Last week we asked you which of the 20 top features you use from Apple’s 2021 operating systems: iOS 15, iPadOS 15, and macOS 12 Monterey. The results are in, and Adam Engst takes a spin through the features, evaluating the vote tallies and commenting on each feature. With an eye toward the future of macOS 13 Ventura and iOS 16, Julio Ojeda-Zapata previews the Continuity Camera webcam feature, which lets you use your iPhone as a Mac webcam. Finally, Josh Centers examines the OWC miniStack STX, an unusual expansion accessory aimed at giving Mac mini owners extra Thunderbolt ports and external storage. Notable Mac app releases this week include Cardhop 2.1, MarsEdit 4.6, Evernote 10.42, SpamSieve 2.9.50, Nitro PDF Pro and PDF Pro Essentials 13.3, and Tinderbox 9.3.
Do you have a Mac mini that needs more storage and Thunderbolt 4 ports? The OWC miniStack STX is built just for you.
If you think the webcams built into the latest Macs and Apple’s Studio Display leave a bit to be desired, there’s an alternative: Continuity Camera. Harnessing an iPhone as a Mac webcam, Continuity Camera provides a high-quality virtual-camera system in the upcoming iOS 16 and macOS 13 Ventura.
The results are in and wow, do people not use a lot of Apple’s features. In fact, only 4 of 20 features garnered more votes from those who used the feature than those who didn’t. Some of the usage patterns are no surprise—SharePlay, really?—but others caught us off guard.
Watchlist
Brings a variety of improvements and bug fixes to the contact management app. ($39.96 annual subscription, free update, 33.9 MB, macOS 10.13.2+)
Updates the Share Extension to support opening images from the Share menu of other apps. ($49.95 new, free update, 22.1 MB, macOS 10.12+)
Information management app updated with a few improvements. (Free, 222 MB, macOS 10.14+)
Fixes a couple of bugs in macOS 12.5 Monterey and improves the spam-filtering utility's filtering accuracy. ($30 new, free update, 21.2 MB, macOS 10.9+)
Former PDFpen PDF editing apps gain support for Shortcuts in macOS 12 Monterey. ($179.99/129.99 new, free update, 259/212 MB, macOS 10.14+)
Brings a variety of improvements and bug fixes to the note-taking assistant. ($249 new, free update, 47 MB, macOS 10.13+)