macOS 10.12 Sierra
PROS
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Siri feels at home on the Mac
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iCloud Drive can now challenge third-party offerings
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Tabs make
working in full screen viable.
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CONS
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Ties users further into Apple's ecosystem
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Requires iOS devices for full benefit
·
Still not very customizable
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Our verdict
macOS Sierra enters the fray as a solid, dependable
operating system just like the final two versions of OS X. It offers clear
benefits when used in conjunction with iPhones and Apple Watches, while the
addition of Siri and iCloud Drive are a boon for working with files and
retrieving information on the desktop.
|
By the time
you read this, the latest version of Mac OS X – sorry – macOS, will be available to download from the App
Store. macOS 10.12 Sierra, to give it its full title, finally sees Apple move
away from the OS X nomenclature given to every version of its desktop operating
system since 2001.
You might be
thinking, "Why macOS?" Well, the answer is simple: the new naming
convention brings it in line with Apple's other operating
systems: iOS, watchOS and tvOS. After previously naming
versions of OS X after big cats of some description, the company turned to
locations in California for recent releases.
·
How to download
macOS Sierra right now
Apple tends
to release new versions of macOS with a "tick, tock" cadence. Back in
2009 it followed up OS X 10.5 Leopard, which introduced hundreds of new
features and improvements, with Snow Leopard – a performance-focused update. It
repeated the trick with Sierra's predecessor, OS X 10.11 El Capitan, which
was basically a much faster version of Yosemite with a few new multi-tasking
features baked in for good measure.
Instead of
using the new name as an opportunity to overhaul OS X, Apple has made Sierra
another iterative release in the vein of its recent predecessors.
However, it
makes a clear attempt at swinging the focus back to new functionality and
features, rather than performance. Sierra places a firm focus on usability
while allowing you to be more productive on the desktop - especially so if you
use your Mac in conjunction with Apple's mobile devices.
Whether
you're clasping a shiny new iPhone 7 or Apple Watch 2 in
your hand, Apple wants you to make you feel like your investments are more than
the sum of their parts. Clearly this is something of a double-edged sword, as
Mac owners that don't own them are bound to feel like they're missing out. Not
prepared to buy more Apple products? Then the message is clear: you're not
getting the full experience.
·
macOS Sierra
problems: here's how to fix the most common issues
It almost
feels churlish to moan, however, as Sierra continues tradition by leaping from
the App Store onto your machine for the princely sum of nothing – just like
every version of macOS has been since OS X 10.9 Mavericks. A word of
warning, though: be sure to check out Sierra's system
requirements before you hit the download button, as they are more taxing
than what has gone before.
Supported Macs
Here are the
Mac models that are compatible with macOS Sierra:
·
MacBook (Late 2009 and later)
·
iMac (Late 2009 and later)
·
MacBook Air (2010 and later)
·
MacBook Pro (2010 and later)
·
Mac mini (2010 and later)
·
Mac Pro (2010 and later)
Latest
news
Even with
macOS Sierra finally out in the open, complete with the Cortana-contesting Siri
and a revamped Photos app, overall PC sales are still on the
decline.
While that
does include Macs, such as the recently launched MacBook Pro 2016refresh,
there was no proper MacBook Air 2016 in sight. The new MacBook
Prodoes, however, sport Skylake processors, an OLED Touch Bar in place of the
function keys and support for up to two external 5K displays.
·
Siri vs Cortana: which virtual assistant is best on a
desktop?
Of course,
macOS Sierra does a lot of the heavy lifting for the new MacBook Pro. In
September, MacRumors spotted Touch Bar functionality in macOS Sierra 10.12.1.
It was later confirmed that – at long last – native Touch ID support is finally
present in the latest version of macOS Sierra as a fingerprint scanner is built
into models donning the Touch Bar.
Siri lands on the Mac
With Siri's
arrival on the Mac, owners of Apple's computers no longer have to look at
iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch owners with envy. Apple's personal
assistant is arguably even more useful on the Mac than it is on the company's
mobile platforms as you can drag and drop Siri's search results from the
Notifications pane and into other apps for sharing or accessing on a later
date.
Those results
include images pulled from the web, which appear as thumbnails along the
right-hand edge. Siri can also retrieve other information as part of searches,
including maps results, location data and user reviews courtesy of Yelp.
As far as its
basic operation goes, Siri works just the same on the Mac as it does on other
devices. You click the purple icon in the top right-hand corner, instead of
holding a button, before speaking into your Mac's microphone. You're given a
five second window before Siri gives you what can only be described as a
digital nudge and reminds you of what phrases you can ask.
You can also
retrieve a list of actions that Siri can perform by simply asking, "What
can you do?". Some are basic, such as asking Siri to open a folder on the
Mac or launch an app. It's also possible to start a FaceTime call, set up a
meeting using the macOS Calendar, or find photos from a particular date. If
you're a social media addict, the ability to post updates to Twitter and
Facebook could prove a big time-saver.
So, how well
does it work? Very, in fact: Siri's voice recognition engine is near-flawless.
Even in my strong regional accent, it picked up what I was saying almost every
time. Siri only struggled with words that sound the same but are spelled
differently. For example, she repeatedly failed to distinguish the difference
between questions based around the country Wales, and ones about whales.
Siri commands to try
Things that
you can ask Siri include:
·
Tell me what movies are playing today
·
Read my latest email
·
Text John 'See you soon smiley exclamation point'
·
Find a table for four tonight
·
Call Dad at work
·
Find me books by C.S. Lewis
·
How's the weather in London on Saturday?
·
Did Manchester United win?
Keeping tabs
It's now
possible to use tabs in any almost application, whereas El Capitan restricted
them to OS-specific apps such as Safari, and Finder. Apple's apps that support
tabs from the off include Mail, Maps, TextEdit and the three iWork apps -
Pages, Numbers and Keynote. Apple says that you can open tabs in any app
without the need for extra coding from developers, but that depends. That is
the case where the app can open multiple windows, but you aren't suddenly going
to be flicking through tabs in ones like Spotify, Ulysses or Evernote, which
already have their own sidebar-based navigation systems.
Apps that
currently support tabs let you activate tabs using the View menu. The obvious
benefit here is that you don't have to open as many new windows to multi-task,
which comes in especially useful in split screen mode. For example, somebody
writing up an essay could position Safari (or any other browser) on the left
and Pages on the right. Previously it would have only been possible to view one
website at a time in full screen mode, whereas tabs allow multiple webpages to
be opened.
This can be
particularly useful when used in conjunction with note-taking services such as
Evernote. Suddenly it's possible to flick between multiple notes open in
various tabs for retrieving information while maximizing the amount of
information that can be displayed on the other half of the screen. It's
especially useful for owners of Apple's Macs that don't offer much real estate
- including both sizes of its MacBook Air and even the 12-inch MacBook.
Finder has
remained largely the same, featuring the same visual design and the option to
open multiple windows within tabs, as you now can in applications. It's a shame
that Apple is yet to offer more customization features in El Capitan.
Apple long
ago removed the option to skin the operating system's look and feel, with only
a few third-party applications like cDock allowing any customization at all. It
was rumored that Sierra would feature a dark move that would apply to Pages,
Safari and other of Apple's applications, but unfortunately it hasn't happened.
The only
update to Finder is that iCloud now has its own group in the sidebar. That's
because the latest version of macOS now comes with the option to sync your
Desktop and Document folders to iCloud. Apple says that the desktop is still
the place where people dump most of their files without a second thought, and
it's something that we're still guilty of despite being signed up to every
cloud storage service out there.
·
How to recover deleted iCloud files
Placing files
on the desktop means you don't have to worry about sorting them until you're
ready, and you're given instant access to them on other Macs, other iOS devices
(via the iCloud app), and iCloud.com.
Universal clipboard
Getting
information from one Apple device to another has always been a bit clunky. Most
people send it to themselves in a messaging app or, more commonly, email. Apple
has looked to solve this problem with Universal Clipboard, a new feature that
allows you to copy and paste information from a macOS device to one running
iOS, or visa versa.
The act of
doing it is so simple that it requires no instructions. You press copy one
device and then paste it on the other. There's a slight delay the first time
this happens as the content is transferred over your wireless network, but from
then on the action is instant.
Picture-in-picture
It's been
around on iOS for a while, and it's now possible to use Picture-in-Picture mode
on your Mac. The viewing mode is in a limited form right now, with Vimeo and a
few other video sites making full use of it. The idea is that you can float
video from Safari or iTunes around the desktop allowing you to carry out other
tasks while having it running in the foreground.
It's
activated by clicking on a darkened button on the bottom-right hand corner of
the video screen, which pops it out. The video can then be moved to one of the
top or bottom corners depending on where you want to place it, and it can also
be resized to take up most of the screen. The miniaturized video window will
stay put even if you switch spaces.
Optimized storage
Running out
of storage is a common problem for Mac owners – especially if you're using an
older machine such as the 11- or 13-inch MacBook Air. Thankfully, Apple
has included a new storage-management feature in macOS Sierra.
Accessed
using the About This Mac menu and then clicking on storage, it works by
automatically deleting files from certain folders and locations to reclaim
space. You can choose to move older photos and videos to iCloud, in addition to
removing TV shows and movies that have already been watched. If you're unsure
of what to get rid of, Sierra also lets you review and delete files
individually.
Apple Pay
Apple Pay has
now rolled out to the web, allowing you to make purchases using an iPhone
6 (or later) running iOS 10 or an Apple Watch with watchOS 3. Apple says
that 300,000 websites are expected to add an Apple Pay button like the one in
the picture below. Tapping it to complete a purchase then requires one of two
things: on an iPhone it's authenticating using TouchID or a passcode. On an
Apple Watch, it simply involves giving it a double tap - if you're already
authenticated.
Using Apple
Pay is undoubtedly more convenient than having to sit through payment
information forms each time you buy something, and the company reckons it's
more secure than regular checkouts as all transactions are encrypted. That
said, you probably aren't going to be buying that many expensive items on a
regular basis, and the speed benefits will be felt more once Apple Pay has
rolled out to a wider number of online store fronts.
Messages
Apple has
made sure that iPhone and iPad owners haven't got all the fun by adding new
features to its Messages app. They include web links that now appear in
conversations with content previews, and you can watch videos without leaving
the app.
It's all what
you would expect from other modern messaging apps, such as Whatsapp.
Additionally, Apple has added tapbacks - short, quick ways of sending emoticons
that sum up your response - such as a heart, a thumbs-up icon or a
cartoon-esque question mark.
We liked
The arrival
of Siri is not before time. Just as she can on mobile devices, Apple's personal
assistant can understand a wide range of phrases and has a voice recognition
engine that works nearly every time. The arrival of tabs in applications gives
you another means of working in full-screen in a greater deal of comfort, while
Apple's decision to synchronize your Desktop and Documents folders with iCloud
feels like a savvy one.
We disliked
The clear
disadvantage here is that you're only going to feel the full benefit of Sierra
if you're using multiple Apple devices - particularly ones running iOS 10.
Without them, you're still left with a solid update but one that simply can't
fulfill its full potential. And it would be nice to see Apple reintroduce some
customization with the next release of macOS, even if it's only in the form of
a dark mode for apps.
Final verdict
Just like El
Capitan, Sierra is a welcome update that brings genuinely useful improvements
to the desktop while bringing further interoperability with Apple's mobile
devices. There are few shocks and surprises here, and if you were hoping for an
entirely new experience with Apple changing to the macOS moniker for the first
time, then you may end up disappointed.
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