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I have a fairly old (I am not sure when it was bought) iMac 5,1 running OS X 10.6.8, but I just saw the free upgrade to Mavericks. It looks tempting, but I'd rather first know if my computer can handle this OS before I try to install it.

Processor: 2.16 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
Memory: 4 GB 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM

(I guess that covers the most relevant hardware, if something else is important I'll add it.)

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  • I've rolled back your edit because the site works better if answers are posted as such. Once you find out how they got Mavericks on a white Macbook can you please add this as an answer?
    – nohillside ♦
    Jan 1, 2014 at 12:31
  • Yeah, of course, but AFAIK I can't call the shop today because they are closed, and I wanted to explain why I unaccepted an answer.
    – 11684
    Jan 1, 2014 at 15:27

4 Answers 4

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According to Apple, the iMac5,1 was released in 2006, and is thus not on the list of models that are supported by Mavericks. Whether Mavericks can be hacked to run on your machine is a different question.

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  • Sorry, I mistakenly thought I saw another computer as old as mine running Mavericks, so I thought I could get Mavericks to run because this computer has a RAM upgrade, so I unaccepted your answer (and now accepted it again).
    – 11684
    Jan 4, 2014 at 13:53
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System requirements can be found at Apple - Upgrade your Mac to OS X Mavericks. Click the View compatible Mac models link under the Check your Mac hardware step to view the supported models. Currently:

Mac models compatible with OS X Mavericks

  • iMac (Mid 2007 or newer)
  • MacBook (Late 2008 Aluminum, or Early 2009 or newer)
  • MacBook Pro (Mid/Late 2007 or newer)
  • MacBook Air (Late 2008 or newer)
  • Mac mini (Early 2009 or newer)
  • Mac Pro (Early 2008 or newer)
  • Xserve (Early 2009)

From the Apple menu select "About This Mac" and then click the "More Info…" button to determine exactly what model you have.

According to the information at How to identify iMac models, the iMac5,1 is the Late 2006 model, which is not compatible with OS X Mavericks.

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  • As I mentioned, I'm not sure when it was bought exactly. It could have been mid 2007, but it could have been earlier as well.
    – 11684
    Oct 23, 2013 at 14:49
  • 1
    Have you tried clicking the Apple menu in the menu bar and selecting "About This Mac"? There may be a "more info" section that tells the specific model of the Mac.
    – Bryan Luby
    Oct 23, 2013 at 14:53
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    From the Apple menu select "About This Mac" and then click the "More Info…" button to determine exactly what model you have.
    – Ɱark Ƭ
    Oct 23, 2013 at 14:55
  • iMac5,1 (it has extra RAM though). How do I turn that model name into a year?
    – 11684
    Oct 23, 2013 at 14:56
  • @11684: Use the free MacTracker. It will identify the model of the machine it's running on. The model year has not much to do with when you bought it.
    – Kuba hasn't forgotten Monica
    Oct 23, 2013 at 17:07
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You have the same iMac as me, which is the last white plastic iMac model before transitioning to the more rational aluminum body. That's a mid-2006 for future, and unless someone knows of a script to trick the OS into thinking it's an older model, 10.6.8 is as far as we can go.

Bummer, right?

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  • I believe Lion is compatible as well.
    – 11684
    Oct 25, 2013 at 16:44
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I think maverick should run inspite of apple official required models. Y also have a i mac mid 2006 with snow leopard.

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  • 1
    Should this be an edit to an existing answer or a comment there? If not, let's flush it out with some details and reasoning why you believe Mavericks will run on hardware where it's not supported.
    – bmike ♦
    Oct 26, 2013 at 0:58

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