5 Things to Know About the macOS Ventura 13.6 Update

Apple’s released its new macOS Ventura 13.6 update for Mac.

macOS Ventura 13.6 is a milestone upgrade, but it’s much smaller than a typical milestone release. The software brings a new batch of under-the-hood improvements to compatible Mac devices.

If you’re still lingering on macOS Monterey or an older version of macOS, this is the version of macOS Ventura you’ll see if you decide to move your Mac to macOS Ventura.

With that in mind, we want to take you through everything there you need to know about the latest macOS Ventura update for Mac.

We’ll start out with some quick impressions about macOS Ventura 13.6 update’s performance.

macOS Ventura 13.6 Review

If your Mac is currently running macOS Ventura 13.5.2, you’ll see a fairly small download, around 600MB. After the download, the installation should take around 10 or so minutes to complete.

For more on the macOS Ventura 13.6 download and installation, take a look at our guide. It’ll walk you through everything you need to know before you install the firmware.

We’ve been using the macOS Ventura 13.6 update on a MacBook Pro (2017) for several days now and here’s what we’ve learned about its performance thus far:

Battery Life & Connectivity

• Battery life is stable right now and we haven’t noticed any abnormal drain
• Wi-Fi connectivity is currently fast and reliable
• Bluetooth is working normally

App Performance

• Third-party apps, including Twitter, Slack, Chrome, and Spotify are working properly
• First party apps like Safari and Podcasts are also stable at the moment

Speed

• macOS Ventura 13.6 feels fast and we haven’t noticed any UI lag

If your Mac is struggling on macOS Ventura 13.5.2 or an older version of macOS, you might want to install macOS Ventura 13.6 on your Mac right now. It could help.

If you’re feeling a bit leery, we’ve put together a list of the best reasons to, and not to, install the latest version of macOS Ventura today.

macOS Ventura 13.6 Problems

The macOS Ventura 13.6 update went through a fairly lengthy beta process as well as testing behind the scenes, but problems have slipped into the final release.

We haven’t noticed any major bugs or performance issues on our end yet, but some users are complaining about performance issues and bugs.

The current list of problems includes abnormal battery drain, Wi-Fi issues, Bluetooth problems, and problems with various first and third-party applications. We expect the list to grow as more people download the software.

If you run into issues on macOS Ventura 13.6, here are a few resources that could help.

Before you get in touch with Apple’s customer support, have a look at our list of fixes for the most common macOS Ventura problems. If your Mac’s battery life is struggling, check out our fixes for macOS Ventura battery life problems.

If you can’t find what you’re looking for in our guides, head over to Apple’s discussion forums. If the users there can’t help you, you might want to get in touch with Apple Support via Twitter or with customer support via Apple’s website.

If you still can’t fix your issue(s), you’ll probably want to schedule an appointment at your local Apple Store.

macOS Ventura 13.6 Features

Apple’s milestone updates (x.x) typically bring a mix of features and under-the-hood improvements, but again, macOS Ventura 13.6 isn’t a standard milestone release.

The software doesn’t provide any new features or bug fixes. Instead it’s focused on patching up security issues. You can learn more about the patches over on Apple’s security site.

macOS Ventura 13.6 Downgrade

If you run into problems on macOS Ventura 13.6, you can try moving your Mac’s software back to an older version if you think it could help.

If you’re interested in moving back to older software, have a look at our downgrade guide. It will help you get familiar with the process and make the move back.

What’s Next

If your Mac is struggling on macOS Ventura 13.6 or an older version of macOS, you’ll be on your own for a bit.

macOS Ventura 13.6 is almost certainly the last milestone upgrade for macOS Ventura. We don’t expect Apple to bring new features to the operating system down the line.

That being said, Apple should continue to support the operating system with bug fixes and security updates so be on the lookout, especially if your Mac isn’t compatible with macOS Sonoma.

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