Apple on Monday gave us a quick peek at its new macOS operating system dubbed Catalina at the WWDC 2019 keynote in San Jose.
The latest version of the desktop operating system comes loaded with a host of new apps and features.
With macOS Catalina, Apple is replacing iTunes with its popular entertainment apps — Apple Music, Apple Podcasts and the Apple TV app.
There is an all-new Sidecar feature that enables users to extend their Mac desktop by using their iPad as a second display. It also brings new security features and voice control to let users control their Mac entirely with their voice.
It also introduces Screen Time to help users track how much time they are spending on the Mac.
No More iTunes
Apple Music will offer a catalogue of over 50 million songs, playlists and music videos. Users will have access to their entire music library, whether they’ve downloaded the songs, purchased them or ripped them from a CD.
The Apple TV app now features Apple TV channels, personalized recommendations and over 100,000 iTunes movies and TV shows to browse, buy or rent — so users can enjoy 4K HDR and Dolby Atmos-supported movies.
Apple Podcasts offers more than 700,000 shows in its catalog and the option to automatically be notified of new episodes as soon as they become available.
Another Display for the Mac
MacOS Catalina will give users the ability to transform their iPad into a second display for the Mac. Also, when paired with an Apple Pencil, they can use their iPad to draw, sketch or write in any Mac app that supports stylus input.
Sidecar can also run on a wireless connection.
Voice Control on Catalina
A welcome feature on the new macOS, it now comes with voice control which will allow a user to interact with the interface and apps using just voice. This feature is especially for users who cannot operate input devices and would now be able to take advantage of Siri’s voice recognition technology to feed inputs to the OS.
Voice Control is now also available on iOS and iPadOS, so users can control their device entirely with their voice, even gestures like tapping, swiping and scrolling.
More Secure Than Before
MacOS adds new security feature for users as new data protections require all apps to get permission before accessing user documents.
Now all Macs with the T2 Security Chip support Activation Lock which renders the Mac ineffective if stolen by thieves.
You can also locate you Mac with the new Find My app. The location of a lost or stolen Mac can be securely and anonymously relayed back to its owner by other Apple devices, even when it is offline using Bluetooth technology.
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