How macOS Sonoma is different from Intel Macs

At WWDC 2023 event, the Cupertino-based tech firm previewed the new operating system for Macs. The new macOS is termed macOS Sonoma. It is the latest version of the Mac operating system. The company will launch the macOS Sonoma before the end of this year. Reportedly, the new macOS has several new features that are unique to it. Some of these features can’t be found on Intel-based Macs, according to Apple.

The information was fetched from the features page of macOS Sonoma. As per the information, the features that are exclusive to macOS Sonoma require a laptop to be powered by an Apple silicon chip. Some of the unique features are listed below.

• Presenter Overlay: In any video conferencing program, the presenter overlay feature shows the user the content they’re sharing.
• Game Mode: This feature prioritizes CPU and GPU performance while gaming. It minimizes the performance of background tasks.
• The Screen Sharing app is accompanied by a new high-performance mode
• It features the capability to immediately pair Made for iPhone hearing aids with a Mac.
• Users can give commands to Siri by just saying ‘Siri’ instead of the “Hey Siri” phrase.

Well, the tech firm has not shared any details why these features are not available to Intel Macs. However, it might be relevant to the performance of Macs. Since the Apple silicon Macs contain a Neural Engine that is responsible for machine learning tasks. Apple introduced the Intel-based Macs back in 2020. Since then, the company has shifted towards its own custom-designed processors. After a new Mac Pro with the M2 Ultra chip was unveiled this week, the switch to Apple silicon is now complete.

The company will possibly release the macOS Sonoma to the general public in October. Do note that the macOS Sonoma is supported on Macs introduced in December 2017 and later onwards. In addition to this, the company has now enabled free downloading and installing of recent betas for developers.