With the latest developer beta of macOS Sequoia 15.1 out, I had the opportunity to dive into the new features and improvements Apple announced at WWDC 2024.
After a period of daily use in the beta version, I found the system to offer a distinctive experience that includes smart technologies and a smoother user interface. Here's my take on the main Apple Intelligence-related features that I was using after updating my Mac. Check out You can try Apple Intelligence now: Here's how.
The iPhone screen mirroring feature is great, but there's room for improvement.
iPhone screen mirroring is one of the standout features included in macOS Sequoia. Initially, I had a hard time getting iPhone screen mirroring to work on my devices, as it kept crashing. Once I got it working, it was a very smooth and fast experience. Aside from the cameras, I could fully control my iPhone directly from my MacBook without any noticeable lag or stutter.
It’s worth noting that the drag and drop feature is currently not working in the beta version. However, with Universal Clipboard and Quick Send, I can still seamlessly copy and transfer files and photos between my devices via screen mirroring.
Accessing iPhone notifications directly on my Mac is a game changer; clicking on them will open the specific app by mirroring your iPhone screen to your Mac.
As convenient as it is to use my iPhone on my Mac, it can be difficult to operate a primarily touch-based interface using a keyboard and trackpad.
Split windows could be better.
Window management has always been an important aspect of productivity on the Mac, and I’ve always found it to be a bit lacking compared to Windows PCs. Thankfully, Apple has improved window splitting in macOS Sequoia, and now it finally feels a little more useful.
When you drag a window to the edge of the screen, macOS now suggests a tiled position, allowing for quick organization of multiple apps. New keyboard shortcuts and a new menu also improve the experience, making window management more responsive.
However, some apps like Apple Music and Discord aren’t fully compatible with certain tiled positions. I hope Apple addresses these issues by the time the final stable version of macOS 15 rolls out. Check out the best window management apps for Mac.
Apple Intelligence is incomplete, but it promises a lot.
The most exciting development in macOS Sequoia is Apple Intelligence. This suite of cross-platform AI features leverages the power of Apple silicon to deliver on-device intelligence while ensuring privacy. The developer beta lets you try out writing tools and an updated Siri interface with support for “Write to Siri.”
With Writing Tools, Apple Intelligence provides system-wide access to features that help you rewrite, review, and summarize text. These tools are integrated across macOS and are accessible in most third-party apps, though some apps like Notion don’t yet support them.
In my experience, the options to rewrite, review, and summarize text were very useful; they were quick to execute. Apple Intelligence does an excellent job of preserving the essential content and purpose of the original text while summarizing. And with proofreading, you can compare and see where changes were made.
Siri has a new design, though it’s not as dramatically different as what you’ll find on iOS. Currently, Siri supports more flexible request handling and the ability to seamlessly switch between text and voice using “Type to Siri.”
However, the core Siri experience in this beta remains mostly unchanged; personal context and third-party app integrations are not yet available.
Many of the Apple Intelligence features announced at WWDC 2024 are still missing, though. These include Image Playground, Genmoji, ChatGPT integration, object removal from photos, on-screen awareness, in-app actions for Siri, and more.
Overall, I think this macOS Sequoia and Apple Intelligence preview paves the way for a more connected and seamless user experience in the future. I can’t wait to see how these tools will advance further as key Apple Intelligence features become available to everyone in the fall of 2024. You can see the various Apple devices that support Apple Intelligence now.
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