Apple just unveiled the new macOS Monterey, and it’s loaded with features for both connectivity and productivity. Universal Control between Mac and iPad tops our list, but there’s also new shortcuts, AirPlay to Mac, SharePlay, FaceTime, a Safari redesign, and more.
Universal Control
If you spend your day moving between your iPad and Mac, take note: the new Universal Control feature allows you to use a single mouse and keyboard between the two for a seamless experience with no setup required. The feature makes it easy to quickly drag and drop content back and forth between either. It’s perfect for whipping up a drawing with your Apple Pencil on an iPad then adding it into your slideshow on a Mac.
Shortcuts
We’re all for anything that automates tasks and makes life easier. Now, macOS Monterey brings Shortcuts to the Mac to do just that with all of your favorite apps. The feature comes with an artillery of pre-built actions just for Mac and it’ll let you share files, make GIFs and more with minimal effort.
Advanced users can create additional custom shortcuts as needed. Shortcuts is integrated throughout macOS for things like Finder, the menu bar, Siri, and more, so you’ve got plenty of options. Users can also import current Automator workflows into Shortcuts with minimal setup as well.
Safari
It isn’t just the operating system that’s getting an update, Safari got one too! A brand spanking new tab design offers up more page real estate for users. The new tab bar changes colors with your webpage, and it combines the tool bar, the search field, and your open tabs into a single compact design.
The handy Tab Groups feature lets you, well, group your tabs for better organization. This is great if you need a slew of tabs open for work, school, shopping, and planning a vacation. Plus, Tab Groups automatically syncs your tabs across all of your Apple devices for a seamless experience.
AirPlay to Mac
IPhones and iPads are great, but their screens are small. AirPlay to Mac makes it easy to view or present content on either of those devices on your Mac. With the Mac’s Retina display and hi-fi speakers are a great medium for watching videos or listening to podcasts.
Notes
A new feature, called Quick Note, has entered the arena! Quick Note makes it even easier to open a new note right when you need it, say, for jotting down a phone number. It’s also app-aware, and makes it easy to capture text, URLs, and more from apps like Safari or Maps, and paste them into your note.
Users can also add mentions and see previous edits. When you’re done, you can categorize notes with tags for easy searching in the future via the Tag Browser and in tag-based Smart Folders.
Focus
Stay on task with the new Focus feature. It will automatically filter out notifications unrelated to what you’re working on and save them for later. When you turn on this feature, it’ll set your status accordingly across all of your devices to alert those trying to contact you that you might not respond immediately.
Apple also announced a ton of other forthcoming features for the upcoming iPadOS 15 and iOS 15 updates. Be sure to check out the rest of our coverage for Apple WWDC 2021 so you’re in the know!
