End of support for Mac Intel not ending Hackintosh

With the end of support for Mac Intel, macOS Golden Gate was theoretically expected to also bring an end to Hackintosh, these PCs on which some install macOS. However, as you might expect, this is not the case.

Example of ARM-based Hackintosh

An example had already been demonstrated recently with macOS 15 on a Huawei PC equipped with an ARM-based system-on-chip, and another solution has recently been shown: Snapintosh. The beginning of the ARM-based Hackintosh: macOS 15 (almost) on a Huawei laptop.

Snapintosh’s current limitations

Snapintosh is a set of software components that allow (more or less) the installation of macOS 27 on a laptop Asus, the Zenbook A16 in its variant equipped with a Snapdragon X2 Elite (X2E-96-100). The solution is still quite raw: it requires a Mac for many tasks, and Bluetooth, audio, webcam, sleep mode, or external displays do not function.

Performance and hardware restrictions

The laptop screen remains locked at 60 Hz, Wi-Fi cannot connect to a network without the help of another Mac, storage access is not direct, and it appears that only some cores are accessible (visibly six only). If the project is interesting and offers video acceleration with the integrated Qualcomm GPU in the system-on-chip, it remains (very) limited at the moment.

Specific hardware requirements

Moreover, it works only on a specific reference of system-on-chip (XE2-96-100) because some components are specifically compiled for this type of CPU. It is clear that the foundations of the project are not those of Hackintosh from the mid-2000s.

Origins of traditional Hackintosh

At that time, Hackintosh derived from the work of Apple engineers on Darwin, and from the fact that the hardware Apple used to test its system before release was essentially composed of commercial PCs. Even the development kit of that time was very close to a PC, with a slightly modified Intel motherboard.

Differences with ARM-based macOS

In the case of the ARM version of macOS, the situation is different: Apple develops its own hardware, with its controllers, GPUs, and others. Even on processors, Apple has made atypical choices on certain points that make compatibility with other ARM-based system-on-chips complicated.

Practical interest in ARM-based Hackintosh

But why? However, the main problem is deeper: what is the real interest outside of the exploit itself? The world of Hackintosh, throughout the years 2000 and 2010 (and much less in the 2020s), evolved and advanced for a good reason: it allowed the installation of macOS on a computer that was cheaper or faster than those from Apple (and often both).

Cost comparison with Apple PCs

But in 2026, it is quite different. The few PCs equipped with ARM-based system-on-chips (mainly Qualcomm models, although Nvidia has recently entered this field) are at least as expensive as those from Apple. A Zenbook like the one presented is certainly well equipped, but its price is of the same order as that of a Mac (2,500 euros).

Lack of significant advantages

Even if you aim for the entry-level in the world of ARM-based laptops, you will only find computers whose prices are of the same order as a MacBook Neo, without any major real advantages over the Apple machine. The PCs equipped with the new Nvidia chip are certainly equipped with a powerful GPU, but the CPU part remains behind. And the prices are particularly high.

Future of ARM-based Hackintosh

Moreover, the world of Hackintosh had success in its time because it was possible to build a desktop PC for much less than a Mac, which is simply not possible with current ARM-based system-on-chips, and will probably never be. In reality, the ARM-based PCs on which it would be possible to install macOS are neither really cheaper nor really faster (remaining within the same price range, obviously), resulting in a performance that will remain worse than on a real Mac.

Conclusion on ARM-based Hackintosh

Even if the solutions improve - we are only at the beginning - there is little reason to believe that the ARM-based Hackintosh will really outperform x86 Hackintosh in the future in terms of everyday use. Even the latest Hackintosh, after more than two decades of evolution, still required additional manipulations compared to a real Mac for certain actions, and this is part of what sells Macs. To conclude, it is an interesting exploit. But also an unnecessary exploit, in a very practical sense.