Apple released a new Mac version 10.15 with the name as Catalina. Similar to the previous Mojave version, Catalina also brings lots of new and exciting features to your Mac. If you are still using Mojave, heads on to Software Update and upgrade your OS to macOS Catalina version. Here are the new macOS Catalina features you should try after upgrading.
Top 10 macOS Catalina Features
Here are the top 10 macOS Catalina features you should know and use.
- Screen Time
- End of support for 32-bit apps
- iTunes changed to Music app
- New Apple TV Videos app
- Redesigned Podcasts
- Find My app
- Arcade games in App Store
- Login with Apple ID
- Photos, Notes, Reminders and Safari Updates
- Privacy update
1. Screen Time
Screen Time is a feature in iOS that Apple introduced in iOS 12 to track the usage of iPhone’s usage time. This is an ideal solution for those are addicted to social apps and spend too much time with the iPhone. In addition, you can also easily track the time spent by your kids by adding them using family sharing. With macOS Catalina, Apple also extended the Screen Time feature to Mac.
Now, you can easily track the time spent on your Mac to improve the productive areas. The “App Usage” option will help you to identify the time spent on different apps. In addition, you can monitor the usage across all your devices by logging into same Apple id.
You can enable Screen Time by going to “Apple Menu > System Preferences > Screen Time”.
2. End of 32-bit Apps
Apple completely discontinued the support for 32-bit apps from macOS Catalina version 10.15. this means you should first check whether you use any important 32-bit apps before upgrading your Mac. For example, Word 2011 and Kaspersky Antivirus apps are 32-bits app which will not work on macOS Catalina.
You should either upgrade the apps to 64-bit or check in the App Store for finding alternate options.
3. iTunes Changed to Apple Music
Apple also removed the iconic iTunes store and created a new Music app. You can find all your songs and albums in Music app and check in music library to find previously purchased items from iTunes Store.
4. Videos is Now Apple TV
If you are a movie lover, then you will love macOS Catalina. There is a Videos app called Apple TV to watch your favorite movies and TV shows. You can also subscribe to channels right from the app. If you have previous movies or videos, you can find them under the “Library” tab.
The biggest advantage of Apple TV app is that you can watch movies on your iPhone and pick up on your Mac from where you left.
5. Redesigned Podcasts
macOS Catalina also comes with an updated Podcasts app that has a newly designed home page. Got to “Listen Now” tab to find your favorite podcasts and get suggested shows. You can search by title, topic, guest and host to find relevant podcasts.
6. Find My
Catalina combines the “Find My Phone” and “Find My Friends” apps together to a single new “Find My” app. You can use this app to locate your devices, lock remotely and initiate erase request. It is also possible to use the app to find your kids, friends or family member and get a notification when they arrive at a location. You can enable Find My option by going to “Apple Menu > System Preferences > Apple ID > iCloud”.
Related: Top 10 iOS 13 features you should use.
7. Apple Arcade
App Store has a new Apple Arcade section that will allow you to play your favorite arcade games. You can play the games on free trial and subscribe to monthly fee for continue playing.
8. Login with Apple
Similar to Google and Facebook accounts, now you can use Apple account to login to you the supported websites. Here, you can even use a dummy email id to redirect to your Apple id. This way you can protect the real id without sharing.
9. Photos, Notes, Reminders and Safari
Photos app get an accessibility update to easily get photos by days, months and years. It also plays the videos automatically when viewing and show the larger previews.
Notes, and Safari apps get minor update in macOS Catalina. On Notes you can use the new gallery view to easily find the note and on Safari you have the congested start page showing bookmarks and suggestions. What we love is the new design of Reminders app to show the smart lists.
10. Privacy Update
Catalina has improved privacy that you need to confirm the permission for apps to access your folders. The privacy at high level that you even need to grant access when selecting files or when installing the apps.
Final Words
As mentioned, if you don’t have any important 32-bit apps then you can coolly update the OS version to use all these features.
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