Apple Seeds macOS Sonoma 14.4 Release Candidate
Apple today seeded the release candidate version of an upcoming macOS Sonoma 14.4 update to developers for testing purposes, with the software coming a week after the release of the fifth beta. The release candidate marks the final version of the macOS Sonoma 14.4 update that will be provided to the public.

Registered developers can opt-in to the beta through the Software Update section of the System Settings app. Note that an Apple ID associated with an Apple Developer account is required to get the beta.
macOS Sonoma 14.4 introduces new emoji characters, podcast episode text, and an option to only show icons for websites in the Safari Favorites Bar. The update also supports the new MacBook Air models that were introduced today.
macOS Sonoma 14.4 introduces new emoji as well as other features, bug fixes, and security updates for your Mac.
Emoji
- New mushroom, phoenix, lime, broken chain, and shaking heads emoji are now available in emoji keyboard
- 18 people and body emoji support facing the opposite direction
This update also includes the following improvements and bug fixes:
- Podcasts Episode text can be read in full, searched for a word or phrase, clicked to play from a specific point and used with accessibility features such as Text Size, Increase Contrast, and VoiceOver
- Business Updates in Messages for Business let you get updates that you've opted into, like order status, flight notifications, fraud alerts or other transactions from trusted businesses
- Safari Favorites Bar adds an option to show only icons for websites
Some features may not be available for all regions, or on all Apple devices.
For detailed information about the security content of this update, please visit: https://support.apple.com/kb/HT201222
macOS Sonoma 14.4 could see a public release as soon as this week.
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