Apple could roll out the much-anticipated macOS Catalina update for the MacBook (opens in new tab), MacBook Air (opens in new tab), MacBook Pro (opens in new tab) and iMac (opens in new tab) as soon as this week, according to information that was spotted on the Danish version of the company's before it was later removed.
Specifically, MacRumors uncovered (opens in new tab) a reference on the macOS Catalina section of Apple's website that said that Apple Arcade (opens in new tab) would be available from October 4 – hinting that's when the next version of macOS will finally start making the rounds.
- All the best features coming to your Mac with macOS Catalina (opens in new tab)
Announced in June, macOS Catalina is Apple's vision for the future of Mac.
Naturally, it's overflowing with new features, with Sidecar being the star of the show – an innovative tool that lets you turn an iPad (opens in new tab) into a second screen for your iMac or MacBook. But that's just the tip of the iceberg; there's a lot more to be had here.
macOS Catalina also does away with iTunes in favour of three standalone applications: Music, Podcasts and TV to deliver a straightforward user experience. Instead, hardware – an iPhone 11, for example – will be managed through Finder.
Plus, Screen Time has been brought over from iOS to macOS for keeping track of usage, there are new options for Mail and Notes, security has been beefed up across the board, and there's the facility to approve security prompts from Apple Watch.
The full list of everything macOS Catalina brings to the table is too long to list here, so if you want to find out more about what the software will do to your iMac, MacBook, MacBook Air, MacBook Pro and Mac Mini (opens in new tab), head over to Apple's website (opens in new tab).
While macOS Catalina introduces a mound of new features, its hardware requirements remain the same as for the current macOS Mojave – if you can run Mojave, you can run Catalina. All you need to do is install it when it starts rolling out.
Here are the Macs that meet the requirements:
- iMac (2012 or later)
- iMac Pro (2017 or later)
- MacBook (2015 and later)
- MacBook Air (2012 or later)
- MacBook Pro (2012 or later)
- Mac Mini (2012 or later)
- Mac Pro (2013 or later)
To be clear, this isn't confirmation that macOS Catalina will launch on October 4. All we know for certain is that Apple will start circulating it sometime in October. This could be October 2, October 4, October 24, October 31 or any time in between.
We'll have to wait and see – for now, at least.
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