Are you making the most of your Mac’s macOS Sonoma experience?
While the latest update brings noticeable changes, there are also numerous hidden features waiting to be discovered.
In this blog post, we’ll explore some of the lesser known but incredibly useful features that macOS Sonoma has to offer.
What Are Hidden Features Of MacOS Sonoma?
When you explore macOS Sonoma more, you find lots of cool stuff that can make your Mac work better and help you get things done easier every day. Here’s a look at some hidden capabilities that you may not have stumbled upon yet:
1. Desktop Widgets
macOS Sonoma brings the convenience of interactive widgets to your Mac desktop, enhancing the functionality and personalization of your workspace.
These widgets, similar to those you might be familiar with on iPhone and iPad, offer quick access to a variety of information such as weather forecasts, stock tickers, and upcoming events in your calendar.
By placing widgets directly on the desktop, you can keep essential data visible and accessible without the need to open specific apps, streamlining your workflow and keeping you informed at all times.
2. Grocery List In Reminders App On Mac
The Reminders app on macOS Sonoma includes a dedicated feature for creating and managing grocery lists.
This specialized list type helps you organize your shopping tasks by automatically sorting items into categories, making your grocery shopping experience more streamlined.
For instance, as you add items like “apples” or “bread,” the app intelligently groups them under “Produce” or “Bakery” respectively.
This categorization simplifies the shopping process, allowing you to navigate through the store efficiently and ensuring that no item is forgotten.
To create a grocery list in Reminders on your Mac:
- Open the Reminders app.
- Click the “Add List” button in the sidebar.
- Give your list a name, like “Grocery Shopping,” and choose a relevant icon and color.
- Start adding items to the list and watch as they are automatically categorized.
3. Enhanced Video Conferencing
macOS Sonoma significantly improves the video conferencing experience on your Mac with advanced capabilities.
These enhancements are designed to offer better control over audio and video settings during video calls, such as noise cancellation, echo reduction, and the ability to choose virtual backgrounds for more professional-looking meetings.
Whether you’re using FaceTime or third-party conferencing apps, these features help to ensure that your calls are clear and uninterrupted, making remote communication more effective and enjoyable.
4. Game Mode For Optimized Gaming
For Mac users who enjoy gaming, macOS Sonoma introduces a dedicated Game Mode that optimizes your system’s performance when running games on Apple Silicon-based Macs.
This feature works by reallocating system resources to prioritize the game you’re playing, potentially improving frame rates and reducing latency.
When Game Mode is enabled, your Mac will focus on delivering the best possible gaming experience, ensuring that background processes do not impact performance.
5. Dictation Improvements
Dictation on the Mac sees significant enhancements with macOS Sonoma, making it more powerful and user-friendly.
The system now better understands natural speech patterns and can accurately transcribe spoken words into text.
It also allows users to switch between dictation and typing seamlessly, which is particularly useful for those who rely on voice-to-text for accessibility reasons or convenience.
6. Improve Typing With QuickType
QuickType in macOS Sonoma brings intelligent typing assistance to your Mac, suggesting words and phrases as you type.
This feature learns from your typing habits and offers contextually relevant predictions, making it easier to complete sentences with just a tap of the space bar.
QuickType significantly speeds up the typing process, especially for long or repetitive text, by reducing the number of keystrokes required.
7. Communication Preferences Control
macOS Sonoma gives Mac users more granular control over their communication preferences.
This includes the ability to fine-tune which apps are permitted to send notifications and the option to block unwanted contacts or messages.
By customizing your notification settings, you can create a more focused and less distracting digital environment on your Mac.
- Click on the Apple menu at the top left corner of the screen and select System Settings.
- Click on “Personal Information” in the sidebar.
- Click the “i” button next to Communication Preferences.
- Choose what communications you would like to receive from Apple.
- Click the “Done” button.
8. Sensitive Content Warning Across Apps
The Sensitive Content Warning feature in macOS Sonoma provides an additional layer of protection from unsolicited explicit content across various applications, including iMessage and third-party apps.
This means that regardless of the messaging platform you use, macOS Sonoma can help shield you from potentially harmful content.
By enabling this feature in the Privacy & Security settings, you assert control over your digital privacy, making your online interactions safer and more comfortable.
- Open the System Settings on your Mac.
- Navigate to the Privacy & Security section.
- Scroll down to find the Sensitive Content Warning option.
- Enable the toggle next to Sensitive Content Warning to turn on the feature.
9. Safari Web Apps
With macOS Sonoma, Safari offers the ability to install webpages as standalone apps on your Mac.
This means you can create app-like shortcuts for your most frequently visited websites, such as YouTube and Netflix, and place them directly in your Dock for easy access.
These web apps run independently of the Safari browser, providing a convenient and uncluttered way to access your favorite online services as if they were native applications.
- Open Safari on your Mac.
- Navigate to the website you want to create a web app for.
- Click the Share button at the top right.
- Select “Add to Dock” option from the dropdown menu.
10. Password Recovery
The Password Recovery feature in macOS Sonoma is a safety net for managing your passwords on your Mac.
If you accidentally delete a password from your keychain, you no longer need to panic.
macOS Sonoma includes a Recently Deleted list within the Keychain Access, where you can recover deleted passwords.
- Click on the Apple menu at the top left corner of the screen and select System Settings.
- Scroll down and choose “Passwords” in the sidebar.
- Authenticate using your Touch ID or password.
- Click on the “Recently Deleted” folder to view a list of passwords deleted in the past 30 days.
- Select the password you want to recover, click on the info button next to it, and then hit “Recover.”