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macOS Tahoe Beta Drops FireWire Support

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A bit of sad news for old iPods: Macs might be losing FireWire support.

iPod 2001 Box
The first macOS Tahoe developer beta does not support the legacy FireWire 400 and FireWire 800 data-transfer standards, according to @NekoMichi on X, and a Reddit post. As a result, the first few iPod models and old external storage drives that rely on FireWire cannot be synced with or mounted on a Mac running the macOS Tahoe beta.

Unlike on macOS Sequoia and earlier versions, the first macOS Tahoe beta does not include a FireWire section in the System Settings app.

Of course, this could all end up being a false alarm. It is still early in the macOS Tahoe beta testing cycle, and FireWire support could return in a later beta version, or in time for the final release. We reached out to Apple for comment about the matter shortly before publishing this story, and we will update this story if we hear back.

FireWire was primarily developed by Apple, but it was later standardized as IEEE 1394 and licensed for use in non-Apple devices.

iPods started to transition from FireWire to USB for data transfer in 2003, so the standard is very outdated, but it would still be the end of an era if macOS Tahoe drops it. The last Mac with a FireWire port was released in 2012, so connecting older iPods and FireWire drives to newer Macs has long required the use of adapters.

Related Roundup: macOS Tahoe
Tag: FireWire
Related Forum: macOS Tahoe

Top Rated Comments

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seek3r
10 months ago
A lot of older audio gear uses firewire, there’s going be a lot of musicians and studios upset by this if it turns out to be how the final release goes

I do wonder if the settings tab shows up if you plug in a firewire device though, it may just hide it to declutter when there’s nothing detected, anyone running the beta who has a TB to firewire adapter want to test?
Score: 33 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MrRom92 Avatar
MrRom92
10 months ago
Complete stupidity like this is why I will never let up on Apple. There’s zero reason for them to be removing functionality in software that hardware is otherwise capable of. There are still many use cases and industries relying on legacy FireWire devices.
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
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sevoneone
10 months ago
Seems trivial for them to include the driver. There are all kinds of old hard drives and even pro video and pro audio equipment out there that are still functionally relevant/useful. It really is to their benefit to maintain compatibility.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
T
TechEsquire
10 months ago
Wait, does this mean we won't be able to plug in a digital 8 camcorder? I still have tapes that I need to capture but they have not been mailed to me yet.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
vertsix Avatar
vertsix
10 months ago
That's unfortunate. Although, TBH, I was honestly surprised how long the legacy I/O is still being supported. I still regularly sync my iPod video to my Mac to this day and it works great.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jahsavi Avatar
jahsavi
10 months ago

Nobody is FORCING you to upgrade to the latest version of MacOS, nor should upgrading be done blindly and without due diligence. With each new version take an objective look at what features you get and what you lose and decide if upgrading will fit your workflow. If connecting to a FireWire device is essential to your business then don't upgrade. Or keep a different Mac around just to keep it connected. Or find a replacement device that connects via a supported interface. It's not the end of the world, there's always a reasonable solution.
It may not be outright forced, but if you don't keep your system updated, you'll eventually struggle with compatibility and security—it just becomes unsustainable.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
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