BitTorrent Client Transmission Gains Apple Silicon Support in Fourth Major Release

Popular old-school BitTorrent client Transmission is today celebrating its fourth major release, with a huge list of changes accompanying the update, including native Apple silicon support.

transmission 4 mac
With Transmission 4, the client is no longer an Intel app that runs on Macs with M1 or M2 chips via Rosetta. It's now a universal binary, so it now runs natively on all Macs.

There are some UI design changes to match the latest version of macOS, and the developers have modernized the code by migrating from C90 to modern C++. Resource efficiency has also been improved, so the app now uses less memory and fewer CPU cycles.

New feature highlights include support for using BitTorrent v2 torrents and hybrid torrents, users can now set "default" trackers that can be used to announce all public torrents, and an option to omit potentially-identifying information (e.g. User-Agent and date created) when creating new torrents has been added.

Elsewhere, newly added seeds can now start immediately and verify pieces on demand, instead of needing a full verify before seeding can begin, and the web client has been rewritten to support mobile use. When creating new torrents, users can also now specify the piece size, and IPv6 blocklists are now supported.

"Transmission on macOS is a truly native and polished experience," reads the client's website. "This isn't some cross-platform app that treats macOS as an afterthought. With a sleek and simple interface, Transmission meets or exceeds Apple UI standards while using native features.

Transmission has one of the lowest memory and resource footprints of any major BitTorrent client. Its light overhead is one reason why it is so well suited for home NAS and media servers. Having been used by Western Digital, Zyxel and Belkin, Transmission gives truly impressive performance on almost any compatible hardware."

According to the developers, the open source, volunteer-based project is much more responsive to bug reports and code submissions than it has been in the past, with over 350 new community commits contributing to the release of Transmission 4.

Transmission 4 is available for macOS, Windows, and Linux, and can be downloaded for free from the Transmission website.

Popular Stories

iphone 16 pro ghost hand

5 Reasons to Skip This Year's iPhone 17 Pro

Thursday July 10, 2025 4:54 am PDT by
Apple will launch its new iPhone 17 series in two months, and the iPhone 17 Pro models are expected to get a new design for the rear casing and the camera area. But more significant changes to the lineup are not expected until next year, when the iPhone 18 models arrive. If you're thinking of trading in your iPhone for this year's latest, consider the following features rumored to be coming...
apple wallet drivers license feature iPhone 15 pro

Apple Says iPhone Driver's Licenses Will Expand to These 8 U.S. States

Tuesday July 8, 2025 11:26 am PDT by
In select U.S. states, residents can add their driver's license or state ID to the Wallet app on the iPhone and Apple Watch, providing a convenient and contactless way to display proof of identity or age at select airports and businesses, and in select apps. Unfortunately, this feature continues to roll out very slowly since it was announced in 2021, with only nine U.S. states, Puerto Rico,...
iPhone 17 Pro in Hand Feature Lowgo

iPhone 17 Pro to Reverse iPhone X Design Decision

Monday July 7, 2025 9:46 am PDT by
Since the iPhone X in 2017, all of Apple's highest-end iPhone models have featured either stainless steel or titanium frames, but it has now been rumored that this design decision will be coming to an end with the iPhone 17 Pro models later this year. In a post on Chinese social media platform Weibo today, the account Instant Digital said that the iPhone 17 Pro models will have an aluminum...
iPhone 17 Pro in Hand Feature Lowgo

Leaker Reveals Amount of RAM in iPhone 17 Through iPhone 17 Pro Max

Wednesday July 9, 2025 8:08 am PDT by
Three out of four iPhone 17 models will feature more RAM than the equivalent iPhone 16 models, according to a new leak that aligns with previous rumors. The all-new iPhone 17 Air, the iPhone 17 Pro, and the iPhone 17 Pro Max will each be equipped with 12GB of RAM, according to Fixed Focus Digital, an account with more than two million followers on Chinese social media platform Weibo. The...
apple account card feature

Apple Account Card Expanding to More Countries

Tuesday July 8, 2025 7:34 pm PDT by
Apple is expanding the ability to add an Apple Account Card to the Wallet app to more countries, according to backend Apple Pay changes. With iOS 15.5, Apple updated the Wallet app to allow users to add an Apple Account Card, which displays the Apple credit balance associated with an Apple ID. If you receive an Apple gift card, for example, it is added to an Apple Account that is also...
macbook pro blue green

M5 MacBook Pro No Longer Coming in 2025

Thursday July 10, 2025 12:38 pm PDT by
Apple does not plan to refresh any Macs with updated M5 chips in 2025, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Updated MacBook Air and MacBook Pro models are now planned for the first half of 2026. Gurman previously said that Apple would debut the M5 MacBook Pro models in late 2025, but his newest report suggests that Apple is "considering" pushing them back to 2026. Apple is now said to be...
iOS 26 Feature

Everything New in iOS 26 Beta 3

Monday July 7, 2025 1:20 pm PDT by
Apple is continuing to refine and update iOS 26, and beta three features smaller changes than we saw in beta 2, plus further tweaks to the Liquid Glass design. Apple is gearing up for the next phase of beta testing, and the company has promised that a public beta is set to come out in July. Transparency In some apps like Apple Music, Podcasts, and the App Store, Apple has toned down the...
iCloud General Feature Redux

iPhone Users Who Pay for iCloud Storage Receive These Five Perks

Wednesday July 9, 2025 9:20 am PDT by
If you pay for iCloud storage on your iPhone, did you know that Apple offers you five perks beyond the extra storage space, at no additional cost? Here are the perks included with all iCloud+ plans:Private Relay keeps your Safari browsing history entirely private from network providers, websites, and even Apple. Hide My Email generates unique, random email addresses whenever needed. Hom...

Top Rated Comments

arkitect Avatar
32 months ago

I always thought that bit torrent has more to do with the dark web than anything really useful.
Errm.
No.

Believe it or not, there are perfectly legal uses for Bittorents…

Go to archive.org here ('http://archive.org') for example, and download an old book from the Getty Institute or the Metropolitan… or Yale University, published maybe in 1765, A treatise on Architecture as an example, and the files can be in excess of 2GB.
A Torrent is the best way to do this. Doesn't overload their servers and works happily in the background on my Mac.

Not everything is evil and out to get you.
Score: 70 Votes (Like | Disagree)
oneMadRssn Avatar
32 months ago

I use BT to download Bluray/HD versions of the DVDs that I own. I use it with a VPN.
I also use BT to download Bluray/HD versions of the DVDs that you own.
Score: 51 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Spaceboi Scaphandre Avatar
32 months ago

I always thought that bit torrent has more to do with the dark web than anything really useful.
The iPhone and iPad ruined a generation of computer users
Score: 37 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Danfango Avatar
32 months ago

I always thought that bit torrent has more to do with the dark web than anything really useful.
Yes I mostly use it people trafficking, gun running and dealing coke.

Oh and downloading Linux distributions. Can't forget that.
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Wokis Avatar
32 months ago
Mmm, yes. For all the Linux distros I'm gonna download on my Mac.
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
macintologist Avatar
32 months ago
I use BT to download Bluray/HD versions of the DVDs that I own. I use it with a VPN.
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)