Apple’s next Mac operating system, MacOS Sierra, is here. The update features siri integration, optimized storage via iCloud Drive, a universal clipboard, a picture-in-picture video player, auto unlock via Apple Watch and Apple Pay on the Web. MacOS Sierra is a free update on the Mac App Store. The first thing is to check to see if your Mac is compatible; not all Macs will be able to use this new operating system. All Macs introduced in 2010 or later are compatible. MacBook and iMac computers introduced in late 2009 are also compatible. The following models that are compatible with Sierra are:
- MacBook: late 2009 and later
- MacBook Air: 2010 and later
- MacBook Pro: 2010 and later
- iMac: late 2009 and later
- Mac Mini: 2010 and later
- Mac Pro: 2010 and later
You don’t need to free up too much space to make room for MacOS Sierra. The download is only 4.78GB in size. Delete any old apps or files you don’t need or move some folders and files to the cloud via iCloud Drive or your preferred cloud storage service.
Before you perform a major operation like installing a new OS, you should alway perform a system backup to protect your data.
Apple is making its voice assistant more useful in more places. Not only did Apple open Siri up to third-party apps on iOS devices, but it has also come to Macs.
Siri will be in the menu bar, and you will be able to call upon it for any of the normal tasks you’re used to, such as movie times, messaging and calling people, setting reminders or toggling settings like Bluetooth and Wi-Fi. All of the newer Siri features will be available to you, as well and you will be able to search for files using Siri. On the Mac, Siri is set up to be a work machine. If you need to search for a specific document, you can but you can also drag and drop items from Siri search results into documents you’re working on, or pin certain results in Notification Center for future reference.
Sierra lets you make online purchases from your Mac. As long as you are using Safari to shop and have your Touch ID-enabled iPhone or Apple Watch nearby to confirm your purchases, you can use Apple Pay on a Mac.
Apple Pay on the web is much easier for retailers to support. A lot of retailers outsource their e-commerce platforms, and those platforms are going to make an adoption of Apple Pay easy. Apple announced Apple Pay would be immediately available at more than 70 retailers, including sites like Target, Sephora, Nike, Hotels.com and even Kickstarter.
MacOS Sierra makes it easier for Apple Watch wearers to unlock their Mac. Whenever your Apple Watch is within a few feet or about 1 meter of your Mac, the Mac will automatically unlock, rather than waiting for you to type in your password.
With Sierra’s picture-in-picture feature, you can retrieve videos out of Safari or iTunes and watch in a floating, resizable video player in the corner of your screen.
MacOS Sierra takes the two folders you likely use the most Desktop and Documents and syncs them with iCloud Drive so that any files you have stored there are accessible from your other iCloud Drive-enabled devices, including your iPhone, iPad, other Macs and even Windows PCs. With Sierra’s awesome, new universal clipboard, you can copy text, a photo or video from one device and paste it on another device, either Mac to Mac or Mac to iOS device.
MacOS Sierra is Apple’s next innovative operating system. The update will provide a new and enhanced experience for mac users.