Apple phases out dual-boot support for Windows 7

Dual-booting Mac users who wish to stick with Windows 7 will not be able to run the OS on Apple's latest MacBook models, as support for the older Microsoft operating system is phased out.

Apple's multi-boot solution Boot Camp running on the newest 2015 MacBook models will only support Windows 8 or later, the company's support page reveals.

Users who have purchased Apple's 13in MacBook Pro retina model, the new 13in MacBook Air, or new 11in MacBook Air -  which launched alongside Apple's Watch earlier this month - will only be able to run Windows 8 and above on their new devices.

In order to get the latest support software such as hardware drivers for Windows 7 on the new devices, MacBook users will need to use the Boot Camp Assistant (BCA) application - as the support is not available as a manual download, Apple said.

Boot Camp is Apple's multi-boot solution for users who need to run different operating systems on its Intel-based computers. 

Apple introduced support for Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 in February last year with Boot Camp version 5.1.