Compatibility

[Kearner94]

I'm wondering peoples options on something!?!??  we have an old iMac (2010) and nothing Adobe works on it. We suspect it's a  memory issue. I know nothing bout computers so i apologize now for sounding so dumb ! My husband bought RAM foe it but it wasn't the correct kind. My question is ..... do you think messing with the 2010 desktop is worth it  for the sole purpose of using photoshop Etc..... or another option like getting a laptop? Or another new desktop?? Again..... I'm not that knowledgeable about all of this stuff..,. So bare with me !  

thanks for any and all input !

[Derek Cross]

Well it should be “bear with me”.

In the meantime recent versions of Adobe applications may not be compatible with modern operating systems. You can download trial versions to test on your old computer.

Probably best to upgrade to a newer computer.

[Xanndra Fashion]

Try to upgrade your RAM to 8/16GB and SSD, I think that's still good enough for PhotoShop etc

[jane-e]

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@Kearner94 wrote:

nothing Adobe works on it.

Keeping a Mac running for eleven years is excellent. You did not say which Adobe applications or which versions "don't work", but it is unlikely that they will.

First check the system requirements here. Be sure to follow the links for more info.

https://helpx.adobe.com/photoshop/system-requirements.html

As Derek said, you can try the 7-day free trial, but be sure to cancel if it doesn't work.

~ Jane

[Conrad C]

According to a reference website for Macs, the iMacs in 2010 can use versions of macOS up to 10.13.

But the current version of Photoshop (version 22) requires macOS 10.14 or later; that is also true of some other Adobe applications.

That means current versions of many Adobe applications require a new version of macOS that Apple does not support on a 2010 iMac.

If you wanted to continue using a 2010 iMac with Adobe applications, you could choose to install older versions. However, that’s only a short-term solution because Adobe provides installation for only the current version and one previous, so when the next major Photoshop upgrade is announced (probably this fall), the last version compatible with a 2010 iMac will stop becoming available.

There is no hardware upgrade you can do to allow the 2010 iMac to use a more recent version of macOS, so if you want to run the latest version of Adobe applications you will need a newer computer.

Apple is in the middle of transitioning all Macs from Intel processors to the faster, more efficient Apple Silicon processor, but no Apple Silicon iMacs are available yet. As for whether you should get a desktop or laptop, that’s up to how you think you’ll need to work in the future. If you don’t need to work in different rooms or in other locations, a desktop always provides better value. I have a laptop because I do need to work in different locations.