Eight Useful Mac Apps Worth Checking Out
Mac apps can often go under the radar, with apps for the iPhone and iPad receiving more attention. For that reason, we have a Mac-focused video series that highlights useful Mac apps we've come across. Our first picks of the year are largely simple, one-task apps that add utility to your Mac.
- Ice Menu Bar Manager (Free) - Ice is a menu bar management tool that's an alternative to Bartender. Last year, Bartender was quietly acquired by a less than trustworthy company, and many no longer want to use it. Ice has a rich feature set. You can rearrange menu bar apps, change the look of the menu bar with colors, hide cruft, and more.
- DropOver ($5.99)- DropOver is a simple macOS app that enhances the Mac's Drag and Drop functionality. You can grab multiple files and move them around without opening side-by-side windows. You activate DropOver with a shake of the cursor, add items to a "shelf" and then you can move to your destination folder and unload them.
- Latest (Free) - Latest is a super simple app that checks to ensure that your apps are up to date. It supports apps that use the Mac App Store and those that use Sparkle for updates, which is a good deal of the Mac apps out there.
- NotchNook ($25) - NotchNook turns your Mac's notch into a little Mac version of a Dynamic Island. You can click into it and get shortcuts like a media player, the Calendar, quick notes, and more, plus it has drag and drop functionality that makes it easy to move files and send them using AirDrop. It's $25, or $3 per month.
- Shortwave (Free, but unlocking more features costs $7/month) - Shortwave is yet another email app, but it uses AI in a helpful way. It organizes your inbox to surface what's most important, it can create to-dos for you, add labels, archive unimportant email threads, search for content, alert you to emails that still need a response, and more. You can also use AI to summarize emails and get writing help, with the AI able to respond in your own voice based on past email correspondence. This is not a bare bones email app, so note that it can take some time to get used to. This is a subscription app and it starts at $7 per month, paid annually.
- Local Send (Free) - If you need to share content between an iOS device or Mac and an Android device or a Windows PC, you can do so with Local Send. This is great if you're not entirely in the Apple ecosystem, because AirDrop doesn't work on non-Apple devices.
- Hyperduck ($4) - With Hyperduck, you can share links between your Macs, iPhones, and iPads with more control than AirDrop. You can, for example, save a webpage on your iPhone and have it open up later on your Mac, even if your Mac isn't turned on when you first save the website.
- Rocket (Free) - Rocket is another simple, one-function app that lets you add emojis in any app. Press on the colon key and then start typing in the emoji that you want. It's free to use, but a pro version adds options for adding GIFs and images.
Know of a great Mac app that we haven't highlighted yet? Let us know in the comments below and we might feature it in a future video. For more of our Mac app picks, check out our Mac apps archive.
Popular Stories
iOS 18.3 was released last month, so the first iOS 18.4 beta should be coming soon. iOS 18.4 is expected to be a more substantial update for the iPhone, with several new features and changes related to Apple Intelligence and beyond.
Apple's website suggests that iOS 18.4 will be released in April, following beta testing. Below, we outline what to expect from the update so far.
Apple...
If you pay for iCloud storage on your iPhone, Apple has a new perk for you, at no additional cost.
iCloud+ is the official name for Apple's paid iCloud storage plans, which range from 50GB for $0.99 per month to 12TB for $59.99 per month in the United States. iCloud+ plans already come with multiple perks for free, such as Hide My Email and HomeKit Secure Video, and now there is another one...
Apple's next-generation iPhone SE could debut as soon as next week with a launch to follow later in February, reports Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Apple isn't expected to hold an event for the iPhone SE 4, and will instead unveil the device through a press release.
The iPhone SE 4 is expected to have an iPhone 14-style design, with Apple eliminating the thick bezels and Touch ID Home button of...
Apple is internally testing iOS 18.3.1 for iPhones, according to our website's analytics logs, which have been a consistently reliable indicator of upcoming iOS versions. The software update should be released within the next few weeks.
iOS 18.3.1 should be a minor update that addresses software bugs and/or security vulnerabilities. Apple Intelligence notification summaries for news and...
Apple hasn't refreshed the Apple TV since 2022, but rumors suggest that we're finally going to get an update in 2025. We don't have a full picture of what to expect yet, but we have some hints on what's coming.
Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.
Updated A-Series Chip
The current Apple TV 4K uses the A15 Bionic chip that was in the iPhone 13 lineup, and it's time for...
The British government has secretly demanded that Apple give it blanket access to all encrypted user content uploaded to the cloud, reports The Washington Post.
The undisclosed order is said to have been issued last month, and requires that Apple creates a back door that allows UK security officials unencumbered access to encrypted user data worldwide – an unprecedented demand not before...
Last year, we reported that Apple sued its former software engineer Andrew Aude for providing journalists with confidential information about the company's future plans, including details about the Journal app, Vision Pro headset, and more.
As reported by 9to5Mac, the Superior Court of Santa Clara County on Thursday dismissed the lawsuit after Apple and Aude reached an agreement to resolve...
The end of an 18-year era is on the horizon for the iPhone.
Apple reportedly plans to announce a new iPhone SE as soon as next week, and the device is expected to feature a full-screen design with Face ID, instead of a Touch ID home button. That means Apple will no longer sell any new iPhone models with a home button, for the first time since the original iPhone launched.
The home button...