Apple launches macOS Big Sur with overhaul, Safari updates and more

First announced at Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference in June 2020, macOS Big Sur has been in development since then. There have been over 10 beta releases since its announcement and one version number has moved up to macOS 11.0.1. The November release comes about two months after Apple released public versions of iOS 14 and its other software updates.

As of November 12, macOS Big Sur is now available for any Mac user with compatible hardware to download and use. Here are all the new features and changes included in the operating system update.

The updated design of macOS Big Sur borrows many elements from iOS.

One of the most important new features in macOS Big Sur is a redesign of the aesthetics of the Mac operating system. There’s a whole new UI design, with updated icons and UI elements.

This includes new macOS icons that look more like their iOS counterparts, but still retain their Mac-like “personality”. In the menu bar, which is now translucent, there’s also a new, customizable Control Center – another port of iOS.

Apple also removed the option from the Notifications menu bar and replaced it with a notification center. Upon entering the center, users can then select notifications or widgets – which, again, also work like iOS.

According to Alan Dye, vice president of human interface at Apple, macOS Big Sur uses “depth, shading and translucency” to create hierarchy.

Finally, Apple has also updated the sounds and alerts for its Mac. They’re described by Apple as “recognizable, but cool,” and the new sounds also include the classic Mac startup chime.

Safari has been updated with a new start page, broader extension support, and new privacy features.

Some of the biggest app changes in macOS Big Sur apply to Apple’s flagship browser: Safari. On the one hand, the native browser has been optimized to be much faster and smoother. Apple says it’s up to 50% faster than Google Chrome when running in the new operating system.

As with other UI elements, Safari’s design has also received an update. It now has a customizable start page that can be changed to suit the user.

Apple also added favicons to the page tabs and put more emphasis on third-party extensions. Developers can, for example, use new tools to port existing Chrome extensions into Safari. There will be an enhanced gallery of extensions for users to browse.

Safari now also offers built-in, easy-to-access translation, with support for English, Spanish, Chinese, French, German, Russian, and Brazilian Portuguese.

As Apple is used to doing, there are also privacy improvements. A new Privacy toolbar icon can be clicked to display a full report of web trackers on a web page, as well as statistics on trackers that have been blocked in the last 30 days.

Messages in macOS now look a lot more like its iOS counterpart.

Besides Safari, Apple Messages has also received a major update for macOS Big Sur. While it has always lagged behind iOS, Apple has now made the macOS Messages platform much closer to its mobile counterpart.

It’s now a Mac Catalyst app, which means it comes with all the messaging features of iOS 14. This includes pinned chats, group chat functionality, and an improved search feature.

Apple also added discussion threads and mentions for users in group conversations. There are redesigned photo pickers, the ability to pin conversations to the top of the list, and assignable images for group chats.

Memoji’s personalization has also received an update, with expanded options and stickers.

There are also broader changes to other apps and system features in macOS Big Sur.

Apple also updated Apple Maps with support for Look Around, Interior Maps, Guides, and Share ETA. Users can also generate cycle routes, as well as routes with electric vehicle charging stations. All routes can then be sent to an iPhone.

As for other features, Apple has given other apps and system functions some incremental updates. They include:

• Updates to Photos include a new retouching tool, a full suite of video editing tools, adjustable filters and portrait lighting effects, and a new “Captions” feature for text.
• A new privacy reporting feature in the App Store, which lets users know about an app’s privacy and data policies before downloading it.
• Faster search of projectors, as well as full-size Quick Look previews of documents.
• Collapsible pinned notes section in the Notes app. There are also additional text styles and formatting options, as well as improvements to the Continuity Camera.
• Support for facial recognition and activity zones in HomeKit Secure Video feeds in the Home app.
• New options in the Weather widget that can provide government alerts, major temperature changes, and precipitation details for the next hour.
• Apple replaced the “For You” tab in Apple Music with a new “Listen Now” menu. The search function has also been updated with new genre and category features.

One of the most important details about macOS Big Sur isn’t a feature that users can necessarily take advantage of. Instead, it’s a suite of changes under the hood to pave the way for Apple Silicon.

As Apple announced at WWDC 2020, the Cupertino tech giant is shifting its Mac products from Intel processors to chips it makes itself. In other words, Apple Silicon likes the type that powers iPhones and iPads.

In addition to a Developer Transition Kit, Apple also provides a number of tools to make the transition to Apple Silicon a bit smoother.

These include a new version of Rosetta that will allow users to run Intel applications on Apple Silicon; a new universal binary that works on Apple Silicon and Intel Macs; and support for virtualization.

The macOS Big Sur update is compatible with the following Mac devices.