Apple Seeds Third macOS Sierra 10.12.4 Beta to Developers

Apple today seeded the third beta of an upcoming macOS Sierra 10.12.4 update to developers, two weeks after seeding the second macOS Sierra 10.12.4 beta and just under a month after releasing macOS Sierra 10.12.3.

The third macOS Sierra 10.12.4 beta is available for download through the Apple Developer Center or the software update mechanism in the Mac App Store for those who have previously installed a beta.

macos-10-12-4-beta
macOS Sierra 10.12.4 brings iOS's Night Shift mode to the Mac for the first time. First introduced on iOS devices with iOS 9.3, Night Shift is designed to gradually shift the display of a device from blue to yellow, cutting down on exposure to blue light. Blue light is said to disrupt the circadian rhythm and is believed to interrupt sleeping patterns.

Night Shift can be activated through the Displays section of System Preferences, where a setting to have it come on at sunset and turn off at sunrise is available. Night Shift can also be toggled on manually through the Notification Center or via Siri.


The 10.12.4 update focuses mainly on Night Shift, but also includes dictation support for Shanghainese, cricket scores for Siri, improved PDFKit APIs, and iCloud Analytics options.

Related Forum: macOS Sierra

Top Rated Comments

Jayderek Avatar
95 months ago
I know the feeling, but I'm going to assume Night Shift will be optional and default to being off (an approach I wish Apple chose for nearly all new features since about Leopard...). If anyone with the beta would like to comfirm that'd be nice.
of course this is optional - so ridiculous for people to get all up in arms about features that they don't use themselves.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
talmy Avatar
95 months ago
Yet another 'feature' that makes me say 'thanks for that, how do I turn it off permanently?'

I can't be the only one who paid a fortune for a monitor that displays the right colours?
It's off by default.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
C DM Avatar
95 months ago
Really? Tell me how to permanently turn off emoji on my iPhone then.
Remove the emoji keyboard from settings and don't use emoji.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
bbfc Avatar
95 months ago
Probably for now, but once Apple decides that its good for you, then I don't expect to be able to turn it off, that is the new Apple, who appears to have the goal to force the world to do what it thinks is correct, instead of letting the user decide.
You honestly think Apple will not allow you to turn Night Shift off in the future? All features are optional. Why on earth would they make it non-optional!
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Zirel Avatar
95 months ago
Probably for now, but once Apple decides that its good for you, then I don't expect to be able to turn it off, that is the new Apple, who appears to have the goal to force the world to do what it thinks is correct, instead of letting the user decide.
This is what makes "MacRumors", "MacRumors", unbeilable!

Enjoy Windows 10, and ads on the start menu!
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
AndyUnderscoreR Avatar
95 months ago
Yet another 'feature' that makes me say 'thanks for that, how do I turn it off permanently?'

I can't be the only one who paid a fortune for a monitor that displays the right colours?
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)

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