Intel Macs won’t get all the latest macOS Ventura features…


Apple has released developer betas of ALL its upcoming operating systems including iOS 16, iPadOS 16, tvOS 16, watchOS 9, and macOS 13, also known as macOS Ventura. 

macOS Ventura is the operating system that Mac fans are most interested in because it powers Mac laptops and desktops. And macOS Ventura is packed with new features, including all0new Weather and Clock apps, Stage Manager multitasking, Continuity Camera, editing Message – and more!

And those are just the big features. macOS Ventura also includes lots of smaller features that often add up to quite impressive improvements across the OS as a whole. However, there is some bad news for some Mac fans–not all macOS Ventura features will work on Intel Macs.

Here’s what you need to know…

Which macOS Ventura Features Are Missing On Intel Macs?Pin

What Macs Will Get macOS Ventura?

Apple has stated that the following Macs will be able to install and run macOS Ventura:

  • iMac: 2017 and later
  • iMac Pro: 2017
  • MacBook Air: 2018 and later
  • MacBook Pro: 2017 and later
  • MacBook: 2017 and later
  • Mac Pro: 2019 and later
  • Mac Studio: 2022
  • Mac mini: 2018 and later

While all those Macs include the M-series Macs running Apple’s M1 and M2 chipsets, there are also a ton of older Intel Macs that can still run macOS Ventura. And that’s a great thing because M-series Macs have only been around for a few years, so most Mac users are still likely to have Intel-based Macs.

The problem is that Apple isn’t supporting ALL macOS Ventura features on older Intel Macs. His is a major bummer, but it’s not the first time Apple has done this. Last year, Apple’s Monterey operating system (macOS 12) had some features not supported by Intel Macs, including the lack of Maps details and the Map’s app 3D globe feature.

It’s likely that as macOS progresses in the future, Apple will continue this trend–in other words, Intel Macs will receive fewer and fewer new features until Apple finally releases a version of macOS that only runs on M-series Macs.

What macOS Ventura Features Won’t Run On Intel Macs?

The good news is that macOS Ventura won’t see any major new features missing from Intel Macs. All the big new features (Stage Manager, editing iMessages, Weather app, etc) will be available on both M-series Macs and Intel Macs.

But as of right now it looks like Intel Macs will be lacking three macOS Ventura features that M-series Macs will have. These are:

  • Dictatable Emoji: Yeah, this is an odd one. macOS Ventura adds new Dictation features, so you can more easily speak and have your words typed automatically onscreen. M-series Macs will also be able to automatically insert emoji just by speaking them. Oddly, Apple says this feature is limited to M-series Macs.
  • Live Captions: This feature allows you to see spoken words, such as in a FaceTime video call, appear as text on your screen. It’s an amazing feature for those who are hard of hearing or deaf. The feature will also let you know who is saying the live transcribed words. But this feature is again limited to M-series Macs.
  • Sidecar Reference Mode: Sidecar is a feature that lets your Mac use your iPad as a second display. Reference Mode for Sidecar lets you use your 12.9-inch M1 iPad Pro as a second display with your Mac for color grading and other related graphics features. However, this Sidecar Reference Mode will require an M-series Mac as well.

Why Is Apple Limiting Certain macOS Ventura Features to M-Series Macs?

Though cynics say it’s because Apple is trying to compel users to upgrade their older intel Macs to M-series Macs, the real reason is much more benign. M-series chips have more advanced machine learning capabilities than older Intel chips do. This means the M1 and M2 chips can perform more advanced artificially intelligent features – such as transcribing the voice of someone who is speaking in a FaceTime call. 

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