macOS Sierra UK release date, price, features: macOS Sierra now generally available

Apple unveiled its latest desktop operating system, Sierra, at WWDC in June 2016, surprising some by ditching the OS X naming convention in favour of a return to Mac OS, or, rather macOS as it is now.

While Sierra was first shown to the world back in the summer, Apple said the software won’t be generally available until autumn. With no firm date given, it has been widely speculated that 7 September – the date of the company’s annual hardware launch event – will be Sierra’s launch date, or at the very least a firm launch date will be announced.

Here you can find out everything you need to know about the new operating system ahead of its official launch.

Quick Links

• macOS Sierra: latest news
• macOS Sierra: name
• macOS Sierra: features
• macOS Sierra: price
• macOS Sierra: release date

macOS Sierra: latest news

21/09/2016: MacOS Sierra is finally available to Mac users via the Mac App Store.

The update brings with it a slew of iOS-like features. Among the highlights are Auto Unlock with Apple Watch, Universal Clipboard, Desktop and Documents Sync, Picture in Picture mode, a customised version of Siri (voice assistant) for Mac and many others.

The update also brings Apple Pay to the Mac. You will still need an iPhone or iPad with Touch ID to complete a transaction but it now means that websites can offer the payment method for online shopping via the Safari browser.

The Photos app also gets new search and highlights options to match updates in iOS 10. iMessage on the Mac also gets larger emojis and web page previews.

The latest version of Apple’s desktop operating system is the firm’s first rebrand of operating system since Mac OS 9.

The following Macs will be able to download and install MacOS Sierra: MacBook (late 2009 and later), iMac (late 2009 and later), MacBook Air (2010 and later), MacBook Pro (2010 and later), Mac Mini (2010 and later) and Mac Pro (2010 and later).

The update is available from the Mac App Store.

09/09/2016: Apple has made available the golden master version of macOS Sierra, the newest operating system for the Mac.

The release comes just two weeks after the seventh Sierra public beta and a day after the golden master was made available to developers.

The GM final version will pretty much be the same as the version that gets released to the general public on 20 September.

To get the update, users have to sign up to Apple’s beta testing program. Once this is done, the GM can be downloaded through the Software Update app on MacOS.

The update brings Siri to the Mac, a new continuity feature that features an Auto Unlock option for unlocking a Mac with an Apple Watch. There is also a Universal Clipboard for copying and pasting across multiple devices.

07/09/2016: macOS Sierra could be with us as early at 8pm tonight. Apple is hosting its annual “special event” at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco tonight, which starts at 6.00pm UK, where it is expected to launch the iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus, Apple Watch 2 and perhaps some new desktop and laptop computers as well. It is also at these events where the latest versions of Apple’s operating systems, including iOS, watchOS and (historically) OS X have gone on general release or have at least had that release date announced.

Stay tuned to find out when macOS Sierra will finally be available to download and follow our coverage of the event live from 5.30pm BST.

30/08/2016: macOS Sierra could finally be ready for general release in just over a week’s time.

Apple has announced its autumn Special Event 2016 will be taking place on 7 September. The iPhone 7 and Apple Watch2 are expected to be the main flagship products at the launch, but a new iMac or MacBook (or both) is still on the cards too, which would probably run macOS out of the box. Apple has always indicated that the production version of macOS Sierra would be available this autumn, so a tie in with the 7 September event seems likely.

In related news, Apple has also just seeded the eighth beta version of the new desktop operating system to developers. As with the past several updates, it consists of bug fixes and performance upgrades, rather than any new featues, to the extent that some developers and public beta testers, who received their seventh release at the same time, have said there are no visible changes at all.

10/08/2016: The fifth Developer Beta of macOS Sierra ahead of its anticipated launch in September.

Developer Beta 5 is a stack of updates across Apple’s whole OS suite, including iOS 10, WatchOS 3 and tvOS 10. In macOS Sierra, the update is mainly restricted to bug fixes and “improvements” according to the release notes. However, as spotted by Neowin, there are also instructions on how to set up the new Auto Unlock feature, which it turns out requires two-factor authentication.

Public Beta 4 was also released alongside Developer Beta 5, both of which were released earlier than expected. Apple normally leaves 14 days between Beta releases, but on this occasion only left a week. The release of the finished version of macOS Sierra is expected within the next six weeks at Apple’s 2016 Special Event.

macOS Sierra: name

It was widely rumoured beforehand, and those rumours proved accurate – Apple has changed the naming convention of its desktop operating system. Ditching the ‘OS X’ label, the company has instead reverted back to the name used in its first products: macOS.

This brings the desktop software back into line with the rest of Apple’s ‘xOS’ family, such as iOS, tvOS and watchOS. However, Apple is still naming the different iterations after areas of California, with the first edition of the new macOS labelled ‘macOS Sierra’.

macOS Sierra: features

MacOS Sierra introduces a raft of new features for desktop users, including the highly-rumoured inclusion of Siri support. Apple’s virtual assistant now lives in an icon in the app dock and can also be launched via keyboard shortcut.

As expected, Siri can perform all the functions available to iOS users, such as web searching and messaging. This will also include any functionality introduced by developers making use of the new open Siri SDK.

In addition, users can take advantage of Siri to perform complex file queries, including multiple criteria, all using conversational language.

There are also numerous productivity features introduced in macOS Sierra too. Macs now support automatic unlocking, using your Apple Watch to verify your identity and unlock your Mac.

The Universal Clipboard function is cross-device compatible, meaning that users can access data they’ve copied on any of their Apple devices. iCloud Drive also lets users access all their files from any of their Mac devices, including files stored on the desktop.

Optimised storage allows users to free up space on a hard drive by moving older or less used files to iCloud.

Apple Pay comes to the Mac. This is added via Safari. But with Apple Pay buttons will appear on supported sites and will prompt you to authorise purchases by scanning your fingerprint on your iPhone.

There is also a picture-in-picture mode that will display a small window running a video that stays on top of the screen and is open at all times. Picture-in-picture works with web vide and Apple will provide an API to developers to make this feature available to visitors.

Finally, third-party apps and programs will now support browser-style tabs, allowing you to group multiple instances of the same program into one window.

macOS Sierra: price

For the past several years, the latest version of Mac OS X has been available as a free upgrade to users of the previous version of the operating system and the latest macOS release isn’t any different. The software update will be freely available for all Mac users when it launches to the general public in the Autumn.

macOS Sierra: release date

MacOS Sierra arrives to Apple users on 20 September 2016. Prior to this, Apple released a public beta available to anyone on 7 July. The golden master version for developers – approximately the same OS that is released on 20 September, was released on 9 September. This brings Siri to the Mac and an Auto Unlock option that lets people unlock their Mac with their Apple Watch.

[Source:-IT Pro]