better with better support on Windows 10 than ‘an old version of macOS.
Windows 11: everything you need to know
Windows 11 is the latest and greatest operating system from Microsoft, and it comes with a lot of changes. Here’s what you need to know.
Wait, what about Windows 11?
It’s possible to install Windows 11, but it’s a complete mess
You may be wondering why I chose Windows 10 instead of the new Windows 11, especially as support for Windows 10 dwindles. Indeed, Windows 11 is not officially supported via Boot Camp and this limitation makes its installation on old MacBooks tricky. Technically, no Mac supports Windows 11. The operating system comes with hardware requirements, like a TPM 2.0 chip, that Mac computers don’t meet. Although Apple released 11 Mac models containing a TPM 2.0 module, it was never activated and therefore Windows 11 is not supported. You can install Windows 11 on most Intel Macs using the Rufus tool, which we have a guide to below. However, you’ll still have to search for the right Windows 11 drivers for your components – and hope they exist.
How to install Windows 11 on almost any unsupported PC
Want Windows 11 but have an unsupported computer? Here’s how to install Windows 11 even if your PC doesn’t meet the minimum requirements.
Aside from that horrible period from 2016 to 2019, Apple has made excellent MacBooks that can last a long time. Just because Apple says your system is outdated doesn’t mean it’s time to throw it away and buy a new one. I’ve personally kept and used MacBooks from 2009, working in usable form by being a little creative, like choosing Windows when macOS no longer does the job. If you find that your aging MacBook is starting to get frustrating and slow, I implore you to try Windows 10 (or Windows 11, if you dare) before you throw it away.
