Hi everyone, I know the macOS 15 Sequoia is approaching from September to October based on Apple’s customs, yet I still want to know the new futures and highlights of macOS Sonoma because my device seems to be canceled off running macOS Sequoia according to Apple’s declaration, as which is not listed in the supported device list. I keep my Mac in macOS Monterey as I have used this Mac operating system with satisfaction since it was released, but now, I intend to update the OS to macOS Sonoma, so please tell me what new features on macOS Sonoma, and the more details you give, the more you’ll be appreciated!
It’s wise to install macOS Sonoma on your device but not the approaching macOS Sequoia. As your machine is officially supported by Apple, you can get the maximum features and highlights of this OS. Besides, since your Mac is declared to have the capacity to run macOS, the chance of errors and issues would be less. But if you insist on running macOS Sequoia on your unsupported Mac, whose hardware might fail to hold current performance or running speed as you wish.
When it comes to the new features of macOS Sonoma, I got lots of things to say since I installed this OS when it comes public! I will try to give more details as much as I can!
Set Widget Color Options
When not in use, interactive desktop widgets fade into the background by taking on a monochrome style, allowing you to concentrate on the active app or window.
If you prefer this look, you can make it permanent by going to System Settings → Desktop & Dock. In the “Widgets” section, set Widget Style to Monochrome.
System Settings Navigation
In macOS Ventura, Apple replaced System Preferences with System Settings to align it with iOS and iPadOS, but the way controls were organized left many users wanting.
The same System Settings interface remains in macOS Sonoma, but it is now easier to navigate through different menu screens you have visited without continually scrolling through the sidebar, thanks to the addition of backward and forward buttons.
FaceTime Reactions
Apple has changed the way FaceTime integrates with the menu bar. The video effects options no longer appear in the Control Center, and instead have a new home in a dedicated green FaceTime menu bar item, which also includes a mini webcam view and buttons to trigger Reactions.
Reactions include Love, Like, Dislike, Balloons, Rain, Confetti, Lasers, and Fireworks. Some reactions are even triggered automatically by the user’s physical actions: One thumb-up triggers a Like, and two thumbs up are attended by Fireworks. Similarly, one thumb down counts as a dislike, and two thumbs down initiates a rain shower.
Safari Profiles
Safari has gained a new feature called Profiles, which is designed to help keep your browsing separate for different use cases like Work, School, or Personal.
Go to the Profiles section in Safari → Settings…, and you can create custom profiles, choose a symbol and color for each one, and select a Favorites folder.
Profiles silo your history, Tab Groups, and cookies, and you can also assign specific extensions to different profiles to optimize your browsing experience based on the task at hand.
These new features are the most prominent and useful ones, I like them very much! But macOS Sonoma has more features than the ones listed above for sure, which extremely deserves your installation and experience!!!
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Compared to its preceder, macOS Ventura, macOS Sonoma definitely brings loads of new features and highlights, and these new features are scattered to apps, settings, root layers, and so on. For me, the most exciting and fabulous features include the following:
Seamless Keyboard Input and Dictation
macOS Sonoma supports simultaneous use of keyboard input and Dictation, without any disruption in your flow of thought.
In other words, you can keep typing after hitting the Dictation shortcut (assignable in System Settings → Keyboard). So whenever your fingers need a rest, you can complete the sentence you were just typing by saying it out loud.
Presenter Overlay
When you’re in a FaceTime or Zoom call, click-hold the green traffic light in the corner of an open app window and you’ll see a screen-sharing option, while a new Presenter Overlay feature can be used to keep you on screen and better able to point to details.
When on a video call, you can either place yourself inside a movable bubble in the corner of the window or desktop that you’re sharing, or you can bring on-screen content into the background of your environment so that it looks as if you’re standing just in front of it.
Dock Web Apps
Thanks to a new option in Safari, you can now create standalone web apps and add them to your Dock, alongside your regular apps.
All you have to do is visit a website in Safari and select File → Add to Dock… You can then give the web app a name and even change its icon. When you open a docked web app, it will open in a separate window that includes back and forward buttons for simple navigation.
: Caps Lock Is On
If the Caps Lock key on your keyboard is enabled in macOS Sonoma, a handy indicator appears right near the cursor, so you’re less likely to TYPE LIKE THIS BY ACCIDENT and get your passwords wrong.
Apple has also made the text cursor a little thicker, and its color now changes relative to the active application, so you’ll have a better idea of which window your text is going to appear in when you start typing.
Open Notes in Pages
You can now send notes from the Notes app directly to Pages. Simply open the note, click the Share button, then choose Open in Pages from the share sheet.
From there you can continue to edit the note in Pages, then save it or export it as a PDF, Word file, EPUB, and more.
iPhone Widgets on Your Mac
Thanks to Apple’s Continuity feature and its ability to sync with your devices, the widget library includes widgets from your iPhone in all available sizes.
So even if you don’t have the corresponding Mac app, you can still use the iOS widget right on your desktop. Simply drag it from the gallery into an available space.
If you have more than one iPhone, you can also choose which widgets show up in your Mac’s widgets library. Go to System Settings → Desktop & Dock, and in the “Widgets” section, click the iPhone dropdown to select the device that you want to sync to.
Show/Hide Desktop
By default, macOS Sonoma hides all windows when you click on your wallpaper. This is handy if you tend to have a bunch of files on the screen that you need access to. But if you find this behavior maddening, you can limit it to happen only when Stage Manager is enabled.
Go to System Settings → Desktop & Dock. In the Desktop & Stage Manager section, look for the option Click the wallpaper to reveal the desktop, then click Always and choose Only in Stage Manager instead.
Text Prediction
Thanks to improved machine learning technology, Apple has made macOS a lot more helpful, because it can better predict what you’re going to type next. Apple says it has adopted a “transformer language model” that can even personalize prediction for individual users, learning your personal preferences and word choices to be more useful when typing.
As you type, the predicted text appears ahead of the cursor. If it has accurately predicted what you want to type, press the spacebar and macOS will fill it in for you. After using macOS Sonoma for a few weeks, you should notice that the suggestions are much better at predicting what you want to say and presenting words for you to autofill.
If you find all of this distracting, you can turn it off. Go to System Settings → Keyboard. Next to Input Sources, click Edit…. In the next window, toggle off the switch next to Show inline predictive text.
Managing PDFs in Notes
When you drag PDFs into Notes, they are now presented full-width in the note, making it easier to view and interact with them.
Notes are no longer restricted to rendering the first page of a PDF. You can now view the individual pages of a document you’re reviewing right inside the note, which is handy for previewing multiple PDFs in the same note. You also get a row of thumbnails across the top of the PDF that you can click to navigate to a specific page more quickly.
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