15 Things You Can Do in macOS Monterey That You Couldn’t Do Before

macOS Monterey ( also lie with as macOS 12 ) is now rolling out to everyone with a compatible Mac . If you have an early 2016 or new MacBook , early 2015 or newer MacBook Air , early 2015 or newer MacBook Pro , late 2014 or newerMac Mini , late 2015 or newer iMac , the belated 2017 iMac Pro , or late 2013 or newer Mac Pro , you could dive in .

Once you ’ve download and installed the free update , here ’s what to essay first .

1. Write Notes More Quickly

The Notes app in macOS Monterey pay off an upgrade with the gain of Quick Notes , a skin - down musical note taker that you may apply without opening billet itself . you could make a Quick Note from anywhere with a keyboard shortcut ( Fn+Q ) , by selecting text edition , or by move the cursor to the bottom right corner of the screen while guard down Cmd .

2. See FaceTime Group Chats As a Grid

Apple is n’t pleased that you ’ve been spending all your video - calling time on Zoom , so it ’s commit you a Zoom - same interface option for FaceTime group New World chat — you even get the illuminated boxful around the current speaker , as on Zoom . It ’s scream Grid Layout and you ’ll see it useable as a vista on your other Apple devices where FaceTime is support .

3. Supercharge Your Shortcuts

Shortcutswas introduce in iOS 12 , and with Monterey it realize its way to macOS as well . The app works in more or less incisively the same way on a Mac : Launch Shortcuts and you could commingle several actions into one single command , whether that ’s creating a GIF from a video recording , make a timer to use for breaks , starting a video call , or whatever other job you need to automatise .

4. Use Your Mac As an AirPlay Speaker

After you install Monterey , your Mac can then play as an AirPlay verbalizer . If you ’re playing sound recording from your iPhone , for example , you may choose AirPlay turnout and pick your Mac from the lean . It can even work as part of a multi - speaker setup . employ the Sharing chit in System Preferences to configure the AirPlay Receiver option .

5. Use Your Mac As an AirPlay Display

The same AirPlay trick works for mirroring and extending displays as well as rain cats and dogs audio recording . Again , you may open System Preferences and choose Sharing , then AirPlay Receiver to turn on the feature article . One means to use it would be to put a presentation from an iPhone up on an iMac , or pelt a Fitness+ class from your phone to your Mac ’s large screen .

6. See Which Apps Are Using Your Mic and Webcam

The modest back breaker that alert you when your mic and camera are really in use of goods and services are really helpful on iOS , and macOS Monterey gets a mic indicator to go alongside the dark-green webcam light already present on Macs . When the microphone is in habit , you ’ll see an orange dot next to the Control Center icon on the menu bar — tick the ikon to see which app is using the mic .

7. Say Hello

spread up System Preferences and then choose Desktop & Screen Saver and Screen Saver , and you ’ll see there ’s a brand new addition to the list . An elegant screensaver called Hello has arrived , and accord to Apple , it “ celebrates the history and onward motion of Mac ” and refers back to the very first Mac that displayed a similar “ hello ” substance on screenland .

8. Explore Cities in More Detail

Apple Maps is get more detailed and likeable visuals in certain big cities , with the same update rolling out across several of Apple ’s 2021 software update — including macOS Monterey , as long as you ’re on a Mac with an M1 chip . San Francisco is a good place to start exploring the raw views : expect for the high spot icons on landmark in 3D modality .

9. Extend MacBook Battery Life

MacBooks ( 2016 and later ) get a new Low Power Mode with the arrival of macOS Monterey , which does exactly what you might look : reduce some of the extra doorbell and whistles on your laptop computer so the need on the bombardment are lower . From System Preferences , select Battery and then Battery or Power Adapter . Low power mode is useable on both .

10. Maintain Your Focus

As with iOS 15 , iPadOS 15 , and watchOS 8 , macOS Monterey has a Modern Focus tool . You ’ll find it by clicking the Control Center picture on the card bar . Think of it as an enhanced reading of Do Not Disturb , so you’re able to set specific notification options for scenario at home and at the spot ( like studying , gaming , slumber , workings , etc . ) .

11. See What’s Been Shared With You

Most of the central Apple apps , including Photos , Apple Podcasts , Safari , and Apple News , are commence a new Shared With You section that you may look out for in macOS Monterey . Essentially this is just a way of quickly getting to anything that your contacts have post you through the Messages app , whether that ’s holiday photos , a link to an article , or a podcast recommendation .

12. Save Tab Groups in Safari

Keep your bunch of tabs together in the new lozenge groups have in Safari . To get originate , Cmd+select a chit and choose Move to Tab Group , where you may pick an existing radical or create a novel one . you could organise your tabs in whatever fashion work best for you , and by default your tablet groups will show up on the left field of the Safari port for prosperous accession .

13. Reduce the On-Screen Clutter in Safari

mouth of Safari , you ’ll discover that it ’s set about quite a radical redesign for macOS Monterey : There ’s a streamlined tab key bar that changes colour to pit the pages that you ’re currently viewing , there ’s an desegregate smart search field built into the speech legal community , and you ’ve also puzzle a redesign sidebar for managing your bookmarks , shared links , and more .

Eventually , macOS Monterey will enable you to watch videos and mind to music with other the great unwashed over FaceTime , as well as partake anything else that ’s on the screen of your Mac . It ’s called SharePlay , but at the time of writing Apple haspushed its launch back , so you ’ll still have to waitress for the feature to roll out after the initial launching of the new OS .

15. Work Seamlessly Across Macs and iPads

Universal Control is one of the headline feature of macOS Monterey , though we ’re not sureexactly when it will arrive(later this gloaming is what Apple is tell ) . The feature will let you use one Mac keyboard and trackpad ( or mouse ) to control other Macs and iPads next to it ( on the same wifi and using the same Apple ID ) , as if they were link up displays . Files can be dragged and dropped between gimmick , too . This is one we ca n’t expect to try .

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