Today, Apple began rolling out macOS Monterey 12.1 to Mac users. Here is a look at all the new features baked into the latest update to macOS.
macOS Monterey adds a number of features that were first teased by Apple at WWDC 2021 and which did not make their way to the initial release of the OS.
macOS Monterey 12.1 makes its debut alongside iOS 15.2. Both updates pack several features such as Apple Music Voice Plan, SharePlay, Bulk rename tags, etc. Here’s an overview of all the new features that are worth trying.
SharePlay
SharePlay allows a group of people to collectively watch the same TV series or movies via FaceTime calls. SharePlay works with Apple TV and Apple Music content. Although support for more content is expected, third parties will be responsible for adding it.
SharePlay was added to iOS with version 15.1 and is now available on macOS with the latest update.
Bulk Rename and Delete Tags
This allows you to rename or delete all the tags in the Reminders and Notes app en masse.
Hide My Email with iCloud+
macOS 12.1 also introduces the Hide My Email option so you can obscure your personal email address behind an iCloud-generated alias. If recipients reply to emails sent using your anonymized address, the responses will be directed to your private email inbox.
Apple Music Voice Plan
You can subscribe to this for $4.99/month, but you will lose out on several features such as Spatial Audio with Dolby Atmos, downloads for offline playback, and more. Read this post for a comparison of the Apple Music Voice vs. Individual vs. Family plan. The feature is also a part of iOS 15.2.
Bug Fixes and Other Improvements
According to Apple’s release notes, macOS Monterey 12.1 also incorporates the following improvements:
- Support for graphics cards that integrate AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT GPU.
- StoreKit APIs that generate a refund request sheet can be tested using StoreKit Testing in Xcode.
- The unnecessary New Document button in the Open Panel has been removed from document-based viewer apps.
- Fix for YouTube crashing when playing HDR content.
- Fix for MagSafe charging issues plaguing new MacBook Pro owners when connecting to an external display.
- Fix for menu bar items obscured by the notch on the new MacBook Pro models.
Notice any other changes in macOS 12.1 that are not mentioned above? Please drop a comment and share it with our readers!
