Apple Announces OS X El Capitan With Split View, Contextual Spotlight, Updated Apps and More, Launches in Fall
Apple today announced OS X 10.11 El Capitan, the latest version of its Mac operating system. OS X El Capitan features new versions of multiple stock apps, including Safari, Mail and Notes, improved Spotlight search with natural language enhancements and contextually aware results, Metal for Mac and other features and refinements that Apple introduced during its WWDC keynote in San Francisco.

- Safari: A new pinned feature enables users to keep websites listed at the top of Safari, similar to a bookmarks bar. The browser also gains a universal mute feature that allows users to mute a website that is playing music, even with several tabs open.
- Mail: The new Mail app features enhancements to its full-screen mode, tabs in the compose window, the ability to hide in-progress messages and go back to the main Inbox. There are also new gestures built into Mail for archiving and deleting -- simply swipe on the trackpad.
- Spotlight: Apple has significantly improved Spotlight search in OS X El Capitan with natural language enhancements and contextually aware search results. "Get Mail from Brian about El Cap," for example.
- Metal for Mac: Metal for Mac has arrived, combining the computing power of OpenCL and graphics power of OpenGL into a new API that does both. 50% improvements in rendering with 40% less CPU processing power required for graphics. Metal on OS X El Capitan offers better battery life and improved graphics performance for both games and professional apps.
OS X 10.11 El Capitan is available to registered developers beginning today. It will be available in public beta in July and will publicly launch in the fall as a free software update for supported Macs.
We've created a new dedicated forum for OS X 10.11 El Capitan on the MacRumors forums, where you can discuss the new changes and features and learn new details about the upcoming update.
Popular Stories
Apple today introduced a new Apple Creator Studio bundle that offers access to six creative apps, as well as exclusive AI features and content, as part of a single subscription. In the U.S., pricing is set at $12.99 per month or $129 per year.
Here are the six apps included with an Apple Creator Studio subscription:Final Cut Pro on the Mac and iPad
Logic Pro on the Mac and iPad
Pixelmator...
Verizon is experiencing a major outage across the U.S. today, with hundreds of thousands of customers reporting issues with the network on the website Downdetector. There are also complaints across Reddit and other social media platforms.
iPhone users and others with Verizon service are generally unable to make phone calls, send text messages, or use data over 5G or LTE due to the outage....
While the iPhone 18 Pro models are still around eight months away, a leaker has shared some alleged details about the devices.
In a post on Chinese social media platform Weibo this week, the account Digital Chat Station said the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max will have the same 6.3-inch and 6.9-inch display sizes as the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max.
Consistent with previous...
Apple today seeded the second beta of iOS 26.3, nearly a month after the first beta. So far, the update includes a couple of new features for iPhones.
iOS 15.3 through iOS 18.3 were all released in late January over the years, so it is thereby likely that iOS 26.3 will be released towards the end of this month as well. The update is compatible with the iPhone 11 series and newer.
Below,...
Apple today released a firmware update for the AirPods Pro 3. The latest firmware has a version number of 8B34, up from the previous version 8B30.
Apple has a support document for AirPods firmware updates, and it indicates that the 8B34 update contains unspecified "bug fixes and other improvements."
No other AirPods models received firmware updates today.
How to install AirPods Pro...