2006 intel iMac operating system?

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2006 intel iMac operating system?

I have a 2006 intel iMac. It's the very first intel iMac, the one that's white. The specs are 1.8 Ghz, 2 gb of ram, Intel core 2 duo. I am wondering what operating system I should run on it. I bought it two months ago and it has Snow Leopard (10.6.8), but was wondering if I should run Leopard (10.5) just for basic usage like email, internet, iWork and iLife. I have the disc for it, but I also could run Tiger (10.4) since I have the disc. The iMac originally came with Tiger in 2006, but I am wondering if Leopard (10.5) was built for the newer 2006 & 2007 machines, since Tiger arrived in 2004/2005. I also could do a partition, as well. I already tried 10.7 Lion, but it was way too new for the iMac. I know Snow Leopard (10.6) is really known to run smooth & has the app store (which I don't use), but at times, it can run slow with only a couple apps running (Phototshop cs2, pages, internet & email) Give me your thoughts and what Operating system and why.

iMac, Mac OS X (10.6.8)

Posted on Apr 3, 2014 8:51 PM

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Answer 1

MichelPM

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Apr 3, 2014 9:26 PM in response to CBennett2498

Apple has NOT " officially" stated anywhere that support for OS X Snow Leopard has ended.

At this point, it is only rumored.

Apple allowed the most recent update of iTunes to be installed on Macs still running Snow Leopard.

That means still supporting it.

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Answer 2

Apr 3, 2014 8:54 PM in response to CBennett2498

I would stick with Snow Leopard but maybe upgrade the RAM.

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Answer 3

CBennett2498 Author

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Apr 3, 2014 8:55 PM in response to stevejobsfan0123

The highest I can go is 2 Gb. Also, Snow Leopard (10.6) minimum ram is 1 GB, but Leopard (10.5) only requires 512 MB of ram.

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Answer 4

Aug 15, 2016 9:46 PM in response to CBennett2498

Guess you're right. Some Macs can handle more RAM than the maximum Apple claims, but if you have the 1.83GHz Core 2 Duo, then you're right, it's 2GB.

I don't think that downgrading to Leopard will be beneficial.

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Answer 5

CBennett2498 Author

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Apr 3, 2014 9:02 PM in response to stevejobsfan0123

Should I give Leopard (10.5) a shot on another partition?

Also, what do you think about giving Tiger (10.4) a shot?

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Answer 6

Aug 15, 2016 9:46 PM in response to CBennett2498

If you don't mind coughing up the $ for the install disks for each OS (assuming you don't have them already), then why not just try each and see which has the best performance for your use case.

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Answer 7

CBennett2498 Author

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Apr 3, 2014 9:10 PM in response to stevejobsfan0123

I have all 3 OS X discs laying around along with iWork '09 and iLife '11. The only problem is that it takes time, becuase I'm technically downgrading the OS, have have to completely erase the whole Hard drive, then install Tiger (10.4) from the restore discs. Then I have to create two partitions for Leopard (10.5) and Snow Leopard (10.6), and then install those two operating systems. The good thing about discs is that they don't take as long as the new OS X's because they're not downloaded, but from the disc. They're also not a big OS becuase they didn't require much to power them. It takes 30 Min to 1 Hour for Snow Leopard, and that would be the longest one.

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Answer 8

MichelPM

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Apr 3, 2014 9:13 PM in response to CBennett2498

I will second the case for running OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard.

It still supports many older PowerPC applications thanks to the Rosetta emulator software.

Iit is still, currently, being supported by Apple.

The older OS X versions aren't and apps that run on the lower OS X version are becoming scarcer and scarcer.

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Answer 9

Apr 3, 2014 9:15 PM in response to CBennett2498

My recent Snow Leopard install took 30 minutes.

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Answer 10

CBennett2498 Author

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Apr 3, 2014 9:19 PM in response to MichelPM

Snow Leopard (10.6) is no longer recieving software updates. I recently found out due to it not recieving safari updates, unlike Lion (10.7), Mountain Lion (10.8) & Mavericks (10.9). This is why I'm thinking of selecting the best overally Operating System for my needs and performance, even if it means downgrading to an older OS X.

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Answer 11

CBennett2498 Author

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Apr 3, 2014 9:26 PM in response to MichelPM

That is correct, but if you read between the lines, you'll see what I mean. I will do everything tomorrow afternoon with the updates and OS X changes and test the operating systems. I will keep you guys posted and actually post form all three operating systems. Thank you for your input in the discussion.

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Answer 12

MichelPM

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Apr 3, 2014 9:31 PM in response to CBennett2498

Another question/issue/consideration.

Do you own any of Apple's mobile iDevices?

If so, then Snow Leopard is the minimum OS you'll need to run the latest iTunes to sync and backup these devices.

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Answer 13

CBennett2498 Author

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Apr 3, 2014 9:33 PM in response to MichelPM

I have an iPhone 4s running iOS 7, but I also have a 2011 Macbook Air running Mavericks, in which I can run iTunes to complete a back-up. Thank you for the update becuase I was unaware of the minimum iTunes for iOS 7.

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Answer 14

MichelPM

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Apr 3, 2014 9:42 PM in response to CBennett2498

There are other considerations installing a lower, lesser OS X version.

You'll be using lesser versions of Safari since Apple ties versions of Safari to the OS.

Mozilla ended support for both the Camino AND FireFox web browsers under OS X 10.5 Leopard.

Adobe Flash Player is an issue since they abandoned support for older versions of OS X, too!

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Answer 15

CBennett2498 Author

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Apr 3, 2014 9:48 PM in response to MichelPM

Yes, I remember there is a website called Old Mac Apps or something of that sort that gives you all kinds of apps and software based on your Mac's OS X version. Now that you mention it, It mights take until Saturday or even Sunday to test the operating system, based on how busy I am and how long it takes to get everything to the highest/newest updates.

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