There are many issues you are able to do with an previous Mac. Nobody will fault you for upgrading to Apple’s newest and best, however your previous Mac can nonetheless discover a job to do, too.
It was once that when your previous iMac kicked the can, you hollowed it out and made an aquarium or a desk lamp. Nowadays, Macs have a for much longer shelf life. The proper mannequin can provide you years upon years of loyal service. (To not point out, fashionable Macs are too skinny to accommodate a fish.)
Listed here are the six finest issues you are able to do with an previous Mac. Watch our newest video or maintain studying beneath.
What to do with previous Macs
Macs are famend for his or her lengthy shelf life. Apple makes use of high-quality supplies and elements inside and outside. The sturdy aluminum unibody can take a beating, and the chips inside will maintain ticking for years. If you happen to’ve acquired a Mac with good specs, it might far outlive what you might suppose.
The largest threat is wanting to purchase a brand new one earlier than the previous one is solely useless — the brand new MacBook Execs are slick machines. You may justify it should you give your previous Mac a brand new job for its retirement. Or, should you’re not the sort to ever resell or commerce in previous machines, you can provide your previous ones a brand new lease on life.
Listed here are six issues you may take into account.
Desk of Contents:
- Run previous video games and software program
- Stream films and reveals utilizing Plex
- Flip an previous iMac right into a secondary show
- Use your previous Mac as a house server for Time Machine and printers
- Improve it to newer variations of macOS
- Set up a lighter OS like Linux in your previous Mac
1. Run previous video games and software program
In contrast to Home windows, which holds onto backward-compatibility virtually to its detriment, the Mac often drops help for previous software program within the curiosity of preserving the system fashionable. Again in 2019, macOS 10.15 Catalina dropped help for 32-bit functions, killing lots of legacy software program.
However should you maintain an previous Intel Mac on macOS Mojave — the discharge simply earlier than Catalina — you may maintain utilizing the previous apps and video games your new Mac received’t run. Personally, I plan on rolling again my 2015 MacBook Professional so I can play American Truck Simulator.
If you happen to’ve already up to date to Catalina or past, don’t fear — you may nonetheless reinstall Mojave on a separate partition. (Comply with the directions laid out right here should you don’t know the best way to partition a drive.) Then, obtain the Mojave installer and put the previous model of macOS on the brand new partition.
To modify between the 2, simply reboot your Mac and maintain down the Possibility key.
2. Stream films and reveals utilizing Plex
Picture: Plex
Plex allows you to roll your individual home made streaming service for reveals and flicks you’ve (undoubtedly legally) downloaded. Plex works finest put in on a pc that’s completely parked subsequent to your web router 24/7, for essentially the most dependable and steady connection. In case your primary laptop is a laptop computer you carry round recurrently, you’ll need to set up it on a separate machine — a trigger worthy of bringing an previous Mac out of retirement.
First, set up Plex Media Server in your previous Mac. Then, hook it as much as your community (over Ethernet should you can). After a little bit of setup, you may watch downloaded films and reveals in your library from wherever. You may set up the Plex app on Apple TV, Roku, iPhone and iPad, Google TV, PlayStation, Xbox, Fireplace TV, ChromeCast and extra.
A lifetime Plex move sounds dear at first at $119.99, however in my view, it’s completely value it. A Plex move for all times is cheaper than a 12 months of any main streaming service.
(And should you’re hitting up dodgy torrenting websites, one other facet benefit is that you simply aren’t placing your primary machine in danger.)
3. Flip an previous iMac right into a secondary show
Picture: Luna Show
An iMac’s huge, lovely show can far outlast the helpful lifetime of the pc inside. After you purchase a brand new Mac, you don’t must abandon your entire previous iMac.
If you wish to reuse a more recent Retina iMac, you should utilize Luna Show by Astropad. You purchase Luna’s dongle and adapter and obtain the Luna Show app. All of the sudden, your previous laptop has a brand new lease on life as a 27-inch show.
You would possibly even take into account shopping for a 5K iMac for this precise goal. In spite of everything, it’s the identical panel that goes inside the Studio Show, and they are often purchased second-hand for less expensive than Apple’s “reasonably priced” monitor.
Apple used to help this out-of-the-box with Goal Show Mode. To make use of that, your primary Mac should be earlier than 2020 operating macOS Catalina or earlier, and the donor iMac must be the precise mannequin from 2009 – 2014 operating macOS Excessive Sierra or earlier. However you probably have the precise mixture, this may work at no cost.
4. Use your previous Mac as a house server for Time Machine and printers
Screenshot: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac
Your previous Mac would possibly be capable of deal with different fundamental server capabilities at dwelling. You should use it to host Time Machine backups or share a printer over your native community.
With Time Machine, all the Macs in your own home can again up silently and mechanically within the background. You don’t have to fret about remembering to do it your self. And utilizing an previous Mac because the vacation spot, not one of the Macs which can be in use day-after-day might be slowed down because the host of everybody’s backups. You may observe Apple’s directions right here to show it on in System Preferences > Sharing.
In case you have an previous and dependable, trusty however dusty printer in your own home, maintain onto it so long as you may. Printers as of late are type of a multitude. You should use your Mac server to make it a wi-fi printer, so you’ve got all of the comfort of a more recent mannequin. Allow this from the identical Sharing pane in System Preferences.
When you’re at it, you’ll possible need to allow display screen sharing. This fashion, you may examine in on the Mac to ensure every part’s operating easily with out bodily digging it out.
5. Improve it to newer variations of macOS
Screenshot: Dortania
Apple won’t permit you to replace your previous Mac to the newest model of macOS, however there’s a workaround. Utilizing OpenCore Legacy Patcher, you might be able to replace your Intel Mac past the prescribed restrict.
This may considerably lengthen the helpful lifetime of a Mac should you want one of many newer options. You may even set up macOS Sonoma on a 2007 iMac.
Granted, this comes at a price. Your Mac will run rather more slowly the additional you push its limits. However should you don’t rely upon it for every day internet looking or work, it won’t matter a lot to you.
6. Set up a lighter OS like Linux in your previous Mac
Picture: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac
You may also go within the different route should you so select. You may also give your previous Mac a brand new lease on life by putting in a distinct working system, like Linux.
Nevertheless, this does include some trade-offs. Your Mac will run a lot quicker, however Linux loses lots of the very best options that make it a Mac. You don’t have iCloud or iMessage, Safari, FaceTime or any of Apple’s different apps. You may nonetheless browse the online, however should you rely upon some desktop apps to get work accomplished, make certain they run on Linux first.
Ubuntu, one of the vital widespread distributions of Linux, is fairly simple to rise up and operating. Simply partition your Mac’s laborious drive utilizing Disk Utility, obtain the Ubuntu installer, put it on the recent disk, and reboot your Mac into it by holding down the Possibility key.
This solely actually works on Intel Macs. There’s an open-source challenge that’s working towards porting Linux to Apple silicon, however that’s nonetheless a good distance away from being simple and dependable. It may be accomplished on an excellent older PowerPC Mac, however there are some snags to be careful for there, too.
Extra suggestions and tips
In case you have the same stack of previous iPhones you’re undecided what to do with, I’ve one other article that may assist put these to work, too.
We initially revealed this text on what to do with an previous Mac on March 2, 2024. We up to date it with the newest data on August 1, 2025.
