Apple is a brand name that is well-known all over the world – all thanks to Steve Jobs, who founded Apple in the early 70s, saw it get bested by IBM in the late 80s. Despite all the ups and downs, the guy still managed to bring Apple back to its glory at the beginning of the new era. No wonder, after setting such high precedence, his successor had some huge shoes to fill.
One thing that remained steadfast even after Steve Jobs was Apple’s consistency regarding its products. Sure, there were minor conflicts here and there, but whenever there was a new launch of Apple products, the entire world would be abuzz and curious about what Apple was going to pull from under its hat this time.
So, naturally, when macOS Catalina got announced, geeks wanted to be let in on the latest specs. So let’s have a look:
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Covered Topics
iTunes Gets Replaced
With the new operating system in place, iTunes is practically no more, for it has been taken over by Apple Music, Apple TV, and Apple Podcasts. So far, Apple Music has been described as ‘lightning fast‘ and offers 500 million songs, including the iTunes music store. Apple TV app also provides its very own video subscription service while featuring a resolution of 4K HDR and Dolby Atmos. Furthermore, Apple Podcasts have a catalog selection of over 700,000 shows and use Machine Learning to customize your searches based on your preference.
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Revamped Photos App
If you’re used to taking a bunch of photos and never be satisfied with a single one, don’t worry, this newly updated Photos app of macOS Catalina has got your back. The app takes personalization to a whole new level. It’ll delete duplicates and poor quality photos and, in the meanwhile, suggest you the best pictures from your multiple retakes. Implementing the use of Machine Learning over here will make a collection of your precious memories. Not only that, but the Live Photos and videos can also be auto-played while your scroll through the library.
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Second Screen Support for iPads with Sidecar
You can use your iPad and your Macs simultaneously using the macOS Catalina Sidecar feature. Thus, your iPad will act as a second screen to the Mac. You can use it by dragging down the windows to switch from Mac to iPad or vice versa. Apple Inc. says that the Sidecar feature can be accessed either as wired or wirelessly, as long as the devices are within 10 meters. Furthermore, it also features the Touch Bar at the bottom simultaneously.
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Use Your iPad as a Drawing Tablet
It is a win-win situation for all artists and graphic designers and one of the Sidecar’s perks. It’ll allow you to place Apple Pencil on the iPad and draw, entirely replicating the drawing through a pencil-on-paper vibe. That itself surely ought to inspire you if you’re stuck.
Considering the high-tech features Apple has always offered, there isn’t a single cheap assignment writing service that has bashed Apple at least by my account. You can even copy-paste your drawings without even lifting your hands from the keyboard using the all-text gestures.
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Signing Documents
Apple has got yet another trick up its sleeve. Using macOS Catalina, you can easily browse through documents and even sign them now! All you’d have to do is pair the Preview app with a Mac device, and it’ll enable you to whip up a new signature exclusively yours. The most impressive fact about this feature is that instead of using a trackpad, you can either use your fingers or an Apple Pencil to sign, and it’ll practically resemble your real-life signature on paper.
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Hover Text
Another one of macOS Catalina’s fascinating feature is enhancing its Accessibility using Hover Text. Imagine have a simply high-resolution magnifying glass within your phone that gives a clear-cut view of your texts, buttons, and more views in a distinct window.
All you have to do is go to System Preferences > Accessibility > Zoom, select ‘Enable Hover Text’, hover your cursor over any text and voila! You get a sharp and crisp image of what the text on the screen looks like based on your fonts’ customization and colors. Best of all, you can interact directly without even lowering down the Hover Text window.
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Save Disk Space
Ever got tired of the play store telling you that you can’t download an app because your memory is full despite the fact you’ve deleted every irrelevant thing on your phone? Well, Mac users who have been upgraded to the newest operating system, face no such issues. They can upload their entire files on iCloud Drive and then delete the files, but they’ll still have access to all their stuff on iCloud. Thus, saving them a bunch of space for other apps.
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Touch Bar Talents
For instance, you’re browsing an app that allows you to make use of Touch Bar. But you also want to use it on a different Mac device now; well, worry not. Using Sidecar, regardless of whether your Mac device is Touch Bar compatible or not, you can make use of Touch Bar on it as well. It’d appear on the bottom of your touch screen, and then you can continue doing your work merrily.
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Activity Monitor
The Activity Monitor is also given an upgrade in the new operating system. When in the past, it would have only allowed you to dismiss one unresponsive app at a time, now you can select multiple ones and dismiss with just one tap on the cross button. You can also keep under surveillance the apps that are malfunctioning and slowing down your Mac device by merely mounting the Activity Monitor app on Dock.
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Light, Dark, & Auto Modes
This feature is the one that is made for iOS developers and programmers. The previous versions of Mac Operating Systems allowed two modes in general: Light and Dark. However, in Catalina, you can now switch to Auto Mode as well. This feature will enable light or dark modes all on its own by detecting the time of the day. To enable this feature, all you have to do is go to System Preferences > General > Appearance and pick ‘Auto’, which will do the trick.
Conclusion
There’s no doubt Apple manages to give a tough time to its competitors, even after the passing away of its founder. The fact that his legacy remains and is preserved in the best way possible is quite a remarkable feat. All in all, Apple indeed plans to go a long way, and it definitely won’t go down without a fight. Here’s to seeing more of Apple’s finest products in the future.
