macOS Tahoe Brings Two iPhone Apps to Your Mac

by

The upcoming macOS Tahoe update adds three pre-installed Apple apps to all compatible Macs: Phone, Journal, and Games.

macos tahoe design
Phone and Journal come from the iPhone, while Games is entirely new. Below, we provide an overview of each of these apps.

macOS Tahoe is currently available as a developer beta, and the update will likely be released to the general public in September.

Phone

macOS Tahoe Phone App
Macs could already answer iPhone calls thanks to Apple's cross-platform Continuity features, but macOS Tahoe goes a step further.

Apple has expanded the Phone app to the Mac, complete with all of the new features coming to the app with iOS 26, such as Hold Assist, Call Screening, Live Translation, and more. The app syncs with your iPhone, allowing you to view recent phone calls and expanded contact cards, listen to voicemail messages, and more directly on your Mac.

Here is how Apple describes the Phone app on Mac:

The Phone app on Mac has the familiar features of the Phone app on iPhone — including Recents, Favorites, and Voicemails — and the latest updates like Call Screening and Hold Assist. Call Screening automatically answers calls from unknown numbers and asks the caller for information so a user can decide whether or not to answer. And when a user is stuck on hold, Hold Assist allows them to keep their spot in line while they wait for a live agent, so users can continue working on their Mac.

Journal

ios 18 journal app
Apple introduced a Journal app on the iPhone with iOS 17, and it is now available on the Mac too. You can use this app to type out your daily thoughts, and you can include drawings, handwriting, photos, videos, audio recordings, and more.

On the Mac, users can take advantage of the Journal app's new features, including the options to create multiple journals and view the locations of journal entries on a map.

Games

macOS Tahoe Games App
The all-new Games app on the Mac, iPad, and iPhone is an all-in-one hub for your App Store and Apple Arcade games, and in-game events. There are also new single-player game challenges available for competing with friends and family.

Related Roundup: macOS Tahoe 26
Related Forum: macOS Tahoe

Popular Stories

Alleged iPhone 17 Pro Antenna Design

Two All-New iPhone 17 Colors Seemingly Confirmed

Monday August 25, 2025 4:22 am PDT by
Apple will offer the upcoming iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max in a new orange color, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Gurman made the claim in the latest edition of his Power On newsletter, adding that the new iPhone 17 Air – replacing the iPhone 16 Plus – will come in a new light blue color. We've heard multiple rumors about a new iPhone 17 Pro color being a shade of orange. The ...
Read Full Article • 65 comments
AirPods Pro 3 Heart Rate Tracking Feature

AirPods Pro 3 Expected to Launch This Year With Key New Feature

Sunday August 24, 2025 7:16 am PDT by
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman expects Apple to release new AirPods Pro this year, and he said the earbuds will have a key new feature: heart rate monitoring. From his Power On newsletter today, with emphasis added:As for Apple's other devices, there's a lot in the fall pipeline — though many of the new products are only incremental upgrades. There will be Apple Watch updates, faster Vision...
Read Full Article • 73 comments
iPhone 17 Pro on Desk Centered 1

iPhone 17 Pro Coming Soon With These 12 New Features

Sunday August 24, 2025 6:00 am PDT by
Apple's iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max should be unveiled in a few more weeks, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman corroborated a rumor that iPhone 17 Pro models will be "available in an orange color." Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are...
Read Full Article • 46 comments
iPhone 17 Air Thumb 2 Blue Electric Boogaloo

Apple Has Reportedly Considered Releasing iPhone 17 Air Bumper Case

Sunday August 24, 2025 12:40 pm PDT by
Apple has "considered" releasing a bumper case for the upcoming iPhone 17 Air, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Similar to the bumper case that Apple introduced for the iPhone 4 in 2010, Gurman said the iPhone 17 Air version of the case would cover the edges of the device, but not the back of it. Those bumper cases were made of rubber. Given that the iPhone 17 Air is expected to have ...
Read Full Article • 90 comments
Awe Dropping Apple Event Feature

Five Things to Expect From Apple's 'Awe Dropping' September 9 Event

Tuesday August 26, 2025 4:17 pm PDT by
Apple today announced its "Awe Dropping" iPhone-centric event, which is set to take place on Tuesday, September 9 at 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time. There are a long list of products that are coming, but we thought we'd pull out five feature highlights to look forward to. That Super Thin iPhone - Apple's September 9 event will see the unveiling of the first redesigned iPhone we've had in years, ...
Read Full Article • 106 comments
awe dropping event

Apple Event Announced for September 9: 'Awe Dropping'

Tuesday August 26, 2025 9:01 am PDT by
Apple will hold its annual iPhone-centric event on Tuesday, September 9 at the Apple Park campus in Cupertino, California, according to an announcement that went out today. The event will start at 10:00 a.m., with select members of the media invited to attend. At the September 2025 iPhone event, Apple will unveil the iPhone 17 lineup, which includes an all-new ultra-thin iPhone 17 Air. It...
Read Full Article • 217 comments
Awe Dropping Apple Event Feature

Apple Event Logo Hints at Two iPhone 17 Pro Features

Wednesday August 27, 2025 6:36 am PDT by
Apple's logo for its upcoming September 9 event hints at two rumored iPhone 17 Pro features, including new color options and a vapor chamber cooling system. Of course, this is all just speculation for fun, as we count down the final days until the event. New Colors Last month, Macworld's Filipe Espósito reported that orange and dark blue would be two out of the five color options...
Read Full Article • 111 comments
airpods pro 2 gradient

AirPods Pro 3: Four Key Design Changes Anticipated

Tuesday August 26, 2025 4:05 am PDT by
Apple hasn't updated the AirPods Pro since 2022 other than a shift from Lightning to USB-C, and the earbuds are due for a refresh. According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Apple will launch AirPods Pro 3 later this year, and apart from new features like heart rate monitoring, we're also expecting a few design changes. The fourth‑generation AirPods offer useful clues to Apple's design cues for ...
Read Full Article • 34 comments

Top Rated Comments

ignatius345 Avatar
ignatius345
9 weeks ago
I'm glad they saw the light with Journal. Now I just want the rest of the Health app on my Mac. I have a growing trove of data (my data!) in there, but I can only view and interact with it on my phone, the second smallest screen I own. I don't understand the logic there at all.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Cristim74 Avatar
Cristim74
9 weeks ago
The two iPhone apps: Phone, Journal, and Games :)
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
vegetassj4 Avatar
vegetassj4
9 weeks ago
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Apple Brings “Phone” and “Journal” to Mac, Continues Epic Quest to Avoid Putting macOS on iPad

CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA — June 26, 2025 — Apple® today triumphantly announced the arrival of the Phone and Journal apps on Mac®, finally answering a prayer no one uttered. Because while the entire tech world begged for macOS on iPad, we thought: “What if... phone app on desktop?”

We know you’ve been dying to take awkward phone calls on your MacBook in public, and now, dreams you didn’t know you shouldn’t have are coming true.

[HEADING=2]Introducing Apps You Already Had, But Bigger:[/HEADING]

* Phone on Mac: Because fumbling with your iPhone for a spam call from “Potential Scam” was just too convenient. Now enjoy it in glorious 16-inch Retina™ while your AirPods refuse to switch properly.
* Journal on Mac: Document your gratitude and emotional growth directly between hate-scrolling Twitter and doom-refreshing Slack. It's the analog soul-soothing experience you wanted—on a device with 36 Chrome tabs open.

“These new apps represent our deep commitment to giving users features they didn’t ask for, while completely sidestepping the one thing they’ve been begging us to do for years,” said Craig Federighi, pausing only to stare wistfully at an iPad running Final Cut in a sandboxed nightmare. “macOS on iPad? Too obvious. Too useful. Too soon.”

This move is part of Apple’s long-term strategy of “Platform Confusion as a Service™,” keeping all your devices slightly inconsistent in the name of magical experiences™.

[HEADING=2]A Vision for the Future[/HEADING]
Instead of unifying platforms or admitting the iPad could just be a Mac with touch, we remain committed to bringing iPhone apps to Mac one at a time, very slowly, while reminding you the iPad is “a computer, but different,” except where it’s not, but kind of is, until it’s not again.

Availability
Phone and Journal will arrive with macOS Sequoia™ this fall. macOS on iPad will arrive right after hell freezes over or the butterfly keyboard makes a comeback—whichever happens first.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TheHeron Avatar
TheHeron
9 weeks ago
Good to see Phone. It's been silly that I could answer a call on my Mac, but unless I wanted FaceTime I couldn't make calls with it.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
snak-atak Avatar
snak-atak
9 weeks ago

Bloatware for $500 Alex!

In macOS Tahoe these 2 iphone apps are ...

What is JOurnal and GAmes?

Correct!

I'll take Bloatware for $400 ....
What’s bloatware for one is a treasure for another. I for one am looking forward to Journal for Mac and iPad as well as iPhone.

That’s not to say that the app itself isn’t bloated. It is, and it’ll probably get even more bloated before long. A journal should be lean and efficient. I don’t need state of mind suggestions and I don’t need to know how many words I’ve written.

I do agree that they should make apps like these available on the App Store for free to download instead of a default part of the os. If it’s not integral to the operating system, don’t force it on every Mac. If they do that, then that’s bloatware!
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
russell_314 Avatar
russell_314
9 weeks ago

I do agree that they should make apps like these available on the App Store for free to download instead of a default part of the os.
User: I deleted the Phone app and now I can’t get phone calls on my Mac

Apple tech support: Sir you need to redownload it from the App Store.

User: What App Store? I don’t see that on my phone. You guys are just trying to scam me so I have to buy another MacBook!


Yeah that’s the reason some apps are part of the OS. Apple doesn’t want to deal with calls like this from angry users.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Read All Comments