By now your Mac should have the latest macOS update installed, and be running the current firmware. This article takes stock of where EFI, T2 and Apple silicon firmware are now, and where they’re heading with the forthcoming release of macOS 26 Tahoe in a month or two.

For many years, the only way your Mac will have its firmware updated is when macOS or one of its updates is installed on it. There is one significant exception to that, in Apple silicon Macs, whose firmware will be completely replaced when it’s put into DFU mode and restored from an IPSW file.

Each macOS update or full installer comes with the firmware current at the time Apple built it. So if your Mac is still running macOS 12.7.6 Monterey and has never installed any later version, it will have the firmware that came with that, such as iBoot 10151.140.19, or T2 version 2022.140.5.0.0 with iBridge 21.16.6074.0.0,0.

Note that firmware is updated whether macOS is installed or updated on the internal storage, or on an external disk. So if your Mac’s internal SSD is still running 12.7.6, but it has been used to update Ventura to 13.7.7 on an external SSD, then it will have the firmware brought in that version of Ventura, rather than that for Monterey. That doesn’t of course apply to macOS installed in any virtual machines, as they can’t update the host firmware.

Intel Macs without T2 chips

All these models appear to have reached the end of their EFI firmware updates, with the versions shown.
iMac:

• iMac18,1 529.140.2.0.0
• iMac18,3 529.140.2.0.0
• iMac19,1 2075.100.3.0.3

MacBook:

• MacBook10,1 529.140.2.0.0

MacBook Pro:

• MacBookPro14,1 529.140.2.0.0
• MacBookPro14,2 529.140.2.0.0
• MacBookPro14,3 529.140.2.0.0

All those date from 23 June 2024, apart from that for the iMac19,1, whose latest firmware is from March 2025. Although the latter could still be updated in a security update to Sonoma or Sequoia, that now looks increasingly unlikely.

Intel Macs with T2 chips

The current EFI version is 2075.140.4.0.0 and iBridge is 22.16.16083.0.0,0, and those are likely to continue to be updated over the coming year. However, T2 models still running macOS Ventura are likely to stay there, unless Apple releases one final extra update. To ensure that your T2 Mac continues to get firmware updates, it now needs to be running Sonoma or later.

Apple silicon Macs

The current iBoot version is 11881.140.96, and that is sure to see a substantial update with the release of macOS 26.0, and in the simultaneous security updates for Sequoia and Sonoma. However, any Apple silicon Mac still running Ventura or earlier will be running an older version of iBoot that it can’t update, unless it installs or updates a more recent macOS in another boot volume group, such as on an external disk.

Apple Studio Display

Display firmware remains at version 17.0 (build 21A329) as it was when updated with macOS Sonoma nearly two years ago in September 2023. Although there’s no sign of any update with the beta-test versions of Tahoe, maybe it’s likely that this will be updated with macOS 26.0 and its associated security updates.

Check

The currently installed firmware version is displayed in System Information, by selecting the Hardware item at the top left. It’s also checked against the current version in SilentKnight. However, in recent Mac models with T2 or Apple silicon chips it’s most unlikely to differ from that brought with the latest version of macOS that Mac has installed or updated. Macs without T2 chips were less reliable, and some older models often failed to update when expected. Thankfully that’s now a problem of the past. If there’s one thing you should be able to trust it’s firmware updating.

在加州 Santa Clara, 英伟达的新总部距离老伙计英特尔的总部只有短短 1.5 英里。

然而在本周，这两家公司的头顶，一个艳阳高照，一个阴霾重重。

本周昨天，英伟达公司市值短暂冲破 4 万亿美元。而它曾经的老伙计英特尔，终于坦承了自己的落后。

「我们不在全球芯片公司前十名了……AI竞赛已经太晚了。」

——在一份意外泄露的全球员工内部讲话中，英特尔新任 CEO 陈立武这样讲到。这位半导体巨头的新掌门人，以一种「摊牌了，不装了」的语气，向全球员工坦白：英特尔在 AI 时代掉队了，而且可能追不回来了。

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在今年的 Bilibili World 活动上，英特尔宣布了全新的「AI 高静游戏本」概念，对游戏本这种品类提出了一种新的规范，试图解决高性能和低能耗二者不可得兼的问题。

「高静」可以简单理解为「高性能+安静」，英特尔从六个维度，设定了相当具体的标准：

• 不超过 45 分贝的静音体验
• 不超过 42 摄氏度的机身温度
• 能达到极限性能的 90% 以上
• 电脑能实现自动调优
• 非游戏和重负载使用下续航大于 6 小时
• 预装一个现成的 AI 解决方案

具体来说，就是一批搭载「Arrow Lake」酷睿 Ultra 200HX 系列处理器的高性能游戏本，试图打破这个品类长久以来续航差、发热强、噪音大的不良体验。

「高静」乍一看有点反常识，但英特尔认为，行业以往都太过极端追求了「性能」这一端，但实际上，牺牲部分性能不会造成游戏或工作体验的直线下滑，反而能很好地改善游戏本的续航和发热问题。

也就是说，英特尔找到了性能和能耗的「甜蜜点」，笔记本不会过度发热，但却能实现极限性能的九成，再往前走，只能用巨大的能耗，换取较少的性能收益，并不算划得来。

针对网游更吃 CPU、3A 大作更吃 GPU 的差异，英特尔还开发了需单独适配游戏的「应用优化器（APO）」，以及能在总功耗不变时，动态调整 CPU 和 GPU 功耗的「动态电源调优（DTT）」，两者都直接预装在设备中，默认启用。

个人认为英特尔做得很好的是，将「高静」做成了一种选择，作为「高性能静音模式」出现在各个 OEM 厂商的具体产品之中。它更多是一种介于均衡模式和极限性能模式之间的中间点，而用户随时都能选择让笔记本在高功耗下释放出 100% 的性能。

「高静」是这类新物种高性能本的重要特征，但并非全部，AI 能力也是英特尔重视的维度。

AI PC 的概念并不新鲜，很多 OEM 厂商也开始为产品预装自家的 AI 助手，但英特尔主动入局推动适配，依然具有重要意义。

在活动中，英特尔主要介绍了两种 SDK，分别用于 AI 语音助手和 AI 游戏助手，让它们能进一步利用处理器的本地算力。

除此之外英特尔也在持续与更多 AI 应用开发者合作，让更多应用能进一步利用英特尔处理器的算力和模型，实现响应更快、更隐私的端测 AI 能力。

作为一种新的产品定义，目前能称得上属于「AI 高静游戏本」的产品其实只有五款：

• 拯救者 Y9000P 至尊版
• 耀世16 Ultra
• 暗影精灵 MAX
• 雷神 ZERO 16 Pro
• 天选 6 Pro

但活动现场英特尔拉来了 9 家著名游戏本 OEM 品牌，包括联想拯救者、戴尔外星人、华硕天选在内，就是想推广这种理念，并预告接下来会有更多产品问世。

这几年英特尔并不算好过，ARM 阵营的高通和苹果持续在能耗方面施压，而同为 x86 的 AMD 则屡屡实现超越。

「AI 高静游戏本」这个概念可以说抓得比较精准，吃上了芯片制程进步的红利，迎合了这几年笔记本市场开始重视能耗的趋势，想卡在一个更独特的生态位：不追求最极限的性能或者最极致的能耗表现，而是想更均衡发展，以退为进。

重要的是，英特尔提出了一个相对具体，但又并不会过于复杂的标准，既不打击厂商的积极性，也能尽量确保各家产品能提供一致性的体验。

当然就目前来看，「AI 高静本」这个概念相对比较理想化，毕竟传统游戏本风扇噪声在 50 分贝以下算安静，机身 50 度以下算温和，而条件更苛刻的「高静本」还能发挥出 90% 的极限性能，看起来多少有点难以置信，因而更需要后续实际的评测和体验进行验证。

国内的消费者在初期也或许会很难接受，一台游戏本需要去牺牲性能，来换取更好的能耗表现。

不过，朝着低能耗 + 高性能这个方向努力，总归是不会错的。

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From its first announcement of Apple silicon Macs on 22 June 2020, there has been speculation as to when support of Intel models will cease. Now Apple has given exceptionally clear details of its future intentions, and we have a clearer idea of what’s coming in macOS Tahoe, we can make plans at last. This article looks at the years ahead. In each case, major events are scheduled to occur with the annual transition of macOS to the next major version, normally in September-October.

2025

Final security update for macOS 13 Ventura, ending support for:

• iMac 18,1-3
• MacBook 10,1
• MacBook Pro 14,1-3.

If you’re still running Ventura on a Mac capable of Sonoma or later, now is the time to plan the upgrade.

2026

Final security update for macOS 14 Sonoma, ending support for:

• MacBook Air 8,1-2.

First release of an Arm-only version of macOS, 27. However, that and all its updates will continue to include full support for running Intel binaries using Rosetta 2 translation. macOS 27 will be the last major version that supports Rosetta 2 fully in Virtual Machines.

2027

Final security update for macOS 15 Sequoia, ending support for:

• iMac 19,1-2
• iMac Pro
• Mac mini 8,1
• MacBook Air 9,1
• MacBook Pro 15,1-4 16,3.

First release of macOS 28, with full Rosetta 2 support removed. Limited Intel binary support will continue for “older unmaintained gaming titles” only. As a result, virtual machines running macOS 28 will no longer be able to run most Intel binaries.

2028

Final security update for macOS 26 Tahoe, ending support for all remaining Intel models:

• iMac 20,1-2
• Mac Pro 7,1
• MacBook Pro 16,1-2 16,4.

T2 firmware updates are almost certain to cease with the end of support for macOS 26. Major third-party vendors are likely to stop providing Universal binaries, as they too drop support for macOS 26 and Intel models. Apple may decide to remove x86 support from Xcode 29, but hasn’t yet made any statement either way.

Benefits of upgrading macOS in Intel models

Although macOS Sequoia and Tahoe have brought some new features for Intel Macs, much of Apple’s emphasis now requires Arm systems. Major reasons for upgrading your Intel Mac to the most recent version of macOS it can run include:

• Third-party support. Major software vendors like Microsoft normally only support their products on versions of macOS still supported by Apple.
• Safari is only updated in supported versions of macOS.
• Bug fixes. Although new versions bring their own bugs, the chances of an existing bug being fixed in the current release of macOS are far greater than it being fixed in an older version.
• Security vulnerabilities. Only the current version of macOS gets a full set of fixes in each round of security updates, and the older two supported versions often lag the current one.
• Enhancements. Some new features are still provided for both platforms.
• Compatibility. If you already use Apple silicon Macs, or intend doing so, they are more compatible when running the same version of macOS. One topical example is Tahoe’s new ASIF disk image format.
• Quantum-secure encryption. Apple has already started to transition to cryptographic techniques designed to remain secure as and when quantum computers are used in the future to break older methods. This started with iMessage last year, and Apple has announced that macOS 26 Tahoe will support quantum-secure encryption in TLS. This is unlikely to be added retrospectively to older versions of macOS.

I hope you find that helpful in your planning, and wish you success in whatever you choose.