Macworld November 2023

MacOS Sonoma is here and it brings a bunch of new features, such as desktop widgets, a new Lock Screen, Game Mode, pet recognition in Photos, Mail updates, and a lot more. However, several features that Apple showcased at WWDC this past June won’t be available in the first release of Sonoma. As is the case for iOS 17, some features won’t be available until a future update later this year or in early 2024. Here’s a list of features to look forward to in macOS Sonoma. APPLE MUSIC macOS Sonoma has plenty of Desktop Widgets you can use, but the Music widget isn’t available yet. It allows users to control playback from the Music app, as well as show a dynamic list of the top charts and recommendations. Other Music…

The key new feature in macOS Sonoma is the ability to add widgets to the Desktop. They’re no longer banished to the notification shade that slides open when you click on the time in the menu bar. In Sonoma, widgets can exist anywhere on the Desktop, so you can see them all the time. This new widget implementation gives you instant access to the information you need. Let’s look at how to add widgets to your Desktop. Check out our macOS Sonoma guide for more information about the latest version of the Mac operating system. 1. EDIT WIDGETS When you first install macOS Sonoma, you can find your widgets as before by clicking the date and time in the menu bar. In the sidebar that appears, you’ll find a tab for…

Apple’s built-in browser might be the most frequently used app on your Mac (yes, even more than the Finder, super Mac geeks). So Apple always adds helpful new features to Safari, its browser. In version 17, available with macOS Sonoma or as a separate download for macOS Ventura and Monterey, Safari helps you be more productive and secure, and it’s available for macOS Monterey, Ventura, and Sonoma. Let’s take a look at the new features. WEB APPS Safari for Mac has finally caught up with iOS and iPadOS, which have had this feature for a while. A web app is basically a website saved as a self-contained app that appears in the Dock. Just click on its icon to launch it. We have a separate guide to web apps in…

Intel has just announced Thunderbolt 5, a new update to the Thunderbolt specification that doubles the bidirectional bandwidth to 80 Gbps (Thunderbolt 4 supports up to 40 Gbps). A feature called Bandwidth Boost provides up to 120 Gbps for video content. The standard is built on USB4 V2, DisplayPort 2.1, and PCI Express Gen 4 and is fully compatible with previous Thunderbolt versions. This performance is achieved using a new signaling technology called PAM-3, which should enable today’s printed circuit boards and passive cables (up to 1 meter) to achieve this performance. Apple includes Thunderbolt 4 connectors on many Mac computers and the iPad Pro, and it’s expected that future models will support Thunderbolt 5. Intel’s press release says, “Computers and accessories based on Intel’s Thunderbolt 5 controller, code-named Barlow…

While it is easy to connect external displays to your MacBook for expanded desk-based screen space, you can’t easily take this set up on the road with you or pack it neatly away in a drawer. The Limink Al Alloy Portable Triple Monitor (LK14) is a foldable package weighing 3.3 pounds (1.5kg) that physically attaches to your MacBook to add a 14-inch 1080p HD screen to each side of the laptop screen. DESIGN We’ve tested some screen extenders that hang off one side of the laptop and look rather strange and lopsided, like a motorbike with a dangling sidecar. The LK14 is a much more symmetrical screen setup and looks impressive sitting next to a standard one-screen MacBook. The aluminum looks don’t detract from the Apple aesthetic, and the whole…

For years, the name McAfee has been synonymous with antiviral and security software. Its Total Protection suite for the macOS continues to be steadily updated (currently version 4.19.0.0) and offers a good suite of anti-viral, anti-malware, identity protection, VPN, and scheduling tools. As expected, Total Protection’s bread and butter of antiviral and anti-malware tools remains ever present, and it’s easy to download the software, install it, give it its requisite access to your hard drive through the macOS Privacy and Security settings, update the virus definitions, and go from there. The software allows you to perform a full scan of your hard drive as well as scan custom locations such as external volumes, schedule scan times, and control the actions of what Total Protection does when it finds suspect files,…