This is the most asked question in the Hackintosh World that “ is my computer Hackintoshable ?” or “Do I have Compatible Hardware for Hackintosh?” the easiest way to determine the compatibility is from determining what you wanted to build? an iMac, MacBook or even a MacMini, The Classification is based on what type of hardware you have.
Do you have a Desktop? => it’s an iMac.
Do you have a Laptop? => it’s a Macbook.
Do you have a NUC? => it’s a MacMini
Or you wanted to make a new Hackintosh Desktop? Checkout,
[GUIDE] The Budget Hackintosh Workstation with 9th Gen Processors
The Compatibility of Hackintosh isn’t all determinable by the build you have, it’s also dependent on what type of hardware you have, By hardware I mean.
What kind of Processor you have? Intel or AMD
What kind of Motherboard you have? Chipsets
What kind of Storage Option you have? HardDisk Drive or Solid State Drive
What kind of Sound Controller you have? Realtek ALC___
What kind of Network Controller you have? Intel / Broadcomm / Realtek
and the list go-on…
so let’s go to the beginning.
PROCESSOR
If your system has Intel Processor there is a very good chance that it’ll support macOS but with AMD processor the process is a lot trickier. and also keep in mind the older the Processor the harder the installation is. Intel Processors from 4th Generation (2014) up to 9th Gen (2019) are very compatible with macOS and Ryzen Series from AMD also has a good chance for Success Build. Intel Core i3, i5, i7 or i9 are currently popular in the market for good Hackintosh build.
MOTHERBOARD aka. MoBo
Any major Chipset is kind-of compatible with Hackintosh, compatibility of the motherboard in Hackintosh is very Important for Power Management but Thanks to bootloaders like Clover and OpenCore, MoBo Compatibility will not be the much of an Issue. Keep In mind if your MoBo has built-in Wifi+bluetooth unless it is from Broadcom chances are it will not be compatible.
The Popular your Motherboard is there are higher chances that there are other people too from Hackintosh Community who have the same build and the Guides are also available for These Boards.
GRAPHICS CARD
The most kind-of Important thing for Hackintosh, Graphics Card are Important if you Graphics Intensive tasks like Video Editing, Photo Editing, etc. Graphics Card is also important for Hackintosh if you are going to use your System for App Development as Simulations/Emulators are Graphics Intensive, Integrated Graphics Can be used to build Hackintosh Though but you’ll face difficulty if you are into these kinds of stuff.
Nvidia Cuda Support is also Deprecated from macOS Mojave 10.14. So, if you have any GTX or RTX Series that will not work here, but if you have any older GPU like Nvidia 650 or 750 Series it’ll probably work. It is recommended to Replace your GPU to AMD Graphics card as they have OOB (Out-Of-the-Box) Compatibility with macOS BestBuy is to use RX or Vega Series GPU.
Currently, the newest generation of Intel Core processors is Coffee Lake, whose processors have model numbers in the 9000’s (e.g. Core i9–9900K). This generation is supported on macOS Catalina 10.15 and all newer versions. For Coffee-Lake processors, the UHD 630built-in graphics card works with macOS.
WiFi AND BLUETOOTH
Unless you have a Combo of Bluetooth+WiFi from Broadcom you are out of luck, Broadcom is Natively supported from macOS as it Ships with Apple’s hardware like MacBooks, iMac’s, MacMini’s and MacPro’s.
Having Broadcom Wifi+Bt Combo Also Enable Users to use macOS Features like Sidecar, Airdrop, Hands-Off and Unlocking From Apple Watch so it makes it a must-have Hardware for Hackintosh Users to Full take the benefits of macOS. Wi-Fi and Bluetooth Adapters are not recommended for macOS as it does not support macOS and even if they do, most of the features will not work and also they break System Sleep mode.
MONITOR
Almost Every Monitor will Work but you have to use Digital Connection i.e. HDMI, Display Port or DVI because macOS doesn’t Support Analog Connections like VGA and it is also recommended to use at least 1920 x 1080 (Full HD) monitor to get most of the macOS interface.
OTHER THINGS like Storage, USB, etc.
STORAGE
If you Still have Hard Disk Drive (HDD) in 2019, its time to upgrade it to SSD (Solid State Drive) at least for the boot drive. you can use your old HDD for storing things but it is recommended to use SSD for booting and Installing macOS because Newer versions of macOS support APFS file System which is highly optimized for SSD.
Features like T.R.I.M can also be enabled on macOS to get most of your SSD plus it’ll give your system the Speed it deserves for macOS.
USB
Universal Serial Bus (USB) is supported All the way up-to Type-C some chipsets may require some slight patching but it’ll eventually work.
WEBCAMS
Any Webcam which supports macOS will work and it is recommended if you want to use FaceTime on your new Hackintosh.
OPTICAL DRIVE
Most the Optical Drives are claimed to be work on macOS and have compatibility with Reading/ Writing DVD and BlueRay discs.
GAMING MOUSE
Gaming Mouse is a pain in macOS if your Mouse Manufacturer doesn’t provide Compatibility of macOS. In my case, Logitech G402 cant shift DPI from its Physical button but thankfully Logitech Software Supports macOS.
In the end, you still have to get ready for little Debugging. No matter how compatible your system is, you need a lot of Patience and Smart Work to Hackintosh your System. If you Stuck in While Installing Hackintosh make sure to Ask your Query I’ll be happy to help and always Remember GOOGLE is your Friend.
Sure! Happy to help. What info are you looking for?