[Updated May 20, 2024, with an additional note.]
Last week, Apple released their latest version of macOS: 14.5. The big question is: Should you upgrade? In the past, this was easy to answer “yes.” But, as features in each OS release became more complex, major OS versions appeared annually and upgrades were released almost monthly, Apple’s quality control could not keep up.
For the last several years, it became best practice to wait – sometimes up to several months – for an OS version to stabilize.
This was reinforced with the recent releases of macOS 14.4 and 14.4.1, which contained more than their fair share of bugs that directly impacted media creators.
So, now that macOS 14.5 is out – should we upgrade?
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Yes, probably.
LARRY’S RULES FOR UPGRADING
First, let’s review my rules for upgrading:
Corollary
Upgrade to the latest security version as soon as it comes out. Malware wrecks more havoc than even a bad OS upgrade.
Assuming this is a good time to upgrade, let’s see if we should.
UPDATE: In reading and thinking about the comments to this article since this was published, I wanted to add one more note: There’s no “perfect” operating system that’s totally bug free; there are always problems. The question we all face is whether we can live with those problems or should we wait. It’s a trade-off between fixing existing problems and access to new features vs. the risk of something new breaking. This is a decision that each of us needs to make for ourselves. For myself, I decided to upgrade to 14.5.
THE DETAILS
Given the wide variety of hardware, software and custom configurations in use today, it is impossible to be definitive. The biggest strength of the Mac ecosystem is also what makes it hard to upgrade anything: there are just too many variations to test for everything.
However, I upgraded to 14.5 over the weekend and not only do I not have any problems, I don’t expect any.
Why? Several reasons:
For me, the upgrade took 30 minutes and – so far – I’ve had zero problems.
Deciding when to upgrade is now up to you.
EXTRA CREDIT
12 Responses to Should You Upgrade to macOS 14.5?
I’m not upgrading yet…. Many Music App users are having major issues and it’s too early for me….. It’s always paid off for me to wait. Thanks.
Ray:
Good to know. It never hurts to wait.
However, don’t get caught getting too far behind.
Larry
It’s not a problem to wait.
Apple announces a new version.
Wait a couple of weeks.
Larry issues a Monday newsletter with an update that says nobody has complained, or the bugs have been fixed in the .1 version.
Upgrade
Edward:
Smile…. there’s no harm in waiting. ESPECIALLY when a .0 version is released. There’s no harm in skipping an update. I skipped two, waiting for the 14.5 version to appear with, hopefully, fewer bugs.
What I was remarking on was the lack of reports of problems with this version. And, for me, the upgrade is working with no problems.
Larry
I have upgraded with no problems in any Adobe products. Thank you, Larry.
Dennis;
Good to know.
Thanks,
Larry
I have Sonoma 14.4.1 and a loaded Apple
Mini M2. I have an obstacle with it that
Apple and the internet provider has not
been able to solve. The system will not
allow me to send an email with an attached link so as a result I am apprehensive since Apple seems to have no solution.
I am not very impressed.
Do you have any suggestions ?
Best Wishes
Dirk
Dirk:
I don’t presume to know as much as Apple, but I’m sending emails with macOS 14.5 with no problems. Also with version 14.3.1 with no problems, as well.
My GUESS is that this isn’t an Apple problem. Many email systems (and ISPs) limit email attachments to no more than 20 MB. Perhaps your files are too big?
Also, can you send an email with an attachment to yourself? It may be that the recipient’s email prevents attachments to minimize email malware.
I would spend time looking at what else could affect your email, outside of Apple.
Larry
I’d like to know if they fixed the problem where copying text from an email doesn’t paste properly into Text edit .Quite annoying PITA in 14.4.1
Leonard:
I can’t speak to 14.4.1, it had so many bugs in it that I didn’t upgrade.
However, I was just copying and pasting text from your email into TextEdit using macOS 14.5 and it worked fine.
Larry
Thanks for your insights and tips, Larry. I found your site for the first time today and bookmarked it for further exploration. The DuckDuckGo search phrase I used was “Will macOS Sonoma 14.5 destroy civilization as we know it?”
I bought my first Mac in 1986. It changed my life. I even have a “the day I met Steve Jobs” story. I’ve purchased somewhere in the neighborhood of 30 Macs through the decades. I’m an early adopter… now just another grumpy old man. Time flies.
I’ve watched macOS become more “complex” and now see that word as a substitute for “bloated.”
A long time ago (circa the early 1990’s?) Apple launched a brief ad campaign which featured an Apple logo next to the simple phrase, “It just works.” Sadly, in 2024, when Apple is a multi-trillion dollar corporation, it just doesn’t.
Smile… Dear Grumpy:
I think we shoulder some of the blame for this. I would not use the word “bloated,” that was trademarked by Microsoft a long time ago… I still think complex is the right word.
Back when your bought your first Mac, color screens did not exist. Nor did external storage. Or audio editing. Certainly not video editing. Or networking. Or WiFi. Or the Internet. Or anything dealing with real-time graphical processing… you get the idea.
The macOS got more complex because we kept demanding our computers do more. I certainly don’t want to give up any of these features – I make my living using features that were barely thought of when I bought my first Mac.
I think the better way to view this is that computers are inextricably linked to some of the hardest computing challenges in our lives. Audio, video, games, real-time rendering. Compounded above all, by the constant threat of malware, ransomeware and developers working in bad faith with users.
We live in challenging times. This does not let Apple off the hook, but it does mean that we, too, need to be careful in deciding when to upgrade.
Larry