Update, September 8: the M3 support described as approaching release in August is now in Asahi’s installer. The September 6 announcement requires Expert mode and excludes M3 Ultra. Availability does not mean the port is complete.
What changed since the August report
The September 6 announcement confirms installer support for M3, M3 Pro and M3 Max MacBooks and iMacs, gated behind Expert mode. It excludes Mac Studio with M3 Ultra. GPU and full display-controller support remain incomplete; sleep and HDMI on equipped MacBooks are unavailable.
The original publication date remains August 28. This update replaces the obsolete “release coming soon” status without pretending the later announcement happened in August.
Three different graphics functions
The August progress report explains the distinction between AVD, the video decoder, AGX, the GPU, and DCP, the display controller. Decoder progress does not automatically provide accelerated 3D rendering or a complete display-output path.
That report also described desktop integration work still needed for video decoding. Therefore, “the hardware can decode AV1” is not enough to establish that your browser uses it successfully. The application, userspace bridge and driver must participate in a working path.
| Question | Evidence to look for |
|---|---|
| Can this exact Mac be installed? | Current installer support for its model and any required mode |
| Is 3D rendering accelerated? | A supported GPU driver and the renderer actually used by the application |
| Does video use hardware decoding? | Decoder support plus confirmation from the actual playback application |
| Do sleep and external displays work? | Support for the relevant device and display-controller path |
Why a broad feature matrix can mislead
The M3 feature matrix tracks individual blocks and upstreaming, while the dated release announcement describes the installer offering. At this review, some matrix entries and release statements differ. For the September release's user-facing restrictions, this article follows the dated announcement instead of combining the most optimistic entry from each source.
A kernel hardware block, a distribution package and a working laptop feature are different units of support. A component marked available cannot establish that all of its dependencies are ready for a particular machine.
Decide around your actual workload
If your daily task requires GPU-heavy applications, reliable suspend or an HDMI display, those missing functions are decisive. Someone evaluating command-line development has a different requirement set. Neither use case should be reduced to a single “Linux works on M3” checkbox.
Before following the project's installation instructions, identify the exact Mac model and compare its required functions with the release restrictions. Use the original announcement for the Expert-mode procedure and current updates. We have not installed this port or measured its speed or battery life.
Update the August report with the September 6 M3 release: Expert mode, GPU/DCP limits, no sleep or MacBook HDMI, and no M3 Ultra support.