Dropbox is testing native support for the Apple M1

The recently released beta version of the Dropbox app for macOS added support for Apple Silicon to the current MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, 24-inch iMac, and Mac Mini. The release is the first step towards fulfilling the company’s promise to offer native support for M1-based Macs.

Apple introduced its M1 silicon in 2020. So far, Dropbox hasn’t offered a native version of its file hosting service for computers using Apple chips, which has been frustrating for some professional users who rely on the program and pay for it to work.

Without the beta, M1 users must use Rosetta 2, a software that translates applications with x86_64 instructions to Apple’s Arm-based silicon, in order to use the Dropbox app. However, running Rosetta 2 may affect battery life, memory capacity, and performance in general.

For most users, Rosetta 2 is a sufficient solution to run applications based on Intel processors. And it’s entirely possible that some lesser-known applications will never be ported to M1 systems at all.

But as Apple continues to sever ties with Intel and plans to migrate all of its systems to its own chips by the end of 2022, the number of applications requiring Rosetta 2 should continue to decline. We’re still waiting for other apps on the M1 side, including OneDrive, which has also promised to add support.

Dropbox sparked controversy last year when a forum moderator responded to requests for native M1 support, suggesting more interest was needed. Dropbox quickly changed its mind, telling 9to5Mac that the Dropbox M1 version is coming soon.

Now, as the site reported yesterday citing a Dropbox user, this version of M1 is currently being tested. The arm64 ID confirms Arm support in Dropbox’s latest macOS beta.

Again, this is only a beta. Dropbox has yet to announce when Apple Silicon native support will become public.