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Geeky Gadgets
5 days ago
- Geeky Gadgets
Is macOS Tahoe Really the Best Mac Update in Years?
Apple's latest operating system, macOS 26 (Tahoe), represents a significant milestone in the evolution of macOS. With a strong emphasis on design, functionality, and seamless integration across Apple's ecosystem, this update caters to a wide range of users, from casual individuals managing daily tasks to professionals handling complex workflows. By introducing features that enhance usability, productivity, and connectivity, macOS Tahoe redefines the desktop experience while maintaining Apple's hallmark of innovation and reliability. The video below from MacRumors gives us a detailed look at the new macOS 26 and its range of features Watch this video on YouTube. Key Design Enhancements: A Blend of Style and Function The 'Liquid Glass' design serves as the centerpiece of macOS Tahoe's visual transformation. This aesthetic introduces frosted and translucent UI elements, creating a sleek and modern interface. The transparent menu bar allows your desktop wallpaper to shine, while customizable icons and widgets provide extensive options for personalization. Users can now select between clear, dark, and tinted themes to suit their preferences, offering a more tailored experience. These design updates go beyond mere aesthetics. The frosted effects and transparency deliver subtle visual cues that improve navigation and focus. By reducing visual clutter, macOS Tahoe ensures a cleaner and more intuitive user experience, making it easier to stay productive and organized. Spotlight Search: A Smarter, More Versatile Tool Spotlight Search in macOS Tahoe has been reimagined as a powerful productivity hub. The redesigned interface organizes search results into distinct categories such as apps, files, actions, and clipboard history, allowing faster and more efficient access to information. A new clipboard manager with a 24-hour history further simplifies retrieving previously copied items, saving time and effort. Spotlight now extends its functionality beyond search. Users can perform direct actions such as sending emails, setting timers, or initiating calls—all without leaving the interface. These enhancements streamline workflows, making Spotlight an indispensable tool for multitasking and improving overall efficiency. Control Center: Customization Meets Consistency The Control Center in macOS Tahoe adopts the Liquid Glass aesthetic, making sure a cohesive visual identity across Apple devices. Beyond its polished appearance, the redesigned Control Center offers greater customization options. Users can rearrange controls to prioritize frequently used features, tailoring the interface to their specific needs. Additionally, Apple has introduced support for third-party app integration within the Control Center. This opens the door to expanded functionality, allowing developers to create tools that seamlessly integrate into the macOS ecosystem. The result is a more personalized and versatile user experience that adapts to individual workflows. Phone Integration: A Unified Device Ecosystem For the first time, macOS Tahoe includes a dedicated phone app, bridging the gap between Mac and iPhone. This app enables users to make and receive calls, access voicemails, and use advanced features such as call screening and hold assist directly from their Mac. By integrating these capabilities, macOS Tahoe strengthens the connection between devices, delivering a unified and seamless experience that enhances productivity and convenience. Enhanced Productivity Tools: Smarter Everyday Apps macOS Tahoe introduces meaningful updates to its suite of productivity apps, making everyday tasks more efficient and user-friendly. Key improvements include: Reminders: Auto-categorization organizes tasks into groups like 'Today' or 'Scheduled' without requiring manual input, streamlining task management. Auto-categorization organizes tasks into groups like 'Today' or 'Scheduled' without requiring manual input, streamlining task management. Notes: Markdown export enhances compatibility with other platforms and formats, catering to technical users and professionals. Markdown export enhances compatibility with other platforms and formats, catering to technical users and professionals. Messages: Group chats now feature personalized backgrounds, polls, and typing indicators, improving communication and collaboration. Group chats now feature personalized backgrounds, polls, and typing indicators, improving communication and collaboration. Photos: Pinned collections allow quick access to favorite albums or projects, simplifying photo organization. These updates ensure that macOS Tahoe meets the diverse needs of personal and professional users alike, offering tools that adapt to a variety of workflows and preferences. Gaming Integration: Entertainment at the Forefront Gaming takes center stage in macOS Tahoe with the introduction of the Games app. This centralized hub integrates Game Center, Apple Arcade, and third-party game libraries, making it easier to access and manage gaming content. Whether you're a casual gamer or a dedicated enthusiast, these updates position macOS as a more viable platform for entertainment. The Games app also supports cross-platform play and cloud saves, making sure a seamless gaming experience across Apple devices. With improved hardware optimization and support for high-performance graphics, macOS Tahoe aims to attract a broader audience of gamers. Performance and Stability: Built for Reliability Under the hood, macOS Tahoe prioritizes performance and stability, making sure a dependable experience for all users. During beta testing, resource-intensive applications such as Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro ran smoothly, demonstrating the system's ability to handle demanding tasks. These improvements make macOS Tahoe a reliable choice for professionals engaged in video editing, software development, and other high-performance workflows. Additionally, macOS Tahoe introduces enhanced power management features, optimizing battery life for MacBooks. This ensures that users can work or play for longer periods without interruption, further solidifying the operating system's reputation for reliability and efficiency. A Balanced and Polished Update macOS Tahoe combines aesthetic innovation with practical enhancements, delivering a cohesive and polished experience. From the striking Liquid Glass design to the improved Spotlight Search and expanded app functionality, this release caters to a wide range of user needs. Whether your focus is on productivity, creativity, or entertainment, macOS Tahoe sets a new benchmark for Apple's desktop operating system, reinforcing its position as a leader in technology and user experience. Expand your understanding of macOS Tahoe with additional resources from our extensive library of articles. Source & Image Credit: MacRumors Filed Under: Apple, Laptops, Top News Latest Geeky Gadgets Deals Disclosure: Some of our articles include affiliate links. If you buy something through one of these links, Geeky Gadgets may earn an affiliate commission. Learn about our Disclosure Policy.


Tom's Guide
24-07-2025
- Tom's Guide
macOS Tahoe 26 public beta just dropped — 5 features to try first
Apple just released the public beta version of macOS Tahoe, which means anyone who doesn't mind a little risk can now sneak a peek at some of the new features coming to your Mac this fall. Putting this beta version of macOS on your Mac is easier than ever, and you can follow our step-by-step guide to how to download the macOS Tahoe beta for assistance. However, keep in mind that it's unfinished software in a beta state right now, which means you could encounter serious bugs or lose critical data. I know because I've been reviewing macOS and the best MacBooks for years, so I've been through this rodeo a few times before. I've also been using macOS Tahoe since Apple released the first developer beta following WWDC 2025, so I have a good idea what are the most exciting new features to try. For my money the new Live Translation features are amazing, for example, but unless you regularly communicate with folks who speak different languages you probably won't notice them at first. But the new Spotlight Search or Liquid Glass design? Those are upgrades you can appreciate right away. So if you're looking for some cool things to try first in macOS Tahoe, here's what I recommend. Perhaps the easiest way to immediately get a taste of what's new in macOS Tahoe is to check out the supercharged new Spotlight Search. This is one of the clearest ways to see how Apple Intelligence has improved since it debuted in macOS Sequoia, because you can type whatever you want into the Spotlight Search box and your Mac will try to figure out what you're after. Spotlight Search also has a lot more power in macOS Tahoe, since it can now search through other apps (think Mail and Messages) and do all sorts of things right from the search box. Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips. So now that you're running macOS Tahoe you can open Spotlight Search (Cmd + Space) and immediately see new controls for filtering the results or launching immediately into apps via keyboard shortcut. You can also type you want to find or do, like "Send", for example, and you will see a list of search results drop down with uses of the word across your email, Notes and more—and in this example the top option will blikely e a shortcut to send a text via the Shortcuts app, so you can just hit Return and start typing the message right in Spotlight Search. I love this macOS Tahoe upgrade because it makes Spotlight Search work a lot like the Windows 11 Start button, making it an easy one-stop shop for immediately finding the next thing you want to do with just a few keyboard commands. Macs gained access to the image generation app Image Playground with macOS Sequoia, but it was pretty limited. Once you upgrade to macOS Tahoe your Image Playground will gain new features and new capabilities, including the option to outsource image generation to ChatGPT. What's cool about the new option to use ChatGPT in Image Playground is that it gives you access to at least five new visual styles you can play with, basically doubling how many styles you can use in Image Playground. In my limited testing using ChatGPT in Image Playground causes longer delays during image generation, but it's worth it to be able to create images that look like oil paintings, watercolors or anime illustrations. Apple has implemented a nearly system-wide visual redesign in macOS Tahoe that makes the whole interface feel more transparent. It's part of the "Liquid Glass" design language that the company has rolled out across iPhones, iPads, Macs and more this year, but on your Mac it also comes with new customization options. So once you've finished scoping out how all the widgets and windows on your Mac have this new design aesthetic, check out how you can now change the colors of folders in Finder or add emojis to individual files. If you Ctrl + Click on a folder you will notice some new options under the "Customize this folder" option, including controls to change the color of the folder and a new Emoji menu you can use to add any emoji you want to the folder. It might be the least impactful change in terms of performance, but the most meaningful in terms of giving you more creative control over how your Mac looks. I know it will never replace Steam for a lot of people, myself included, but I still think it's neat that Apple has finally put a robust Games app in macOS with Tahoe. Admittedly, it's not fully functional in the beta versions of macOS Tahoe I've been testing for the last month and change. The new macOS Games app is intended to be a one-stop shop for finding what to play next on your Mac, as it can find and list all the games you have installed in your Library and also sell you new games with dedicated pages for, say, Apple Arcade. But what's really interesting is the Play Together section of the Games app, which lets you quickly add friends, initiate multiplayer gaming sessions and even issue challenges in select single-player games for you and friends to compete over. The new Games app is also meant to work a bit like Steam in that you can summon an in-game overlay where you can do things like message friends, which sounds great. However, in my testing to date I haven't had a chance to see how that stuff works, as some portions of the Games app have not been functioning during beta testing. But that's okay; even if the Games app isn't as good as Steam right out of the gate, I'm hopeful it shows Apple is investing more effort and money in supporting Mac game devs and Mac gaming in general. Did you notice Apple put a free Journal app on your iPhone in 2023? I've been meaning to use it for ages, but frankly I don't because I hate typing on my phone's tiny touchscreen. It's bad enough for text messaging, but the thought of using it to write paragraphs in a daily digital journal sounds agonizing. That's why I'm glad Apple is finally making the Journal app available on Macs with macOS Tahoe (as well as iPads with the new iPadOS 26). I know it's not the most exciting new feature, but it's a welcome one for me because I'm a writer so when I journal, I go hard. We're talking multiple paragraphs per entry on occasion, so being able to access my Journal on my Mac as well as my iPhone is a game-changer that makes me actually want to use it. So give it a shot now that it's easy to type Journal entries on your Mac and see them sync on your iPad and iPhone, so you can easily use your phone add photos, locations and other details from your life as you capture them.


Tom's Guide
12-06-2025
- Tom's Guide
I review MacBooks for a living: 3 macOS Tahoe 26 features I'm most excited about
I just got back from covering WWDC 2025 in Cupertino, and after cooking in the sun for a few hours to catch the keynote I have to say: I'm impressed by what the company is doing with macOS. That's not a sentence I type often, but the colorful visionOS-inspired makeover Apple is delivering with Tahoe has me charmed. On top of that, there are a few new features that promise to make even the best MacBooks a bit more capable. Of course, I review Macs for a living here at Tom's Guide so I might be a little biased when it comes to getting excited about operating systems. But I also reviewed the last few iterations of macOS, and I have to tell you: Tahoe is (for my money) the most promising update Apple's debuted in years. Let me show you what I mean by highlighting a few of the most interesting new features I've seen here at Apple HQ. Apple Intelligence made its Mac debut in macOS Sequoia, and it's fine. Some people find the AI-powered Writing Tools useful, and playing around with Image Playground is fun a few times. But like most of Sequoia's AI-powered features, it's easy to forget about. With macOS Tahoe 26, Apple promises to make a slew of updates to Apple Intelligence features throughout your Mac. So not only should the image and text generation tools get better, but your Reminders will get more intelligent—or at least, more dynamic in what and how they remind you. But most exciting to me is the Apple Intelligence-fueled overhaul coming to Spotlight Search. The contextual search tool will gain support for a host of new actions and services, plus it will allow for more natural language in queries. So you can type something like "Send", for example, and you will see a list of search results drop down with uses of the word across your email, Notes and more—and the top option will be a shortcut to send a text via the Shortcuts app, so you can just hit Return and start typing the message right in Spotlight Search. Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips. If this works as advertised I expect Spotlight Search is going to become sort of like the Start button in Windows 11: the first stop and one-stop shop for power users looking to get things done. I just think it's so cool that Macs are going to get real-time translation with macOS Tahoe. I know I probably won't have much cause to make use of translated Messages or real-time translated captions in FaceTime calls, but the fact that it'll soon be so easy to chat with folks around the world on your MacBook without having to speak the same language feels mind-blowing. Plus, since Apple is opening up a large swathe of its Apple Intelligence tech to third-party developers, I expect we'll also see a slew of Mac apps getting real-time translation features in the next few years. I'm not always psyched about new AI features in tech, but real-time translation seems like an unalloyed good — and one of the best new features of macOS Tahoe 26. Look, it's never going to replace Steam, but I do think it's exciting that Apple is finally shipping a dedicated Games app for macOS Tahoe. By all accounts this new app aims to be your one-stop shop for gaming on your Mac, and it will feature a special in-game overlay you can summon during gameplay to do things like message friends. Windows 11 has a very similar overlay, and I don't love how it gets in the way when PC gaming in Steam's Big Picture mode. Hopefully Apple's version doesn't create similar headaches, but we'll have to wait until macOS Tahoe 26 ships in September to find out. Even if the new Games app isn't amazing at launch, I hope it's evidence that Apple is investing more effort and money in supporting Mac game devs and nurturing the Mac gaming landscape.


Geeky Gadgets
29-05-2025
- Business
- Geeky Gadgets
The Ultimate iOS 18.5 Productivity Hacks You're Not Using Yet
Apple's iOS 18.5 introduces a range of innovative features aimed at enhancing productivity, improving security, and streamlining everyday tasks. With updates spanning display settings, privacy controls, and app functionality, this version of iOS is designed to make your iPhone more efficient and user-friendly. However, many of these tools remain underutilized or overlooked. Below is a detailed exploration of the most impactful features and how they can elevate your iPhone experience. The video below from HotshotTek gives us more details. Watch this video on YouTube. Always-On Display: Smarter and More Efficient The Always-On Display has been upgraded to offer greater customization and energy efficiency. You now have the option to disable wallpapers, which helps conserve battery life, or allow the feature to automatically adjust brightness based on low-light or low-power conditions. For users with an Apple Watch, the display settings can sync seamlessly between devices, creating a unified and energy-conscious experience. These enhancements ensure that your iPhone remains both visually appealing and practical. Enhanced Battery Management for Prolonged Usage Battery management has become more intuitive with iOS 18.5. Lock screen widgets now display your battery percentage at a glance, providing quick access to this critical information. Additionally, the status bar can be configured to show battery levels, offering another layer of convenience. These updates empower you to monitor and optimize your device's power usage, helping you stay connected for longer periods without interruptions. Streamlined Document Handling in the Files App The Files app now includes built-in document scanning and editing capabilities, eliminating the need for third-party applications. You can scan, annotate, and save documents directly on your iPhone, making it a powerful tool for professionals and students alike. The ability to sign and share documents quickly adds to its utility, making sure that you can handle important tasks efficiently, even while on the go. Spotlight Search: A Versatile Productivity Tool Spotlight Search has evolved into a multifunctional tool that simplifies various tasks. It now supports calculations, unit conversions, and app searches directly within the interface. Additionally, you can drag and drop apps from Spotlight to your home screen, streamlining device organization. These enhancements make Spotlight an indispensable feature for users looking to save time and increase efficiency. Improved Navigation with Apple Maps and CarPlay Apple Maps introduces one-handed zoom functionality, making navigation more convenient, especially when multitasking or on the move. This feature is also integrated into the iPhone Maps app, making sure a consistent and user-friendly experience across devices. Whether you're driving or exploring a new city, these updates make navigation simpler and more accessible. Keyboard and Cursor Precision for Seamless Editing Editing text has become more precise with the enhanced spacebar trackpad feature. By holding down the spacebar, you can move the cursor to any part of the text, allowing for accurate edits in messages, emails, or documents. This improvement is particularly useful for users who frequently work with text, making sure a smoother and more efficient editing process. Advanced Privacy Features for Enhanced Security iOS 18.5 introduces robust privacy tools to protect your personal data. You can now lock individual apps using Face ID, adding an extra layer of security to sensitive information. For photos, a long-press option allows you to quickly hide private images, making sure that your content remains confidential. These features provide peace of mind, knowing that your data is safeguarded against unauthorized access. Back Tap Shortcuts: Customizable and Convenient The Back Tap feature offers a new level of customization and accessibility. By assigning actions to double or triple taps on the back of your iPhone, you can quickly perform tasks such as launching apps, locking screen rotation, or activating Siri. This functionality enhances both efficiency and ease of use, making your device more adaptable to your needs. Effortless Wi-Fi Sharing with QR Codes Sharing Wi-Fi credentials has never been easier. With the new QR code functionality, you can generate a code for your network and share it with other devices. This eliminates the hassle of manually entering passwords, making it a convenient solution for both personal and professional settings. Focus Modes: Personalized Organization Focus Modes have been expanded to offer greater customization and control. You can now set specific notifications, apps, and wallpapers for different activities, such as work, relaxation, or sleep. Additionally, you can create schedules to filter distractions during designated times, helping you stay organized and focused throughout the day. Create GIFs with the Shortcuts App The Shortcuts app now allows you to create GIFs from videos or live photos, adding a creative touch to your messages and social media posts. This feature is perfect for users who want to personalize their communication and make it more engaging. Safari: A Browser Built for Productivity Safari has been enhanced with several features to improve browsing efficiency. You can now pin tabs for quick access, organize tabs into groups for better project management, and share tab groups with others for seamless collaboration. These updates make Safari a more powerful tool for both work and leisure, catering to a wide range of user needs. Explore the Full Potential of iOS 18.5 iOS 18.5 is packed with features designed to enhance your productivity, security, and overall user experience. From smarter display settings to advanced privacy tools, these updates cater to a variety of needs, making sure that your iPhone works smarter and more efficiently. By taking the time to explore these features, you can unlock the full potential of your device and transform the way you use it daily. Below are more guides on iOS 18.5 features from our extensive range of articles. Source & Image Credit: HotshotTek Filed Under: Apple, Apple iPhone, Guides, Top News Latest Geeky Gadgets Deals Disclosure: Some of our articles include affiliate links. If you buy something through one of these links, Geeky Gadgets may earn an affiliate commission. Learn about our Disclosure Policy.