Apple Seeds Fourth macOS Monterey 12.3 Beta to Developers [Update: Public Beta Available]

Apple today seeded the fourth beta of an upcoming macOS macOS Monterey 12.3 update to developers for testing purposes, with the new software coming a week after the release of the third macOS Monterey 12.3 beta.

macOS Monterey on MBP Feature
Registered developers can download the beta through the Apple Developer Center and after the appropriate profile is installed, betas will be available through the Software Update mechanism in System Preferences.

macOS Monterey 12.3 is a major update that introduces Universal Control, a feature that Apple first teased at WWDC and then delayed for several months. ‌Universal Control‌ is designed to allow you to use a single mouse/trackpad and keyboard across multiple Macs and iPads (with iPads running iPadOS 15.4).

After updating your devices to macOS 12.3 and iPadOS 15.4, ‌Universal Control‌ works automatically, allowing your Mac's cursor and keyboard to work on the iPad and vice versa. It's simple and intuitive to use.

macOS Monterey 12.3 adds support for updating the AirPods firmware when the earbuds are connected to a Mac, plus it deprecates kernel extensions used by Dropbox and Microsoft OneDrive, and it eliminates Python 2, with Apple instructing developers to use an alternative scripting language like Python 3 going forward.

There are also new emoji characters, including melting face, biting lip, heart hands, bubbles, beans, face with diagonal mouth, palm up hand, eggs, troll, low battery, coral, lotus, and more.

Related Forum: macOS Monterey

Popular Stories

Apple Shopping Event 2025

Apple Announces 2025 Black Friday Event, Here's What You Can Get

Thursday November 20, 2025 6:28 am PST by
Apple's annual four-day Black Friday through Cyber Monday shopping event is returning on Friday, November 28 through Monday, December 1 in many countries, including the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden, Thailand, and others. During the shopping event, customers can get an Apple gift card with...
iPhone 17 Pro Cosmic Orange

10 Reasons to Wait for Next Year's iPhone 18 Pro

Wednesday November 19, 2025 4:00 am PST by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models at the same time, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 18 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. One thing worth...
applecare apple care banner

Apple Brings New AppleCare+ Options to India

Tuesday November 18, 2025 8:42 am PST by
Apple today announced an expansion of AppleCare+ coverage in India, with new options for monthly and annual plans, and the addition of Theft and Loss for iPhone for the first time. Options for monthly and annual AppleCare+ plans in India provide more choice and flexibility, allowing users to keep coverage for as long as they require. Apple's vice president of Worldwide iPhone Product...
iOS 26

Everything New in iOS 26.2 Beta 3

Monday November 17, 2025 3:20 pm PST by
Apple provided developers with the third beta of an upcoming iOS 26.2 update, and there are still new features that are being added with each beta that we get. We've rounded up all of the changes that Apple made in beta 3. AirDrop Apple added new AirDrop functionality, providing a way for two people to share files temporarily without having to add one another as contacts. iOS 26.2...
ipad mini 7 feature red and blue

iPad Mini 8: Four Major New Features to Expect

Wednesday November 19, 2025 7:50 am PST by
Apple's eighth-generation iPad mini is highly likely to arrive next year, offering a significant refresh of the device with at least four major new features. OLED Display The next-generation version of the iPad mini could feature an OLED display, as part of Apple's plan to expand the display technology across many more of its devices. Apple's first OLED device was the Apple Watch in 2015, ...
Apple Wallet ID Illinois

iPhone Driver's License Feature Launching in Illinois

Tuesday November 18, 2025 8:47 am PST by
In select U.S. states, residents can add their driver's license or state ID to the Wallet app on the iPhone and Apple Watch, providing a convenient and contactless way to display proof of identity or age at select airports and businesses, and in select apps. Starting this Wednesday, November 19, the feature will be available to residents of Illinois. The announcement confirmed that the...
iPhone 17 Pro and Air N1 Feature

iPhone 17 vs. iPhone 16 Wi-Fi Speeds: New Study Reveals the Winner

Tuesday November 18, 2025 10:53 am PST by
A new study has revealed that the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max, and iPhone Air achieve significantly faster average Wi-Fi speeds compared to the iPhone 16 series, thanks to Apple's custom-designed N1 chip. The study was conducted by Ookla, the company behind the popular Speedtest website and app. It said the results are based on global, crowdsourced Speedtest user data...
macbook black friday

The Best Early Black Friday Mac Deals

Tuesday November 18, 2025 7:32 am PST by
We're getting closer to Black Friday, which lands next week on Friday, November 28. In the lead-up to the shopping holiday, we're tracking a few lowest-ever prices on Apple's most popular Macs, including the M4 MacBook Air and brand new M5 MacBook Pro. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment,...
Magic Keyboard Touch ID Feature

Apple Releases New Firmware for 140W USB-C Power Adapter, Magic Keyboard and Magic Trackpad

Tuesday November 18, 2025 1:05 pm PST by
Apple today released updated firmware for several accessories, including the 140W USB-C Power Adapter, the Magic Trackpad 2, the Magic Trackpad USB-C, the Magic Keyboard with Touch ID, and the Magic Keyboard with Touch ID and Numeric Keypad. There is no word on what's included in the updated firmware at this time, but it could offer performance improvements and security updates. Accessory...
watchos 26 workout app

Apple Watch Users Claim Workout App Is Now Worse in Every Way

Thursday November 20, 2025 7:01 am PST by
Apple Watch owners have been voicing their frustration online over changes to the Workout app that Apple introduced in watchOS 26, with many finding the redesigned interface makes starting exercises difficult and exasperating. When Apple launched watchOS 26 in September, the Workout app went from large, easily tapped workout tiles to a scrolling, corner-button interface. Instead of tapping a ...

Top Rated Comments

Realityck Avatar
49 months ago
Hope this addresses some of the outstanding issues.
macOS 12.3 beta 4 (21E5222a)

[SPOILER="macOS Monterey 12.3 Beta 4 Release Notes"]
[HEADING=2]FaceTime[/HEADING]
[HEADING=3]Resolved in macOS Monterey 12.3 Beta 4[/HEADING]

* Fixed: On iOS and macOS, it’s possible to trigger taking a photo of a participant when in a Group FaceTime call. On iOS, this could occur when you tap the Grid button or the bottom-left corner of the screen. On macOS, this could occur when you click the Grid button or the top-right corner of the window. (88720303)

[HEADING=2]Kernel[/HEADING]
[HEADING=3]Deprecations[/HEADING]

* The kernel extensions used by Dropbox Desktop Application and Microsoft OneDrive are no longer available. Both service providers have replacements for this functionality; Dropbox is currently in beta. (85890896)

[HEADING=2]LibreSSL[/HEADING]
[HEADING=3]Resolved in macOS Monterey 12.3 Beta 4[/HEADING]

* Fixed: LibreSSL 3.3 has changed the default digest type of openssl enc Terminal command to SHA256. Files previously encrypted with an older version of OpenSSL might fail to decrypt. (87763613)

[HEADING=2]Python[/HEADING]
[HEADING=3]Deprecations[/HEADING]

* Python 2.7 was removed from macOS in this update. Developers should use Python 3 or an alternative language instead. (39795874)

[HEADING=2]Safari[/HEADING]
[HEADING=3]Resolved in macOS Monterey 12.3 Beta 4[/HEADING]

* Fixed: Safari might crash upon loading webpages on a Mac with Apple silicon. (88222677)

[HEADING=2]ScreenCaptureKit[/HEADING]
[HEADING=3]Resolved in macOS Monterey 12.3 Beta 4[/HEADING]

* Fixed: In ScreenCaptureKit ('https://developer.apple.com/documentation/screencapturekit'), if an origin other than (0,0) is specified in the destinationRect ('https://developer.apple.com/documentation/screencapturekit/scstreamconfiguration/3919822-destinationrect') or sourceRect ('https://developer.apple.com/documentation/screencapturekit/scstreamconfiguration/3919829-sourcerect'), the contentRect is incorrect. (87363220)

[HEADING=2]Universal Control[/HEADING]
[HEADING=3]Known Issues[/HEADING]

* Unexpected disconnections might occur on initial connection. (88106231)
Workaround: Sleep, then wake the device, and try again.
* Drag-and-drop scenarios might not work for some file types and apps. (88106322)
* Some third-party keyboards and mice might encounter issues when using additional functionality, like scroll wheels. (88106362)

[HEADING=2]WebKit[/HEADING]
[HEADING=3]Resolved in macOS Monterey 12.3 Beta 4[/HEADING]

* Fixed: Using the App Store might lead to an authentication loop in which the HTML sheet has no content. (87850345)

[HEADING=3]Deprecations[/HEADING]

* Support for inline viewing of PostScript files is no longer available. (88172449)


[/SPOILER]

This one is important if it actually has been addressed.

* Fixed: Safari might crash upon loading webpages on a Mac with Apple silicon. (88222677)
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
johnalan Avatar
49 months ago
I've been using macOS/X since Panther.
It's always felt ultra compressed - perfect in form.

I've been aware of sloppy stuff since Catalina.

For example, you can see your trusted devices on iCloud.com and it lists all devices and their Apple Pay cards. On id.apple.com, the cards are missing from the Macs, not from the iDevices. On System Preferences, the same.


It's getting messy, even look at this stylistic disparity in the same config Window in macOS:







* Want / Wish
* a 30 day period / 30 days to




This might seem minor, and it is, but this is the type of slop that's been slowly creeping in.

Attachment Image

Attachment Image
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Jimmy_Banks Avatar
49 months ago
Memory leak fixes please.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
DHagan4755 Avatar
49 months ago

Hope this addresses some of the outstanding issues.
Yeah like the Apple Music app sucking ('https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/can-we-talk-about-how-apple-music-is-a-mess-on-monterey.2335508/').
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MallardDuck Avatar
49 months ago
Maybe this one will finally fix the USB bugs
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Realityck Avatar
49 months ago
Beta 4
Safari Version 15.4 (17613.1.17.1.5)

System Firmware Version: 7459.101.2 (M1 based Macs)

Darwin Kernel Version 21.4.0: Mon Feb 14 22:26:41 PST 2022; root:xnu-8020.101.3~4/RELEASE_ARM64_T8101 arm64

Beta 3
Safari is Version 15.4 (17613.1.16.1.6)

System Firmware Version: 7459.100.504.0.1 (M1 based Macs)

Darwin Kernel Version 21.4.0: Mon Feb 7 21:32:19 PST 2022; root:xnu-8020.100.429.131.1~2/RELEASE_ARM64_T8101 arm64
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)