Apple says it’ll release macOS 11.0, dubbed Big Sur, on November 12th. The company first announced the new OS at its developer’s conference in June and released it as a public beta in August. This will be the first macOS to support Apple’s new M1 laptop chip. Once you download the new, free update, you’ll most likely immediately note the design and aesthetic changes, many taken from iOS.
“For the first time ever, we’ve been able to design macOS for our own silicon,” Apple’s software engineering lead Craig Federighi said during today’s presentation. “MacOS Big Sur is engineered down to its core to fully take advantage of all the capability and power of M1.”
As a recap, Big Sur brings with it some notable updates like a revamped, customizable Control Center, a re-organized Notifications Center and improvements to Maps, Safari and Messages. Today, Apple said the software is also tuned to work well on the company’s new M1 chip. Like other ARM-based PCs, Apple said Macs using the M1 chipset will also wake from sleep very quickly.
Some apps, like Mail and Photos, are also receiving design updates, and a new version of Maps for Mac is shipping along with the OS. That update features custom Guides, 360-degree location views, bicycle and electric-vehicle directions, live updates for shared ETAs, congestion zones, and indoor maps.
In addition to design changes, Big Sur includes privacy-focused features, like an update to Safari called Privacy Report that lists cross-site trackers the browser has blocked over the last 30 days, as well as a password-monitoring tool through which Safari helps you upgrade to secure passwords if it detects that any of your saved passwords have been involved in a data breach. Big Sur’s App Store will also now include the types of data apps might collect and whether the data is shared with third parties for tracking.
Finally, Apple also says Macs’ screens will turn on immediately when they’re opened, similar to how the iPhone lights up when it’s picked up.
macOS Big Sur will be supported on Macs and MacBooks dating back to 2013.
