Every year at WWDC, Apple presents a new version of most of its operating systems, including macOS. At WWDC 2023, Apple officially introduced macOS Sonoma, or macOS 14, the latest version of its desktop operating system, and it’s delivering a suite of new features for Mac users.
macOS Sonoma Features
The changes to macOS Sonoma are wide-ranging, spanning productivity, gaming, and general usability. If you want to know everything about the next version of macOS, you’ve come to the right place.
macOS Sonoma Features Highlighted by Apple
Here are the 14 enhancements showcased by Apple:
- Presenter Overlay – allows you to stay in sight while sharing your screen. You can choose between the large overlay that keeps the spotlight on you and a small overlay that’s bubble-shapped.
- Widgets on Desktop – in macOS Sonoma you can add your favorite widgets on the desktop and also interact with them. Play a podcast, control your Home accessories and more!
- Camera Reactions – macOS Sonoma video conferencing is even more spicy with reactions that are trigger by hand gestures. Fill up the screen with confetti by showing two thumbs up, trigger balloons and more.
- Profiles in Safari – macOS Sonoma is now able to draw a distinct line between Work, Personal, School and other sections of your life. Profiles in Safari help you separate your history, extensions, Tab Groups, cookies, and favorites.
- Screen sharing picker – is a macOS 14 feature that allows you to easy share an app in a video call, right from the app’s window.
- Locked Private Browsing windows – macOS 14 is able to auto-lock windows when you’re not using them and blocks trackers and removes tracking added to URL while you browse.
- Web apps in Dock – You can now easily add any website in the Dock under the form of a web app and access websites using a simplified look.
- Shared passwords – This macOS Sonoma feature allows you to create a group to share passwords with contacts.
- Document autofill – this feature has been improved in macOS 14. You can now autofill contact info faster in a PDF or scanned document.
- Screen savers – macOS Sonoma adds new slow-mo screen savers depicting beautiful locations from around the world. They become desktop wallpapers when you sign in.
- Predictive text – anticipates the upcoming word or event the entire sentence. Press spacebar to go with the suggestion!
- Live Stickers in Messages – A new stickers drawer brings your Live Stickers and Memoji in the same place.
HeySiri – Wake your virtual assistant by calling ‘Siri’ instead of the usual ‘Hey Siri’ wakeup call!- Game Mode – prioritizes CPU and GPU of your Mac for the game that you decide to run. Background tasks are reduced and latency with wireless accessories like game controllers is significantly lowered.
- Safari updates – Apple’s homegrown browser, Safari, is also getting some big updates with this release, with a major focus on privacy. This can help if, for example, you have a streaming service for your family that everyone wants to access.
macOS Sonoma New Features (Hidden)
Other changes uncovered during beta testing are mentioned here:
- Copy iCloud link now available in Photos on Mac! Reported by Tiokuus.
- Revamped Print Center has been reported for macOS 14.
- To be updated. (Contribute in the comments!)
Can my Mac run macOS Sonoma?
As per usual, macOS Sonoma isn’t available on every single Mac. Apple has shared some information about the models that are compatible with the upcoming update. Here’s the list of compatible models:
- iMac (2019 or later)
- iMac Pro (2017)
- MacBook Air (2018 or later)
- MacBook Pro (2018 or later)
- Mac Pro (2019 or later)
- Mac Studio (2022 or later)
- Mac Mini (2018 or later)
Most notable here is the end of support for a few models from 2017, including the MacBook Pro, the 12-inch MacBook, and the iMac models from that year. Devices released in the last five years are still getting the update.
Have you tried the macOS Sonoma 14 features out? Which are your favorites? Have noticed a change that’s not mentioned in this article? Share your feedback in the comments!
