macOS Ventura is now available

24 October 2022

UPDATE

macOS Ventura is now available

macOS Ventura takes the Mac experience to a whole new level with cutting-edge features that help users achieve more than ever before. New features like Continuity Camera enable users to work seamlessly across their Apple devices, and productivity tools including Stage Manager help users stay focused and easily move between tasks. Safari is ushering in a password-free future with passwords, and major updates are coming to popular apps including Mail and Messages. macOS Ventura is available today as a free software update on Apple silicon and Intel-based Macs.¹

Continuity makes Apple devices work magically together

With Continuity Camera, Mac users can leverage the powerful camera system on iPhone to unleash a groundbreaking webcam experience.² When the iPhone is nearby, the Mac can automatically recognize and use the camera on the iPhone to unlock new features never before possible on a webcam, and even works wirelessly for greater flexibility. Desktop View uses the Ultra Wide camera on iPhone to simultaneously display the user’s face and an overview of the desktop – great for DIY videos, hands-on presentations and more. Continuity Camera also brings innovative features like Center Stage, Portrait mode and the new Studio Light – an effect that beautifully illuminates a user’s face while dimming the background – to all Mac computers.³

Handoff is now coming to FaceTime, allowing users to start a FaceTime call on one Apple device and seamlessly transfer the call to another nearby Apple device. A user can start a FaceTime call on their iPhone or iPad and move the call to their Mac when they return to their home or office, or they can even start a call on their Mac and transfer it to their iPhone or iPad when they is on the move.

Organize workspaces automatically with Stage Manager

Stage Manager automatically organizes apps and windows so users can concentrate on the task at hand and still see everything at a glance. When users activate Stage Manager from the Control Center, the current window they’re working in is displayed prominently in the center, while other windows appear on the left so they can seamlessly switch between tasks. To create the ideal workspace, users can create groups of windows or apps when working on specific tasks or projects. Stage Manager also works with macOS window tools including Mission Control and Spaces, and users can easily access the desktop with a single click.

Access keys and new collaboration tools in Safari

Safari ushers in a password-free future with passwords—a new sign-in method that makes browsing in Safari even safer. Passkeys are more secure, easy to use and are designed to replace passwords. When users create a passkey, a unique digital key is created that stays on the device and is never stored on a web server, so hackers can’t leak them or trick users into sharing them. Passkeys make it easy for users to sign in securely using Touch ID or Face ID for biometric verification, and Passkeys sync securely with end-to-end encryption using iCloud Keychain so they’re accessible across Apple devices, including Mac, iPhone and iPad. Passkeys also work across apps and the web, and users can even sign in to websites or apps on non-Apple devices using their iPhone.

Shared tab groups in Safari introduce a powerful way to collaborate with others online. Users can easily share websites with family, friends and colleagues, and see which tabs others are viewing live. Users can also build a list of bookmarks on a shared home page to help start a group project—whether it’s planning a family vacation or completing a research paper—and users can even start a messaging or FaceTime conversation with anyone in group, right from Safari.

Increase efficiency with new email enhancements

Mail gives users the ability to schedule messages, cancel delivery of a message before it reaches the recipient’s inbox,⁴ and even add rich links for better content previews. Mail can also detect if items such as an attachment or copy recipient are missing and remind the sender to add them. Users can even set reminders to come back to a message later and get automatic suggestions for follow-up emails when they’re waiting for a response.

Search in Mail uses state-of-the-art techniques to deliver more accurate and complete results. It’s easy for users to quickly find what they’re looking for as soon as they click search, including recent emails, contacts, documents, photos and more, all before they even start typing.

Powerful improvements to messages

Users can edit or undo a recently sent message,⁵ recover accidentally deleted messages, or even mark a message as unread if they can’t respond at the moment. Collaborating with others is easier than ever as users now have the ability to share a file in Messages and automatically give everyone in the thread access. Activity updates appear at the top of the thread when everyone checks in and makes changes to the shared document. Users can also quickly join SharePlay sessions from their Mac directly in Messages, so they can chat while participating in shared experiences like watching a show or listening to a song together.

Easily share photos with your family through iCloud Shared Photo Library

iCloud Shared Photo Library enables users to create and share a separate photo library between up to six family members, so everyone can enjoy all their family photos. It’s easy for users to either share all existing photos from their personal libraries, or share based on a start date or the people in their photos. Users will receive intelligent suggestions for sharing photo moments that include participants in the library and other people of their choosing. And each user can add, delete, edit or favorite the shared photos and videos, which will appear in each user’s memories and selected photos, so everyone can relive more complete family moments.

Spotlight provides improved productivity

Spotlight comes with new features and an updated design that provides a more consistent experience across Mac, iPhone and iPad. Users can now use Spotlight to find photos in their photo library, on the web, and across the system in apps like Messages and Notes. They can even search their photos by location, people, scenes or objects, and Live Text lets them search for text in photos. Spotlight also includes rich results for artists, movies, actors, TV shows, businesses and sports categories. To take productivity even further, users can perform actions from Spotlight to do things like start a timer or create a new document. And with support for Quick Look in Spotlight, users can quickly see a full-size preview of almost any type of file without having to open it.

Gaming on Mac reaches new heights

The power of Apple silicon means that all new Macs can run AAA games with ease, and macOS Ventura brings new technologies like Metal 3 that take full advantage of the incredible hardware in the Mac—resulting in faster performance, games that feel more Responsive and graphics that look amazing.

New AAA game titles are coming to Mac later this year, including Capcom’s Resident Evil Village, which will launch on the Mac App Store on Friday 28 October, and will take full advantage of the power and performance of Apple’s silicon for more responsive gaming, high frame rates and beautiful visuals.

Additional functions

• Live text can recognize text in paused video frames, as well as Japanese and Korean text. Users can also lift the subject out of a photo and drop it into another app, such as Messages. Visual display can now recognize animals, birds, insects, statues and even more landmarks.

• macOS Ventura brings new accessibility tools as Live Captions for all audio content,⁶ Type to speak during conversations, text control to support proofreading for VoiceOver users, and more.

• The Weather and Clock apps come to Mac with all the features users know and love from iPhone, doing things like checking local forecasts, setting alarms, setting timers, and more.