macOS Sequoia 15 is Apple’s upcoming 2024 operating system update for MacBook laptops and Mac desktop computers. After tightening the integration between Mac and iPad in previous software updates, the company offered a lackluster update with macOS Sonoma, which focused on improved video call experiences and boosting gaming performances.
With macOS Sequoia, the company focuses on Apple Intelligence and a few new features for Mac users.
What will Apple call macOS 15?
macOS 15 is called macOS Sequoia.
macOS Sequoia’s Apple Intelligence features
Exclusive to Apple Silicon Macs, Apple will offer Apple Intelligence, which is AI built-in with “privacy from the ground up.” These are the main features:
- Writing Tools: Users can rewrite, proofread, and summarize text nearly everywhere they write, including Mail, Notes, Pages, and third-party apps;
- Image Playground: Users can create playful images in seconds, choosing from Animation, Illustration, or Sketch. This app is built right into apps like Messages and is also available in a dedicated app;
- Memories in Photos: Users can create stories they want to see just by typing a description. Apple Intelligence will pick out the best photos and videos based on the description, craft a storyline with chapters based on themes identified from the photos, and arrange them into a movie with its own narrative arc;
- Clean Up tool: This Photos app feature can identify and remove distracting objects in the background of a photo without accidentally altering the subject;
- Siri: Users type to Siri and switch between text and voice to communicate with Siri in whatever way feels right for the moment.
- ChatGPT integration: When you feel Apple Intelligence isn’t enough, you can allow ChatGPT to access Writing Tools and other features for a better response.
Apple says its Intelligence features will be available in beta starting next month with a public testing version.
macOS Sequoia features
Besides Apple Intelligence, macOS Sequoia brings several new features for Mac users.
iPhone Mirroring
One of the biggest changes coming with macOS Sequoia is the new iPhone Mirroring feature. This Continuity function allows users to fully access and engage with their iPhone right from their Mac.
Apple says that a user’s custom wallpaper and icons appear just like on their iPhone, and they can swipe between pages on their Home Screen or launch and browse any of their favorite apps.
The keyboard, trackpad, and mouse on Mac also let users interact with their iPhone, and audio even comes through, while the phone remains locked, so nobody else can access or see what the user is doing. These features are available starting with macOS 15 beta 2.
Later this year, users will be able to seamlessly drag and drop between iPhone and Mac.
Big Safari updates
These are some of the Safari features Apple announced:
- Highlights: That’s an easier way to discover information on the web, such as directions, summaries, or quick links to learn more about people, music, movies, and TV shows;
- Reader: A redesigned Reader includes even more ways to enjoy articles without distractions, featuring a streamlined view of the article a user is reading, a summary, and a table of contents for longer articles;
- Video detection: When Safari detects a video on the page, Viewer helps users put it front and center while still giving them full access to system playback controls, including Picture in Picture.
Window Tiling and video conferencing updates
Users can stay organized with new ways to arrange windows into a layout that works best for them. When a user drags a window to the edge of the screen, macOS Sequoia automatically suggests a tiled position on their desktop.
With new video conferencing tools, macOS Sequoia adds a new presenter preview that makes it easier to present. It lets users see what they’re about to share before they share it and works with apps like FaceTime and Zoom.
Passwords App and new ways to stay safe
Building on the foundation of Keychain, the new Passwords app makes it easy for users to access their passwords, passkeys, Wi-Fi passwords, and verification codes.
In addition, Apple has released new features that let users lock and hide apps. When an app is locked or hidden, content like messages or emails inside the app is hidden from search, notifications, and other places across the system. Users can only unlock it with Face ID and Touch ID.
macOS Sequoia’s additional features
There’s even more coming with macOS Sequoia 15:
- Messages have received major updates to improve users’ expression and stay connected. These include all-new text effects, emoji and sticker Tapbacks, and the ability to schedule messages to be sent later.
- Apple Maps introduces even more ways to explore the world, including curated hikes and custom walking routes. Beginning this fall, users can browse thousands of hikes across all 63 national parks in the United States, filtered by length, elevation, and route type, and save them to use while offline.
- Note-taking in Notes is getting smarter, making it easier than ever to take detailed and well-written notes. New audio transcription and summarization features with Apple Intelligence enable a device to take notes for the user, letting them stay present in a situation where they need to capture details about what’s happening. And if they need to quickly crunch a number, they can just type in an equation to have it solved automatically in their note body.
- An updated Calculator app lets users see previous calculations with history and see their expressions as they type.
- Calendar shows events and tasks from Reminders, making it easy to see, edit, or complete tasks throughout the day. An updated Month View makes it easier to see events and reminders for an entire month at a glance.
Major software update
Apple is still testing macOS Sequoia. However, the company has also released the beta version of macOS 15.1. With this new build, developers with an Apple Silicon Mac can try Apple Intelligence.
macOS 15.1 beta features
Here’s everything Apple Intelligence-related you can test with macOS 15.1:
- Writing Tools: Proofread your text, rewrite different versions until the tone and wording are right, and summarize the selected text with a tap.
- Priority notifications: They appear at the top of the stack, letting you know what to pay attention to at a glance. Notifications are summarized, so you can scan them faster.
- Priority messages in Mail: Elevate time-sensitive messages to the top of your inbox, like an invitation that has a deadline today or a check-in reminder for your flight this afternoon.
- Email summarization: Tap to reveal a summary of a long email in the Mail app and cut to the chase.
- Record and transcribe calls in the Notes app: Just hit record in the Notes or Phone apps to capture audio recordings and transcripts. Apple Intelligence generates summaries of your transcripts, so you can get to the most important information at a glance.
- Reduce interruptions: An all-new Focus Mode understands the content of your notifications and shows you the ones that might need immediate attention, like a text about picking up your child from daycare later today.
- Smart Reply in Mail: Quickly draft an email response with all the right details. Apple Intelligence can identify the question you were asked in an email and offer relevant selections to include in your response.
macOS 15 release date
macOS Sequoia is expected to be released later this fall, around the iPhone 16 announcement.
When can I try the macOS 15 beta?
If you’re a developer, you can try macOS Sequoia now. Just follow the steps below:
- After enrolling in the developer beta, go to Settings;
- Open General and select Software Update
- Click on Beta updates and switch from macOS Sonoma Developer Beta to macOS 15 Developer beta
How to download macOS 15 public beta
Since July 15 you can try macOS Sequoia public beta. First of all, enroll your Mac in the Apple Beta Software Program to test macOS 15’s newest features. After that, follow the steps below:
- Go to Settings on your Mac;
- Open General and select Software Update;
- Click on Beta updates and check macOS 15 Public Beta.
Compatible Mac models
As Apple focuses on Mac models with its own silicon, here’s the list of macOS Sequoia compatible Macs:
- 2019 iMac and later
- 2017 iMac Pro
- 2020 MacBook Air and later
- 2018 MacBook Pro and later
- 2019 Mac Pro and later
- 2018 Mac mini and later
- 2022 Mac Studio and later
