Apple has introduced the latest version of its desktop operating system – macOS Sonoma. The update includes new features that enhance the Mac experience. Users can now personalize their desktop with screen savers and widgets. They can place widgets directly on the desktop and interact with them with just a click. Continuity allows users to access the extensive ecosystem of iPhone widgets on their Mac. There are also new features for video conferencing, including Presenter Overlay, which places a presenter on top of the content being shared, and Reactions, which enable gesture-triggered video effects. Safari has significant updates, including Profiles, which keeps browsing separate between multiple topics or projects, and web apps that provide faster access to favorite sites. Additionally, Game Mode is introduced for gaming enthusiasts, with new titles and a new game porting toolkit that makes it easier for developers to bring more games to Mac.
Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of Software Engineering, said:
“macOS is the heart of the Mac, and with Sonoma, we’re making it even more delightful and productive to use. We think users are going to love macOS Sonoma and the new ways it enables them to personalize with widgets and stunning new screen savers, see new levels of gaming performance, and gain powerful productivity for video conferencing and browsing with Safari.”
Increase Productivity with Interactive Widgets
Widgets are now more powerful and personalized on Mac. You can place widgets directly on the desktop and easily access the widget gallery to find the ones you love. Widgets blend in seamlessly with the wallpaper while you work in apps, so you can remain focused on your task at hand. Thanks to Continuity, you can also enjoy the vast ecosystem of iPhone widgets on your Mac. Additionally, widgets are now interactive, enabling you to check off reminders, play or pause media, access home controls, and perform various tasks directly from your Mac desktop.
Improved Video Conferencing Features
macOS Sonoma introduces enhanced video conferencing features to help users present and share their work more effectively within any video conferencing app. The Presenter Overlay is a new video effect that displays the user on top of the content they are sharing, making their presence more prominent. Reactions allow users to express themselves by adding balloons, confetti, hearts, and more into the video, which can also be triggered with a hand gesture. The Screen Sharing picker has been improved to simplify the process of sharing apps during video calls. Users can click the green button in the top-left corner of an app and choose to share it in the call, allowing for easy content sharing from currently open windows.
Major Updates to Safari
Safari, which Apple calls “the fastest browser in the world” (ahem, on the Mac), has introduced new features to enhance browsing experience for Mac users. The Private Browsing feature has had significant updates this year to provide even greater protection, not only from trackers but also from people who might have access to the user’s device. The Advanced tracking and fingerprinting protections in Private Browsing go beyond to help prevent websites from tracking or identifying the user. Private Browsing windows are also locked when users are not using them, allowing them to keep tabs open even when they step away from their device.
Moreover, profiles help users stay organized by offering a way to separate browsing between topics while keeping cookies, history, extensions, Tab Groups, and Favorites separate. Users can sign in to the same site with both work and personal accounts and quickly switch between them, ensuring a smooth browsing experience. Safari also allows the creation of web apps that behave like normal apps, putting users’ favorite sites at their fingertips and providing a simplified toolbar for an app-like experience.
Improved Gaming Experience on Mac
Apple silicon now provides users with an outstanding gaming experience, boasting incredible graphics performance on every Mac. With tens of millions of Macs already equipped with Apple silicon, demanding games run with great performance, long battery life, and stunning visuals. Metal 3 continues to be a popular choice for developers, resulting in exciting new Mac game titles such as DEATH STRANDING DIRECTOR’S CUT, Stray, Fort Solis, World of Warcraft: Dragonflight, HUMANKIND, Resident Evil Village: Winters’ Expansion, The Medium, ELEX II, Firmament, SnowRunner, Disney Dreamlight Valley, No Man’s Sky, Dragonheir: Silent Gods, and Layers of Fear. Furthermore, Metal introduces a new game porting toolkit, making it easier to port games from other platforms to Mac while significantly reducing the total development time.
Moreover, macOS Sonoma introduces Game Mode, which optimizes the gaming experience, resulting in smoother and more consistent frame rates. Game Mode ensures that games receive the highest priority on the CPU and GPU, providing gamers an edge when performance is measured in milliseconds. Game Mode also makes gaming on Mac more immersive by significantly lowering audio latency with AirPods and reducing input latency with popular game controllers like Xbox and PlayStation, which doubles the Bluetooth sampling rate. Game Mode works with any game, including all recent and upcoming Mac games.
Improving Hybrid and Remote Workflows for Professionals
The advanced media engine in Apple silicon allows macOS Sonoma to offer a new high-performance mode for the Screen Sharing app. This mode provides incredibly responsive remote access to hybrid in-studio and remote workflows, with low-latency audio, high frame rates, and support for up to two virtual displays. This mode enables professionals to securely access their content creation workflows from anywhere, such as editing in Final Cut Pro or DaVinci Resolve, or animating complex 3D assets in Maya. Additionally, it supports reference color, allowing for remote color workflows that traditionally required specialized hardware and software.
Enhanced Accessibility Features
macOS Sonoma introduces several features that make Mac more customizable for all users. For customers with hearing disabilities, Made for iPhone hearing devices can connect to their Mac for calls and media consumption. Meanwhile, users who cannot speak can use Live Speech to type and vocalize their thoughts during calls and conversations. For users with physical and motor disabilities, phonetic suggestions appear when dictating and editing text with Voice Control on Mac. To help users with cognitive disabilities, animated images like GIFs can be automatically paused in Messages and Safari. Additionally, users who are blind or have low vision can easily customize text size across Mac apps and utilize Xcode with VoiceOver, Apple’s industry-leading screen reader.
Additional macOS Sonoma updates include:
- Streamlined PDFs: Enhanced PDF functionality allows for quick form-filling with AutoFill, and smart recipient recommendations.
- Inline PDFs in Notes: Notes now displays PDFs and document scans in full width, and with linked notes, users can quickly connect related notes like recipes or homework.
- Siri: Users have the ability to simply say “Siri” to activate Siri.2
- Passwords: Users can now create a group to share a set of passwords. Everyone in a group can add and edit passwords to keep them up to date, and since sharing is through iCloud Keychain, it’s end-to-end encrypted. Additionally, the one-time verification codes received in Mail will now autofill in Safari, making it easy to securely log in without leaving the browser.
- Messages: Users can connect with those closest to them with an all-new stickers experience, enhancements to features like search, reply, groups, and syncing with Messages in iCloud.
- Reminders: Intelligent grocery lists in Reminders streamline weekly trips to the store. Additionally, users can organize lists into sections and arrange them horizontally using a new column view.
- Keyboard: An all-new autocorrect makes corrections more accurate and easier to fix. Inline completions help users quickly finish sentences, while Dictation brings accuracy improvements through next-level speech recognition.
- Privacy and Safety: Communication Safety expands to AirDrop, the Photos picker, incoming calls, and FaceTime messages, further broadening protections for children. Additionally, Sensitive Content Warning prevents unexpected exposure to sensitive images and videos in AirDrop and Messages, incoming calls, and FaceTime messages, while giving the user the option to block the contact or seek further resources for help.
The developer beta of macOS Sonoma is available through the Apple Developer Program at developer.apple.com starting today, and a public beta will be available through the Apple Beta Software Program next month at beta.apple.com. The release will be available as a free software update this fall. For more information, visit apple.com/macos/sonoma-preview. Features are subject to change. Some features may not be available in all regions, all languages, or on all devices. For more information about availability, visit apple.com.
