Why upgrade

[Rb_stern]

Hi, I have a 2015 15" Macbook Pro Retina, upgraded the OS several times and now with Mojave. It frequently asks me to upgrade to Catalina. I am comfortable with all the apps and programs that I have and use, regularly back up with Time Machine and Super Duper, use CleanMyMac to keep it in good working order etc. I always download security updates. Is there any good reason why I should upgrade to Catalina (or Big Sur when it comes out) and have to buy 64 bit versions of some of my programs that currently work fine, and go through yet another learning curve to use the laptop correctly?

Richard

 

[warren.eggleton]

I recently upgraded to Catalina, lost Microsoft Office and a couple of other programs, so I went back to Mojave after much trouble.
Prior to that when I first upgraded to Mojave I lost my bluetooth and had to buy a dongle to get my mouse and keyboard to work.
I am very shy about upgrades, too much trouble.
Warren

 

[Lufbrarunner]

The original OS on my 27' & 21.5" iMacs was El Capitan, which was upgraded through, Sierra and High Sierra up to Mojave with no problems. The only reason that I do not want to upgrade to Catalina is that I will lose a couple of 32 bit apps.
Also my 20'" was upgraded from Leopard, through Snow Leopard, Lion, Mountain Lion, Mavericks and Yosemite up to El Capitan again with no problems.
I usually hang back with upgrades to see if there are any hiccups and when I do decide to upgrade I make sure to back up all my data with Time Machine and clone my Macintosh drive as a fall back.

 

[sgage]

Hi, I have a 2015 15" Macbook Pro Retina, upgraded the OS several times and now with Mojave. It frequently asks me to upgrade to Catalina. I am comfortable with all the apps and programs that I have and use, regularly back up with Time Machine and Super Duper, use CleanMyMac to keep it in good working order etc. I always download security updates. Is there any good reason why I should upgrade to Catalina (or Big Sur when it comes out) and have to buy 64 bit versions of some of my programs that currently work fine, and go through yet another learning curve to use the laptop correctly?

Richard

I have a 2014 MB Pro, and had upgraded a couple of times over the years with good results, then upgraded to Catalina. Battery usage increased precipitously, like by 50%. Ran hot, too. I went back to High Sierra, and all was well. I think High Sierra is the sweet spot for this machine, and I don't expect to upgrade it again.

 

[MightyGem]

If you are happy as you are(as I am with my mid 2012 MBP and Mojave), stay as you are. 32 bit apps won't run on Catalina as it's 64 bit. I have a few 32 bit apps that I use, so I'm staying with Mojave.

I think xxxxx is the sweet spot for this machine

Yes I found that with my old White MacBook. Upgraded an OS too far, so went back.

 

[MartyByrde]

Catalina is definitely stable, and is fine for most folks. But if you have any 32 bit applications that are required for your tasks, and especially if there are no 64-bit replacements, then Mojave is an excellent OS. The one definitive risk, of course, is that Apple will eventually stop supporting it, in terms of Security Updates. And if you use Safari exclusively, that is another issue regarding Security.

 

[sgage]

I had no problem with the stability of Catalina, and it may be fine for 'most folks'. It was the extremely high CPU usage and concomitant overheating and battery drainage rate that made it a no-go for me, and I'm far from the only person to have observed this. High Sierra, OTOH, is wonderful on this rig - a 2014 MacBook Pro.

 

[MartyByrde]

I had no problem with the stability of Catalina, and it may be fine for 'most folks'. It was the extremely high CPU usage and concomitant overheating and battery drainage rate that made it a no-go for me, and I'm far from the only person to have observed this. High Sierra, OTOH, is wonderful on this rig - a 2014 MacBook Pro.

Understand. I actually use my late 2018 Mac MIni about 98% of the time, so overheating/high CPU usage/battery drainage has not been an issue (I also have an Early 2017 13" MacBook Air). I only run one application at a time, so CPU usage is definitely not an issue.

 

[DanL]

No one seems to want to answer the question. WHY SHOULD ANYONE UPGRADE TO CATALINA? As in, what does it offer that would really make an upgrade useful? I'm not really that impressed by what I see in the Apple ads for it.

 

[MartyByrde]

No one seems to want to answer the question. WHY SHOULD ANYONE UPGRADE TO CATALINA? As in, what does it offer that would really make an upgrade useful? I'm not really that impressed by what I see in the Apple ads for it.

In actuality, one could say the same thing about the last 2 or 3 versions of the Mac OS. For myself, I have yet to see anything earth shattering, and that I must have, in any of those versions. But the main thing for me is the lack of support for prior versions of the mac OS, both from Apple (ie, lack of Security Updates) and third party software developers. A specific program example, especially since a number of folks use it (I don't), is Safari.

From what I have seen, at least from Apple, they are still supporting Mojave with Security Updates, but that will disappear "soon".

But yes, none of the recent versions of the Mac OS (including Big Sur) are impressive, and a must have.

 

[DanL]

Point well taken. The fact that support gradually disappears with older versions is a killer. Now, it could be said that if you're an iPhone addict, more recent versions of the Mac OS could improve your life. But that's about it.

 

[MartyByrde]

Of course the other huge issue with Catalina (and every other Mac OS going forward) is that only 64-bit applications are supported. That's not an issue for me, but it is for some folks. Certainly understandable when there is no 64-bit version of a program available, and even no substitute/viable alternative.