High End MacBook Pro Late 2021 Cannot update to Golden Gate v27. Very disappointed.

Every MacBook Pro which has a hardware model year of 2021 has a M1 Pro or M1 Max chip, and can run macOS 27 (Golden Gate).

During parts of calendar year 2021, Apple was selling two high-end Intel-based MacBook Pro models:

• MacBook Pro (16-inch, 2019). Introduced in November 2019, discontinued in October 2021.
• MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2020, Four Thunderbolt 3 ports). Introduced in May 2020, discontinued in October 2021.

These Intel-based MacBook Pros can run Tahoe - and are the only Intel-based MacBook Pros that can. They can't run the Apple-Silicon-only macOS 27 (Golden Gate).

FYI, Apple discontinued the MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2020, Two Thunderbolt 3 ports) in November 2020 - when the MacBook Pro (13-inch, M1, 2020) came out. Apple created the M-series Apple Silicon chips by scaling up designs from the iPhone and iPad world, and the plain M1 chip was ready before the M1 Pro and M1 Max chips were.

To cent here

Apple has not stated that Intel Macs were excluded because of any single technical limitation. However, Apple has documented that macOS 27 Golden Gate is designed for Macs with Apple silicon, while macOS Tahoe 26 is the final major version of macOS that supports Intel-based Macs.

This follows Apple's transition to Apple silicon, which began in 2020. Apple has been moving its software and developer technologies to the Apple-silicon architecture during that transition. Apple also recently confirmed that macOS 27 is the final release to support Rosetta, the technology that allows many Intel-based Mac apps to run on Apple-silicon Macs.

Therefore, the most accurate explanation is that macOS 27 marks the end of Apple's transition-era support for Intel-based Macs and moves the Mac platform forward as an Apple-silicon platform. It should not be interpreted as meaning that every Intel Mac is suddenly unusable. Intel Macs that are compatible with macOS Tahoe can continue to run that version of macOS and receive applicable updates from Apple.

Apple's macOS Tahoe compatibility list also shows that several Intel models—including the 2019 MacBook Pro, 2020 Intel MacBook Pro, 2020 27-inch iMac, and 2019 Mac Pro—were supported through the final Intel-compatible macOS release. (Apple Support)

I would recommend not saying that Apple excluded Intel Macs because they are "too old," "too slow," or incapable of running the new features unless Apple specifically documents one of those reasons. The documented facts support the broader explanation that Apple's Intel-to-Apple-silicon transition has reached its endpoint with macOS 27. (Apple Developer)

Useful Apple documentation: macOS 27 Golden Gate, macOS Tahoe compatibility, and Apple Developer information on the Rosetta transition.

So based on leroydouglas posted information, EVERY Mac released in 2021 is qualified for MacOS 27.

¿Are you sure the model-year of your computer is correct?

Your computer can still do everything it could do the day you took it out of the box.

Plus a whole lot more, as Apple has provided multiple upgrades to its software, free. No one has taken anything away.

What has changed is not your computers capabilities.

What has changed is your desires.

Michael_eh? wrote:

My MacBook Pro late 2021 can no longer update its operating system past Tahoe v26.7 to the newest Golden Gate v27. This is extremely frustrating as my computer was $4000 and I didn't anticipate having to buy another high end MBP so soon. I imagine there is no work around as Golden Gate requires a MacBook Pro using Apple silicon.

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re: < MacBook Pro late 2021 >

macOS 27 Golden Gate is compatible with these computers

macOS 27 Golden Gate is compatible with these computers - Apple Support

if you are unclear what exact mac you have— See about this Mac