Intel Mac Support Ending: Time to Plan Your Upgrade

If you’re still using a Mac with an Intel processor, it’s time to start planning your next move. Apple has officially announced that macOS 26 Tahoe – releasing this fall – will be the final version of macOS to support Intel-based Macs. After 2025, your Intel Mac won’t receive new features, and security updates will stop by 2028.

The Timeline

  • Fall 2025: macOS 26 Tahoe releases – the last macOS for Intel Macs
  • 2026 and beyond: No new macOS versions for Intel hardware
  • Through 2028: Security updates continue
  • After 2028: No support at all

Which Macs Are Affected?

All Intel Macs from 2020 and earlier will lose support. If you bought your Mac before November 2020, you’re likely affected.

How to Check Your Processor

  1. Click the Apple logo → “About This Mac”
  2. Look for:
    • “Chip Apple M1/M2/M3/M4” = You’re safe
    • “Processor Intel Core” = You’re affected

What This Means

Your Intel Mac won’t stop working immediately, but you’ll gradually face:

  • No new macOS features after 2025
  • Apps stopping support for older systems
  • Security vulnerabilities after 2028
  • Compatibility issues with new software

Your Options

Upgrade to Apple Silicon: New MacBook Airs starts around $850. The speed difference is dramatic – M-series chips deliver significantly faster performance than Intel Macs, often 2-3x faster for everyday tasks, plus much better battery life on laptops.

Keep Your Intel Mac: Fine for basic tasks, but understand the growing limitations over time.

Plan Your Timeline: You have until end of 2025 for the transition, with security updates continuing through 2028.

Bottom Line

You have time to plan, but don’t wait too long. If your Intel Mac is critical for work, start budgeting for an upgrade now. For casual use, you can take a more relaxed approach, but remember that by 2026, you’ll want to have made the switch.


Need help planning your Mac upgrade? As a DC-area technology consultant, I help clients navigate these transitions every day.

TRMNL Non-obtrusive Status Display

I’m getting back into making short videos—something I haven’t done in a while—and the TRMNL e-ink display caught my attention as a fun tech gadget.

What TRMNL Does

TRMNL is a 7.5-inch e-ink display designed to show you information without the distraction. There’s no touchscreen or interface to get lost in—just a clean display that pulls bitmap images from their servers every 5 minutes to an hour.

This isn’t meant for real-time updates. You won’t use it as a clock or for urgent notifications. Instead, it’s perfect for the kind of information that’s useful but not urgent: weather, calendar events, web stats, and other ambient data.

The Experience

Setup happens through their website where you can add plugins for weather, calendars, and dozens of other services. The open-source ecosystem means techies can build custom plugins, but it works great out of the box for everyone else.

The hardware feels solid with good build quality. The battery lasts 1-3 months since e-ink only uses power when the display changes. You can wall mount it with command strips or use the included stand.

Why It Works

At $140, TRMNL avoids the subscription trap that plagues other smart displays. The plugins are free forever, and the company makes money through device sales rather than monthly fees. There’s also an option for a slightly larger battery for $10 extra.

The development community appears active and committed for the long haul—a refreshing change from products that get discontinued after a year or two.

The Real Appeal

TRMNL succeeds because it knows what it isn’t. It’s not trying to grab your attention or pull you into endless scrolling. In a world of notification chaos, having a device that simply informs without intruding feels almost radical.

If you’re interested, you can use promo code “techdc” for $15 off. I’ll get $5 if you use that code.

You can check out TRMNL at usetrmnl.com

AI’s Future: Utopia or Nightmare

Artificial intelligence is racing ahead—so fast that some experts say we’re living through the most important tech shift since electricity. But where’s it all going?

Right now, there are two main visions of the future:

  1. The Optimists – Leaders like Sam Altman (OpenAI) and Dario Amodei (Anthropic) see AI as a game-changer for productivity, healthcare, and science. They predict tools that will help us work faster, solve complex problems, and maybe even extend human lifespans.
  2. The Pessimists – Others, like Geoffrey Hinton (the “Godfather of AI”) and Yann LeCun (Meta), warn we might be going too fast given that we don’t fully understand what we’ve created and how it works. Hinton even gives a 10–20% chance that advanced AI could pose an existential risk.

What’s on the Line?

  • Jobs: Most expect some degree of job losses. Dario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic has warned that AI technology could eliminate half of all entry-level white-collar positions within the next five years. The prediction suggests unemployment could reach 10-20% as AI systems transition from augmenting human work to replacing it entirely.
  • The Economy: AI might spark massive productivity growth for companies. But who benefits? That’s why people are now seriously discussing things like Universal Basic Income (UBI) to help distribute gains fairly.
  • Global Competition: The U.S. and China are locked in an AI arms race. Some experts are calling for international agreements—like we have for nuclear weapons—to slow things down and focus on safety.
  • Daily Life: AI is becoming your assistant, tutor, creative partner, and even your co-worker. But there are risks too: misinformation, deepfakes, a reliance on machines to think for us, and humans becoming more disconnected from each other.

So What Now?

Even the most bullish tech leaders agree: we need to be thoughtful. That means building systems we can trust, creating smart policy, and helping people adapt.

At TechDC, I help individuals and small businesses learn how to actually use AI in real life. If you’re curious, reach out.

Further Reading

AI is here and only growing in importance. Whether it becomes our greatest tool or our biggest mistake depends on how we shape it.

Give Your Old Mac Modern Software With OpenCore Legacy Patcher

That 2013 MacBook Pro sitting in your closet isn’t broken—it’s just been abandoned by Apple. While the hardware remains perfectly functional, outdated macOS versions make it increasingly difficult to browse the web securely or run current applications.

The Compatibility Problem

Apple typically supports Macs with new macOS versions for 7-8 years. After that, you’re stuck with increasingly outdated software that can’t run modern browsers properly, lacks security updates, and struggles with today’s websites—not because your hardware is slow, but because the software is obsolete.

Enter OpenCore Legacy Patcher

OpenCore Legacy Patcher (OCLP) is a free, open-source tool that extends macOS compatibility to unsupported hardware. Developed by Dortania, it uses sophisticated boot management to allow installation of current macOS versions on Macs as old as 2007.

The key benefit isn’t speed—it’s functionality. Your 2013 MacBook Pro can run macOS Sequoia with:

  • Modern browsers that actually work with current websites
  • Current security updates and encryption standards
  • Compatible applications that require newer macOS
  • Modern features like Sidecar, AirPlay to Mac, and Universal Control

How It Works

Unlike simple patchers that modify system files, OpenCore Legacy Patcher operates at the boot level. It maintains System Integrity Protection (SIP) and security features while providing compatibility patches in memory during startup. Your system files remain untouched and secure.

Supported Hardware

OpenCore Legacy Patcher supports a wide range of Intel-based Macs:

  • MacBook Pro: 2008-2017 models
  • MacBook Air: 2008-2017 models
  • iMac: 2007-2019 models
  • Mac Pro: 2008-2019 models
  • Mac mini: 2009-2018 models

Even pre-2012 models with legacy graphics can run current macOS, though with some feature limitations.

The Real-World Difference

Moving from Catalina to Sequoia won’t make your hardware faster, but it will make your computing experience dramatically more functional. Websites that break or crawl on outdated browsers will work properly. Security warnings disappear. Apps that require newer macOS become installable.

It’s not about performance—it’s about compatibility and security in 2025.

Getting Started

If you are technically adept, the process takes a couple of hours.

  1. Download OpenCore Legacy Patcher from GitHub
  2. Create a macOS installer using the built-in tool
  3. Install OpenCore to your USB drive
  4. Boot and install the new macOS version
  5. Apply post-install patches for full hardware support

Worth the Effort?

If you can afford a new Mac, that’s the way for you to go. Modern Macs with the M series of chips are a great value.

But if you enjoy tinkering, and have a Mac with decent specs (8GB+ RAM, SSD storage), absolutely. You’ll extend your Mac’s useful life by 5+ years with current software support, modern browser compatibility, and ongoing security updates.

Your old Mac won’t become faster, but it will become usable again.


OpenCore Legacy Patcher is available free at https://dortania.github.io/OpenCore-Legacy-Patcher/. Always backup your data before system modifications.

The Photography World is Buzzing About the Ricoh GR IV

After six years with the same sensor, Ricoh has finally announced the GR IV – and the photography community couldn’t be more excited about this pocket-sized powerhouse getting an upgrade.

What Makes the GR Series Special

If you’ve never heard of the Ricoh GR series, here’s what you need to know: these cameras pack an APS-C sensor (the same size found in many professional cameras) into a body smaller than most smartphones. The result? Professional-quality photos from a camera that actually fits in your pocket.

Unlike phone cameras that rely heavily on computational photography to enhance images, the GR series produces what many photographers call “real photos” – images with natural contrast, authentic colors, and that classic film-quality. 

I’ve used both the GR III and slightly more zoomed in GR IIIx for family portraits and street photography, and there’s something magical about the images it produces. When I compare photos from my GR to those from even the latest iPhones, the difference is immediately apparent. The GR captures authentic skin tones and natural light in ways that phone cameras, despite all their AI processing, simply can’t match.

Why the GR IV Matters

The GR III, launched in 2019, has been beloved by photographers but limited by its aging 24MP sensor, especially in low-light situations. The GR IV addresses these pain points with significant upgrades:

26MP sensor upgrade: A small jump in resolution. This will give a more flexibility for cropping – particularly useful for a fixed-lens camera.

Improved low-light performance: After six years of sensor technology advances, expect much better high-ISO performance for those dimly lit restaurants and evening street scenes. This is what I’m most excited about. The GR III is super noisy at even 6000 ISO, as one would expect from an old sensor. 

5-axis image stabilization: The GR III had 3-axis stabilization, but the additional axes should mean sharper handheld shots, especially in challenging conditions.

53GB internal storage: No more worrying about forgetting your SD card. You can shoot immediately out of the box.

Enhanced connectivity: Better WiFi and a new companion app should make transferring and sharing photos easier. 

The Reality of GR Photography

Here’s what every potential GR owner needs to understand: this isn’t a camera for every situation. You won’t be shooting sports or wildlife with it. The fixed 28mm equivalent lens (or 40mm on the x line) means you need to move your feet to compose shots.

But for street photography, travel, daily documentation, and casual portraits, the GR series is unmatched in its combination of image quality and portability. There’s something liberating about having a truly capable camera that you can slip into any pocket.

What This Means for Current GR Users

Ricoh is discontinuing the GR III in July 2025, but the GR IIIx will continue production “for the time being.” For those of us who prefer the 40mm focal length of the IIIx, this lmeans waiting for a GR IVx – which, based on Ricoh’s release pattern, probably won’t arrive until 2027 or 2028.

The Bottom Line

The GR IV represents exactly what the photography community has been waiting for: a meaningful upgrade to one of the most beloved compact camera series. In an era where phone cameras dominate casual photography, the GR series continues to prove that there’s still a place for dedicated cameras that prioritize image quality over convenience features.

For photographers who value authentic image quality, appreciate the craft of photography, and want professional results in an incredibly compact package, the GR IV can’t come soon enough.

The Ricoh GR IV is scheduled for release in Fall 2025. See Ricoh’s press release:
https://ricohgr.eu/blogs/news/22-05-2025-development-anouncement-of-ricoh-gr-iv