Like every year, Apple is preparing a major update for Macs. This year, Apple brings the user experience closer to iPhones and iPads with a strengthened ecosystem between devices.
The Mac is Apple’s device that has undergone the biggest transformations in recent years with the switch to Apple Silicon chips. The macOS Ventura update scheduled for 2022 continues this work and brings several important new features, in particular to strengthen security and consistency with iPadOS.
macOS Ventura release date
Apple has yet to reveal the release date for macOS Ventura. The firm usually schedules the deployment of its new versions in October, at the same time as the launch of new MacBooks and Macs.
macOS Ventura beta 5 was released on August 8, 2022.
How to install macOS Ventura? (in beta)
The deployment of macOS Ventura has not yet started in stable version. To install it now, you have to go through Apple’s beta program. This involves installing an unfinished version of the system which may contain blocking bugs.
The beta registration program // Source: Apple
Installing the beta from macOS Monterey // Source: Apple
macOS Ventura // Source: Apple
What’s new in macOS Ventura?
As always with Apple, it is necessary to separate the novelties which really concern the system itself and the updates made to the native applications of the firm.
Internship Manager
On the system side first, macOS Ventura introduces Stage Manager, a new way to organize its windows. The novelty is also promised for iPadOS. A single application is presented in front of the user and takes up most of the screen. Switching between apps is done on the left, with miniature visualization of the different windows.
The activation of Stage Manager is done in the control center. According to Apple, thisgives Mac users a whole new way to focus on a specific task“.
spotlight
Another novelty at the system level, the Spotlight integrated search engine is modernized and offers more relevant answers. The design is also similar to what the iPhone and iPad offer to reinforce the coherence of the ecosystem.
Beyond the design change, Spotlight now incorporates the glance function to easily view files. The engine is also capable of launching more commands, such as a timer or more notably Shortcuts shortcuts created by the user.
System settings
The rapprochement between macOS and the iOS / iPadOS universe is also made through less significant changes. Thus, the System preferences that accompanied macOS for many years become the System settings. In other words, the same name as on Apple’s mobile systems.
Apple takes the opportunity to modify the interface in depth with this side panel which allows you to quickly switch from one section to another.
Passkey: access codes replace your passwords
A new version of macOS is also an opportunity for Apple to modify its browser. Safari gains in performance and offers tabs to share with your loved ones. More importantly, it is with macOS Ventura that Apple should launch its “access codes”.
This is a new end-to-end encrypted identification method for websites and applications supporting the technology. Based on the W3C and FIDO Alliance standards, passkeys aim to replace your passwords. Instead, you log in with Touch ID in seconds. Synchronization between devices is done with iCloud Keychain.
The huge advantage of Apple’s access codes is protection against phishing, those malicious sites that imitate institutional sites to deceive you. Since the access codes are specific to the site that supports them, without the direct control of the user, impossible to be fooled in principle.
Apple promises that its solution will also work on Windows and Android.
New apps: Weather and Clock
macOS Ventura adds two apps that iPhone users are already familiar with: Weather and Clock.
We will find all the desired functions: the weather forecast for the coming days, the time in different time zones or even the setting of alarms. The Weather widget will no longer refer to the Weather Channel site, but to the Apple application.
Home app
As on iOS, the Home application has the right to a completely new interface, completely redesigned to better organize your Homekit devices, especially if there are many of them. The philosophy of the application evolves to find more easily, room by room, all the accessories of your connected home.
Apple now supports the Matter protocol, the new industry standard pushed by all the giants. This is also an important step for the development of home automation, controlled by its Apple devices.
Continuity
Apple groups the functions that bridge the gap between its devices under the name Continuity. With macOS Monterey, the iPhone camera takes over. The smartphone can become your Mac’s camera, wirelessly, to film you with the quality of a high-end device, much better than the Mac’s webcam.
The Desk View function also allows you to film your desk, without changing the location of the iPhone, thanks to AI work on the perspectives. Ideal to present the fruit of his work.
Other changes
The update to macOS Ventura also includes less significant changes, gathered in this list.
- AVIF and AV1 support
- Design change for Siri
- New route system in Apple Map with multiple stops
- Concentration modes can precisely filter parts of the applications (only display the work calendar for example)
- Dictation handles punctuation, commas, periods and question marks
- New customization options for Memojis
- Interface change for About This Mac
- Improved search and editing in Apple Mail
- Apple Photos integrates a search for duplicates
Which Macs and MacBooks are compatible with macOS Ventura?
Here is the list of Macs and MacBooks that will be able to receive macOS Ventura from the end of the year.
- iMac (from 2017)
- iMac Pro
- MacBook Air (from 2018)
- MacBook Pro (from 2017)
- Mac Pro (2019)
- MacStudio
- Mac Mini (from 2018)
- MacBook (2017)
In other words, Macs from 2015 and 2016 will remain stuck on macOS Monterey. Apple therefore brings the compatibility level closer to that of Windows 11, which was strongly criticized on its release on this point.
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