Windows 11 is improving how Bluetooth devices are displayed on the Taskbar, with a new interactive overview of battery life and options to connect to these devices in an upcoming update.
Since Windows XP in 2001, there's been a constant Bluetooth icon in the Taskbar that would show you options such as available devices, as well as a link to the Bluetooth Settings in the Control Panel.
But with wireless devices more common than ever before in 2022, Microsoft has decided to make the process simpler by replacing this 20-year method with an overview of the devices that are paired to your PC, without having to leave the app or the desktop.
This is yet another example of the company making processes easier for users in Windows 11, but there's still more work to do in this area, with features that macOS users have had for years.
Analysis: From three clicks to one
(Image credit: TechRadar)
Connecting to wireless devices has never been as straightforward as connecting to a Wi-Fi network in Windows. Simply adding a Bluetooth section in Settings or the Control Panel felt unnecessary, especially with smartphones and Macs reducing the process to two steps.
The Taskbar in Windows 11 has had a Quick Settings feature since its launch in October 2021, so you can directly access 'Focus' mode, audio settings, and more without leaving the app you were currently in.
With Bluetooth being available in this panel as well, it will be very handy to those who have multiple devices connected to their PCs. This is rolling out to users who are on Windows Insider build 2567 and above. If you've not signed up to be a Windows Insider to help test early versions of Windows 11, this new and improved Bluetooth functionality will hopefully arrive later this year.
It should be worth the wait, especially if you have multiple game controllers or headphones, it can help alleviate the confusion to be given a quick overview of what's not connected, and quickly resolve that.
Having a battery status for each device will be a great help too in reminding users to charge them when needed.
(Image credit: TechRadar)
However, there's still more that can be done in this area. Other features such as switching between noise-canceling and equalizer modes for headphones could be a great help, similar to what Apple users have had on their Macs for a few years.
But it's still a great step in the right direction to start with, and a much-needed feature in a time when many of us use Bluetooth devices almost every day for our PCs.
For many users, the menu bar on their Mac sits there, a little unloved, as a necessary but barely used part of macOS. But Apple wants to make the menu bar a useful part of your productivity workflow. And that’s why developers offer a range of ways that you can use the menu bar as a versatile tool. We’ve looked at one of these options from Apple – shortcuts – before.
There’s an enormous variety of apps that you can add to your menu bar. Depending on whether they are for work or personal use, you can usually find a tool to meet your needs.
We’ve highlighted a few to get you started, but there are thousands more for you to explore on the App Store. They are a great way to save time and effort and make the most of the customization afforded to you by macOS.
What is a menu bar app?
The menu bar is much more customizable than some may realize. Found at the top of macOS, it’s the equivalent to parts of the taskbar found in Windows 11. Beyond looking at the time and connecting to your Wi-Fi, menu bar apps offer a wealth of different functions that, by placing them on the menu bar, can cut out additional steps that an app currently does for your needs.
Many of these can help with boosting your workflows and productivity. Instead of trawling through the Applications folder to select a single function from one app, you can just click on the app in the menu bar. While it seems incredibly simple, these can transform your workflow on your Mac, while offering you far more control over how you organize your desktop.
Quick View Calendar
(Image credit: QuickView Calendar)
Free todownload on the Mac App Store, Quick View does what it says on the tin. Instead of having to open your desired Calendar app from the dock to check a date, you can go to your menu bar and be greeted with a calendar, ready to browse.
Not only does Quick View only give you a monthly view, but it also allows you to display the number of the week if you need that shown. There are no other features here – it displays the date and that’s it, but it's the ease of use here that really shines.
You may be browsing in Safari to check for an upcoming event for instance, and with a quick hover over your menubar with your mouse, you can check Quick View for the relevant information, without leaving the web browser.
As it’s free on the Mac App Store, you can try it for a week and see if it fits your workflow.
AirBuddy 2.5
(Image credit: AirBuddy)
So far, Apple hasn’t brought out a feature that allows you to view the battery status of your devices on your Mac. Alongside this, it can be a challenge in connecting your AirPods peripheral to your Mac, as there are moments where they’ll connect to your iPhone without realizing it. This is where AirBuddy 2 comes in.
Created by Gui Rambo, the app allows you to easily check the battery status of your AirPods by clicking the AirPods case on your menu bar, which will display the status of your devices. They do need to be connected to your Mac first, but after this one-time requirement, they’ll show.
There are also other helpful features once these are connected to your Mac. You can change the noise cancellation setting through a keyboard shortcut or connect them to a nearby device without you doing anything else. Update 2.5 also adds a number of new features; the most significant being the fact that AirBuddy will now work with non-Apple or Beats devices when they are connected to the Mac.
For a one-time fee of $ 9.99 / £10.99 / AU$ 11.99, AirBuddy expands how you can connect your wireless Apple devices to your Mac without simply connecting and disconnecting them from the Bluetooth menu.
Hand Mirror
(Image credit: Hand Mirror)
We live in a world where video calls are everywhere. Whether it’s Zoom, FaceTime, or Skype, video calling happens regularly in our work and social lives. And we’ve probably all been in that situation where we need to join into a video meeting and your hair isn’t done, or the family dog has knocked over a plant in the background.
Free to download on the Mac App Store, This is where Hand Mirror comes in, without the additional steps that are often required in many video-conferencing apps.
It’s a simple app that doesn’t do much else, but it achieves exactly what it sets out to do. With one click, you can make sure that you and your environment are set up exactly as you want before joining that call.
Flow
(Image credit: Flow)
With the numerous distractions of rolling news, social media and other notifications on your Mac, a simple to use timer app is a great productivity tool to give you control of how you use your time more effectively.
Flow is based on the Pomodoro Technique, which is where you focus on a discrete task for a set amount of time, before taking a short break. Flow helps this by providing a simple timer in your menu bar, so you can see at a glance how long you have left before your next break.
You can set the duration of both your periods of focus and the length of your breaks, to fully customize the balance of work and rest. It also allows you to block apps on your Mac, to further minimize distractions.
If you pay for the Pro version at $ 1 / £1 / AU$ 1 a month, or a lifetime license for $ 20 / £20 / AU$ 20, you can also block specific websites. As productivity apps for the menu bar go, this is a great option. Clean, simple to use, and even has a Dark Mode theme.
Cheat Sheet
(Image credit: CheatSheet)
Most of us have been in that situation where you want to use a particular feature on your Mac, only to find yourself having to navigate through menus and submenus while being fairly sure there is a simple keyboard shortcut. This is where CheatSheet comes in to alleviate that frustration.
Free to download, CheatSheet provides you with a list of keyboard shortcuts for whichever app you are using at that particular time. Being able to quickly access a reference sheet can save you enormous amounts of time, especially for repetitive tasks.
Perhaps ironically, the more you use it, the less you will need to use it, as you will start to remember the most frequently used shortcuts. And pretty soon, you’ll stop having to switch from keyboard to mouse and back again.
iStat Menus
(Image credit: iStat)
Perhaps you’re a power user, or maybe you just love seeing the inner workings of your Mac. Either way, iStat Menus 6 will throw more information than you could ever need at you.
As a system monitoring app, this tells you exactly how your computer is performing: CPU and GPU monitoring, memory stats, memory usage, temperatures, disk usage, and battery levels can all be viewed from the menu bar with just a few icons.
This level of detail doesn’t come for free, however. But for a one-off cost of £8.99 / $ 8.99 / AU$ 8.99 from the Mac App Store, or $ 14.39 / £13.49 / AU$ 14.99 directly from iStat, which also includes 6 months of weather data, you're getting an awful lot of information. It’s also highly customizable, so you can choose exactly what information you want to see, and how it looks.
Minesweeper
(Image credit: Minesweeper)
Everyone needs a little downtime, and when used in conjunction with the Flow timer, what could be better than five minutes playing Minesweeper as a short break?
Minesweeper is a very simple but highly addictive game that involves clearing a grid of mines as quickly as you can. The simplest premise for a game can fit perfectly on your menu bar.
Free to download from the Mac App Store, it sits on your menu bar, ready to take your attention away for when you're struggling with ideas.
This sits on your menu bar unobtrusively, and with one click, you can start playing. It’s a perfect game when you have a few minutes free for a quick break.
ColorSlurp
(Image credit: Color Slurp)
Free to download from the Mac App Store, this tool is particularly useful for designers and developers. ColorSlurp allows you to choose the exact colors you need with accuracy and precision, thanks to a quick overview in the menu bar of what color it’s identified, and you can copy this into your photo editing app of choice thanks to the magnifier tool.
Being able to have complete control over your color palette is ideal for graphic designers, website developers, and others. Most importantly, it’s an enormous time-saver and a more accurate method for selecting your colors compared to having to use screenshots to pick out colors.
Bartender 4
(Image credit: Bartender 4)
With the previous apps we’ve mentioned, your menu bar may be starting to look a little cluttered if you've decided to install them all. With this in mind, we suggest Bartender 4, an award-winning app that allows you to decide which items on your menu bar are displayed.
Available to download as a free trial and to buy for £13.91 / $ 15.99 / AU$ 16.49, you can customize the spacing between menu bar items, and make use of the bar to access your hidden items, especially if you have a lot of menu bar apps and shortcuts.
It also offers a quick search function to allow you to find menu bar apps via your keyboard. It’s a great way to keep your menu bar tidy and organized.
Control Center
(Image credit: Apple)
It would be remiss of us to compile a list of menu bar apps without mentioning the one that comes pre-installed on macOS. Control Center is the macOS equivalent of the iOS feature of the same name, which first appeared in macOS Big Sur back in 2020. It sits unobtrusively in your menu bar, available for you to control a host of options.
This tool gives you control over a number of what might be considered ‘essentials’ such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and Airdrop.
Brightness and volume levels can also be adjusted from here, as well as media controls for any content you're playing in the background. Finally, there are options for Focus mode and Screen Mirroring. You can also add Accessibility Shortcuts if you wish.
This one may be preloaded, but it’s a feature that you’ll find yourself using more often than usual, mainly because it offers many useful functions, all in one location.
There are now so many streaming music services to choose from, it's become difficult to easily share links to songs. Sure, you can use the sharing option in Apple Music to send a friend a link to a track you love, but this is little help if they're not an Apple Music user.
And this is where MusicMatch can help. This free app makes it possible to open a shared music link you receive in whatever happens to be your favorite streaming app. So, someone could send you a link to a track on Spotify, but if you're one of the many people who has decided to move away from this particular streaming service, you can use MusicMatch to open the track in Tidal, Pandora, YouTube Music or several other alternative services.
In all, there's now support for seven streaming music platforms – namely Amazon Music, Apple Music, Deezer, Pandora, Spotify, Tidal and YouTube Music. In short, MusicMatch gives you a quick, easy and reliable way to open music links in the app of your choice.
We've already looked at the iOS version of MusicMatch as well as the web extension, but things have moved on a great deal in just two short months. We've already mentioned the newly expanded number of supported platforms. The addition of the likes of YouTube Music, Pandora and Tidal means that all of the key music streaming platforms are now covered, so whatever your preferred app is, you should be able to open links in it.
Cross-platform sharing
The idea is great, and the implementation is simple and effective. When someone sends you a link to a track, album or even an artist on a particular streaming platform, you can just copy the link to the clipboard.
Fire up MusicMatch and the app will open the link in whatever you have configured as you preferred music streaming app. It's quick and painless, and significantly less drawn out than performing a search for whatever it is you have been sent.
Even better, if you have the MusicMatch extension for Safari installed, everything is taken care of for you automatically. There is no need to manually open the MusicMatch app as everything will be handled in the background. Getting set up is simplicity itself. Grab the app from the Mac App Store, and when you launch it you can indicate which of the seven supported music services is the one your use.
The ap also lets you create universal links to the music you want to share with others. Send a MusicMatch-created link to a friend and they can choose the app they want to use to listen to the music you want them to hear.
MusicMatch for macOS is available to download from the Mac App Store and more information is available on the MusicMatch website.
The macOS Monterey 12.2 update was released on January 26, and some users are already reporting issues, with reports that BlueTooth accessories connected to the device are seemingly causing it to wake from sleep mode, draining battery life that would have otherwise been preserved.
As reported by MacRumors, it's unclear how widespread the issue currently is, but there have been several posts across social media sites like Twitter and Reddit during the last few days that would indicate this isn't an isolated incident.
Here’s what the #macOS #Monterey 12.2 #bluetooth sleep/wake battery-murdering glitch looks like, personified by my keyboard’s capslock light. off=sleep, on=darkwake. Leave ur laptop unplugged & sleeping overnight, 👋🏼buh-bye to its battery! #goodtimes pic.twitter.com/O45y7MYLtlJanuary 31, 2022
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While no official statement has been made from Apple, those affected have claimed that their Mac's battery life drops from 100% to 0% while left in sleep mode overnight, something that wasn't occurring prior to updating to macOS 12.2.
After some investigation, users like @Jpavao found that Bluetooth accessories are apparently causing the Macs to repeatedly wake from sleep mode, which drains the battery over the course of several hours. All fingers point to the latest update being responsible as both older Intel-based Macs and newer M1-powered devices appear to be affected.
Disabling the Bluetooth on the device or disconnecting all accessories connected via Bluetooth prior to placing the Mac into sleep mode seems to work as a quick fix, though this obviously isn't ideal if you have to set up your mouse, keyboard and headset every morning, especially if you use the MacBook for work.
Apple also made the beta version of Monterey 12.3 available to developers last week, though no mentions were made that refer to a fix within the notes, so it's unclear if the issue will be resolved when this update is pushed live for all macOS users or if another solution is in the works. We've reached out to Apple for clarification.
Analysis: keep calm and carry on
It's understandable that you might feel wary regarding upgrades when you see stories like this circulating, but we would always recommend that you keep your device up to date with the latest patches to help with security and app compatibility. Any problems that arise after an update, regardless of a system being Windows or macOS, are usually swiftly corrected.
It's important to remember though, that updates are likely never going to be a universal 'fix-all' for every user. In fact, the patch to fix this Bluetooth issue could just as likely cause problems for a handful of users who were not previously experiencing any. The risks of using an outdated operating system also far outweigh the risks that come with updating to the latest version though, so it isn't worth avoiding the upgrade to Monterey 12.2 if you've been putting it off.
It's not unusual for software updates and patches to cause additional issues that require additional work down the line. It's certainly a nuisance for those affected by the problem, but there are several workarounds that will help tide things over, such as leaving your MacBook charging overnight or disconnecting any Bluetooth accessories, until Apple can officially patch out the battery drain.
Make sure you check out our macOS Monterey problems guide for more advice on fixing issues with Apple's latest operating system.
MacOS malware Shlayer and Bundlore may have variations, but the behavior of their attacks have not changed – attacking older macOS versions and poorly-protected websites. Threatpost
Since being announced at WWDC 2021 alongside Apple’s software updates, users have been waiting for Universal Control to arrive on Mac and iPad, and it’s finally arrived.
Available to try out on the beta versions of iPadOS 15.4 and macOS 12.3, the feature allows you to control a mouse on both a Mac and iPad at the same time. In this mode, you can drag and drop files between devices without having to send files or use a cloud service to do this.
Universal Control was set to arrive in October with the launch of iPadOS 15 and macOS 12 Monterey, but it saw delays, most likely to how the complications could be with sharing files between two different devices.
But so far in testing, it works great, and for anyone with both devices, makes it much easier to manage your content side by side.
Analysis: it works, and it’s fantastic
Setting up the feature is an easy process, by going to System Preferences > Display on your Mac, and check that your iPad is showing.
If it is, you can configure it to make sure if the tablet should be placed to the left or right of the Mac, and that’s it.
Users are already showcasing the feature on Twitter, with the mouse switching over to multiple devices as if they were all connected to one another.
Holy wow Universal Control is incredible.This is me moving between a MacBook Pro, an iPad mini, and an iPad Pro using just the MacBook trackpad and keyboard. It’s aware of position, lets you drag files, and supports iPadOS gestures.The hype was real and it all just works 🤯 pic.twitter.com/PWUTLYZtkWJanuary 27, 2022
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iOS 15.4 and iPadOS 15.4 don’t just bring Universal Control, as there’s also a keyboard brightness setting for your iPad, making it much easier to manage in Control Center instead. There’s also a FaceID option for masks, giving you the option for your iPhone and iPad to scan your face while wearing a mask, without using an Apple Watch to authenticate as before.
If this was in the era of iOS 9, we’d most likely have seen these features at WWDC with iOS 16, focused as a big tentpole announcement. But in recent years, we’ve seen features arrive across the year, such as trackpad support arriving on iPadOS 13.4 in March 2020.
With Universal Control looking likely to arrive for everyone in the next couple of months, it makes us wonder what could be coming to macOS 13. But regardless, we’re seeing bigger features arrive across the year instead, and for users, that’s a big win.
While Dropbox is finishing up an update to its cloud service app for macOS that brings native Apple Silicon support, it's sent an email to users, warning them about potential issues if they don't update once a future version of macOS Monterey arrives.
But it turns out that it's not an isolated issue, with Microsoft also stating on a support page that not updating OneDrive on the Mac may bring problems in future macOS Monterey versions. As long as users download the rewritten Files-On-Demand app, there'll be no issue.
You've most likely used both apps before, whether that's at College or as a way to quickly download files from someone in a hurry. But this looks as though there's been a background change to macOS by Apple that both cloud apps use.
We've reached out to Apple to confirm what this change is, and why both Dropbox and Microsoft are recommending you about potential issues for future macOS versions.
Analysis: What's changed so drastically?
It's telling that another potential issue from Apple involves the cloud, after developers' ongoing frustrations with the 503 iCloud errors, that's causing failures in syncing content across devices.
In an email to users, Dropbox explained, “Some applications on your Mac may have problems opening Dropbox files while they are online only. You will still be able to open Dropbox files by double-clicking them in Finder”.
While you can download the beta version of Dropbox for Apple Silicon, this still means that you may encounter issues when macOS 12.3 arrives.
macOS 12.2 is currently available for developers and users who are signed up to the beta program, so there may be a forthcoming change in 12.3 that Apple has told both Microsoft and Dropbox, so that the cloud apps can work on another update to make sure that there are no further issues.
For now, we recommend backing up your files if you use one or both of these apps, and to make sure that you have the latest updates to both for when macOS 12.3 does arrive to your Mac.
After the release of macOS 12 Monterey in 2021, followed by the MacBook Pro 14-inch and 16-inch models, speculation is now mounting as to what macOS 13 will bring.
Back in 2020, Apple began transitioning away from Intel processors in favor of its own Apple Silicon chips. These chips are now redefining what Macs are capable of, particularly when it comes to gaming. While macOS Monterey focused on productivity and communication tweaks, macOS 13 could be a major update of the type not seen since macOS 11 Big Sur, reflecting this new change in direction.
With this in mind, we’ve combed through our Macs to round up five features we’d like to see later this year, no matter how major or minor these may be.
First, though, we’ll run through what we know about macOS 13 so far, including its rumored release date and which Macs the update is likely to support.
macOS 13 release date rumors
Apple’s releases have run like clockwork in recent years. There’s a good chance macOS 13 will be announced at WWDC 2022 alongside iOS 16, iPadOS 16, and the rest. Whether it’ll be a remote keynote again or a return to an in-person event remains to be confirmed by Apple.
Apple usually announces the release date of a new macOS update alongside new Macs, so this could be October again, similar to the previous two years.
macOS 13 supported devices
With Apple well on the way to leaving Intel behind, it’s a matter of time until macOS runs solely on the company’s own M1 chips and above.
macOS 13 is likely to still support Intel Macs for now, though. We expect that the upcoming update will support the following Macs as a minimum:
Mac Pro – Late 2013
iMac – Early 2015
iMac Pro – Late 2017
MacBook Air – Early 2015
MacBook Pro – Early 2015
MacBook – Early 2015
macOS 13 name rumors
We speculated that macOS 12 would be called either Mammoth or Monterey, and it proved to be the latter at WWDC 2021. Mammoth could be another solid bet for macOS 13, though.
The name refers to the Mammoth Lakes in California, following the pattern of naming releases after landmarks in the state, and it’s close to Monterey and Big Sur, which may also represent a bigger update to macOS compared to the last year.
Five features we want to see in macOS 13
While macOS 13 is still a little while away, we've put together a list of the improvements we want to see from the next-gen operating system for Apple's Macs.
1. Widgets anywhere
Widgets first appeared in iOS 14 back in 2020, and have slowly moved over to iPadOS, where you can also move them anywhere on the home screen, but in macOS they are still locked to a column.
macOS 13 should allow you to move widgets anywhere on the screen. Some forget that widgets first appeared on macOS way back in 2004 with Dashboard in Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger, as a way of managing them inside one app that would cover your screen.
Having Dashboard return to macOS 13 or the ability to place widgets anywhere on your desktop would be appealing. It would help spruce up your display, and eliminate the need to go to the column to view them.
2. Weather app
The weather app saw a mammoth redesign in iOS 15 last year, mainly thanks to Apple’s acquisition of the weather app Dark Sky. While the app hasn’t moved to iPadOS just yet, the next logical step would be to macOS.
Random thing, but I really like this animation.A favourite feature of mine from iOS 15 is https://t.co/Ak5SWWCx1G – who’d have thought. pic.twitter.com/HH5UkWlBzSSeptember 30, 2021
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Having easy access to weather forecasts, plus precipitation and storm notifications could be useful to many Mac users – especially if widgets can be shown on the desktop instead of the column they’re currently locked to.
3. App Library
App Library is another iOS feature that would be useful to have in the Dock for macOS 13. While Launchpad and Finder give you handy overviews of your installed apps and let you add them to folders, they’re the only view that you have.
That can be tricky if you have hundreds of apps, especially as a full-screen view in Launchpad can get in the way of anything you’re working on.
(Image credit: Apple)
App Library on the Mac could easily sort your apps into categories, and have some folders change depending on the time of day or your location, just as it does in iOS. It would be much more useful for Mac users, as having a full-screen view on an iMac or an external display seems too much.
4. Time Machine and iCloud Backups
Time Machine is a feature that’s fallen by the wayside in recent years, regardless of how useful it’s proved in the past. It takes multiple snapshots of your macOS machine throughout the day, and if you lose a file, you can go ‘back in time’ and recover it.
Time Machine first appeared in Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard back in 2006, and while it’s still available in macOS, there’s plenty that could be improved for macOS 13.
It’s second nature to back up your iPad or iPhone through iCloud Backup, which lets you save photos, messages, lock screen wallpapers, and more to your iCloud account. You can also restore these backups to your device if you need to reset it.
However, there’s no such feature for macOS; there’s only the option of backing up to an external hard drive or directly on your Mac, which could defeat the point if your Mac refuses to boot.
Having iCloud Backups tied to Time Machine feels like an easy win for Mac users, as it’s secure but also familiar.
5. tvOS screensavers for Mac
We’d love to see Apple bring those impressive flyover screensavers from tvOS to macOS 13.
(Image credit: Aerial)
While there are third-party apps such as Aerial that can already do the job for Mac users, having a native option for macOS 13 would be great for anyone who just wants to use the screensavers in the System Preferences, without having to download an additional app.
The flaw could allow attackers to bypass Privacy preferences, giving apps with no right to access files, microphones or cameras the ability to record you or grab screenshots.
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