- Apple could work on a system to update MACs while still boxing
- This is based on clues in the latest developer Beta of MacOS 26
- Such a system is already used with iPhones, although it is not clear how Apple would make this work with Macs
Apple’s Macs could leave the shelf with a fully updated installation of macOS on board in the future, preventing the need for a day-a-update from the buyer whose clues in the latest developer beta are any indication.
9 to 5 Mac reports that MacOS Tahoe 26 Beta 3 contains the basis (initial references and code) for such a system already in place for iPhone.
It’s called Presto and it allows you to update boxed iPhones to the very first version of iOS by retailers – without removing hardware from its sealed package – if the devices need an update beyond the version of the operating system they sent.
This saves the customer the hassle of using an update right out of the gate, which is incredibly practical.
Presto hardware itself is a rack with six bays that may have six iPhones placed inside. It uses wireless technologies to turn on the phones on, update them and then turn them off. (Magsafe and NFC to turn on the devices, on all accounts, and Wi-Fi to touch the actual update.)
Analysis: Boxing Smart
If MACs get the benefit of having fully updated software when taken home by the buyer, it raises the question: How will Apple pull off this with laptops and PCs? The system may need to work very differently for a larger piece of hardware, and MACs also do not have NFC – so it is not clear how the sealed PC could be triggered to turn on in its box (and off again afterwards).
9TO5MAC suggests that Apple might add NFC back to its macOS devices, or that maybe another blend of wireless technique could be used with Macs. Whatever is the case, it is not clear how Apple would pull this off, as it does with iPhones, but it may require a significantly different spin on the concept.
Just because a potential feature has been discovered in the background of beta software does not mean it will ever perform. That said, the presence of the code here suggests that this is at least something that Apple is considering seriously – see this space, I assume.
