Macos Sierra Review For A Late 2012 Mac
- Macos Sierra Review For A Late 2012 Mac Mini Ports Diagram
- Macos Sierra Review For A Late 2012 Mac Download
- Macos Sierra Review For A Late 2012 Mac Mini Run Faster
Check compatibility
What's the best Thunderbolt eGPU for Mac in 2017? The team at eGPU.io tested three eGPU enclosures with four Mac laptops to provide a definitive answer. Dear AdriftMac, Yesterday I bought a Mac Mini Late 2012 (i5 2,5Ghz, 16GB RAM, SSD Samsung EVO 512GB). It has installed Yosemite, and I would like to update to Sierra, or High Sierra.
You can upgrade to macOS High Sierra from OS X Mountain Lion or later on any of the following Mac models. Your Mac also needs at least 2GB of memory and 14.3GB of available storage space.
Macos Sierra Review For A Late 2012 Mac Mini Ports Diagram
MacBook introduced in late 2009 or later
MacBook Air introduced in late 2010 or later
MacBook Pro introduced in mid 2010 or later
Mac mini introduced in mid 2010 or later
iMac introduced in late 2009 or later
Mac Pro introduced in mid 2010 or later
To find your Mac model, memory, storage space, and macOS version, choose About This Mac from the Apple menu . If your Mac isn't compatible with macOS High Sierra, the installer will let you know.
Make a backup
Before installing any upgrade, it’s a good idea to back up your Mac. Time Machine makes it simple, and other backup methods are also available. Learn how to back up your Mac.
Get connected
It takes time to download and install macOS, so make sure that you have a reliable Internet connection. If you're using a Mac notebook computer, plug it into AC power.
Download macOS High Sierra
For the strongest security and latest features, find out whether you can upgrade to macOS Catalina, the latest version of the Mac operating system.
If you still need macOS High Sierra, use this App Store link: Get macOS High Sierra.
Begin installation
After downloading, the installer opens automatically.
Click Continue and follow the onscreen instructions. You might find it easiest to begin installation in the evening so that it can complete overnight, if needed.
If the installer asks for permission to install a helper tool, enter the administrator name and password that you use to log in to your Mac, then click Add Helper.
Allow installation to complete
Macos Sierra Review For A Late 2012 Mac Download
Please allow installation to complete without putting your Mac to sleep or closing its lid. Your Mac might restart, show a progress bar, or show a blank screen several times as it installs both macOS and related updates to your Mac firmware.
Learn more
- If you have hardware or software that isn't compatible with High Sierra, you might be able to install an earlier macOS, such as Sierra or El Capitan.
- macOS High Sierra won't install on top of a later version of macOS, but you can erase your disk first or install on another disk.
- You can use macOS Recovery to reinstall macOS.
In case you’re on the fence about upgrading to macOS Sierra from El Capitan, you’ve come to the right place. We’re dissecting the new macOS in detail, looking closely at how it compares to the previous and if the end justifies the means (of waiting for an hour-long upgrade). However, if you want to upgrade to macOS 10.13 High Sierra, jump straight to this guide.
Before we begin, here’s a few most common things you have to know about the latest macOS: the update is free as always, it runs on most Macs later that 2009, and you can only upgrade from El Capitan (you can’t skip it and run Sierra from Yosemite directly). There, now let’s look at what Sierra has to offer.
Comparing OS X El Capitan 10.11 to macOS Sierra 10.12
We’ll run a comparison on the most important things: features, performance, and system requirements. Usually, most of these criteria are enough to make a decision whether you need to upgrade or not. Some of the measurements are approximate and might show different figures in the case of your Mac, like battery life, which depends heavily on its age and intensity of usage.
Network utility os x. Left to right: RAM usage, network throughput, CPU usage, date and time.iStat Menus is always visible in my menu bar, but its display is small and unobtrusive.
Features Comparison
| El Capitan | Sierra | |
|---|---|---|
| iCloud cross-device sync | Calendar, Messages, Notes — the usual stuff. | New folders added: Desktop and Documents. |
| Siri | Nope. | Available, still imperfect, but it’s there. |
| Apple Pay | Nope. | Available, works well. |
| Space management | Only the one you perform yourself by being neat. | Optimized Storage with cleaning features. |
| Apple Watch Unlock | Nope. | Is there, works mostly fine. |
As you can see, macOS Sierra is pretty packed with new features. Some of the goodies can only be used if you have other Apple devices, like iPhone or Apple Watch. Optimized Storage is a whole separate story on how Apple tried to make a good space cleaning solution and almost succeeded.
Bottom line is, if you want your system running smoothly for longer than a few months after the installation, you’ll need third-party Mac cleaners for both El Capitan and Sierra. Despite the fact that you can free a notable chunk of your drive by moving stuff into the iCloud with Optimized Storage, you still get all kinds of system trash (like app cache) that doesn’t go anywhere.
Another novelty, an intelligent personal assistant and knowledge navigator Siri, has been long-expected and we’re all glad to have it on Mac. Even though it’s still not the future-is-now kind of assistant that really understands you and can hold a conversation. But it will look for files on your Mac or on the web and find you a place to have that anniversary dinner. Which is nice.
Performance Comparison
| El Capitan | Sierra | |
|---|---|---|
| Speed test | Works fine when having enough free disk space (~10%) | Appears snappier, but could be just a clean new system. Runs better on new Macs. |
| Battery life | 6-7 hours on a Macbook Air 2013 | 5-6 hours on a MacBook Air 2013. Seems to be a general trend of 1-2-hour shorter battery life after upgrade. |
| Security | Pretty solid OS, but could be better. | 65 security fixes, sounds impressive. |
It’s hard to make a sweeping judgement on which OS version is faster or more powerful. Because of the constant sync with your iCloud (and probably something else because when it’s turned off the problem is still present) macOS Sierra does drain your battery faster. On average, an upgrade will cost you a few hours of work.
On the other hand, at least a fresh-installed system is really snappy and the response is amazing. It could be because it’s a new install and it could get lost in half a year, but hey, half a year is still not bad. Just make sure your Mac supports Sierra, otherwise instead of getting faster it will slow down even more. So getting an app like CleanMyMac or the likes is still advisable even for the latest macOS.
System Requirements
| El Capitan | Sierra | |
|---|---|---|
| RAM | 2 GB | 2 GB |
| Hard Drive space | 8.8 GB of free storage | 8.8 GB of free storage |
| Hardware (Mac models) | Most late 2008 | Some late 2009, but mostly 2010. |
The main difference is with the Mac models, you can see Apple support page for more details on which Macs can upgrade, but the official requirements for RAM and disk space are the same, even though technically the installation file for Sierra is smaller.
To sum it up, if you have a late 2009 Mac, Sierra is a go. It’s fast, it has Siri, it can keep your old stuff in iCloud. It’s a solid, safe macOS that looks like a good but minor improvement over El Capitan. We hope this guide has been of help. Remember to backup your files and upgrade safely. Cheers.