Skip to main content

OS X Yosemite 10.10.3 launches just in time for new MacBook release

27-inch iMac with Retina 5K Display
Image used with permission by copyright holder
Apple has just pushed out a new version of OS X Yosemite to Mac users that brings with it some pretty substantial changes. The two biggest tweaks in 10.10.3 come in the form of the new Photos app and fixes that promise to solve the Wi-Fi issues that have plagued many OS X Yosemite users. There’s also improvements to Spotlight Search, Safari stability improvements, and more.

The new Photos app, which replaces the clunky iPhoto app, aims to bring the experience of browsing photos on a Mac in line with that offered on iOS. It makes it easier to browse and organize photos based on time and location, and it also lets users store photos in iCloud at their original resolution.

Recommended Videos

While it certainly won’t replace Photoshop for detailed photo editing, the new app does feature some simple editing tools that work with just a series of sliders. For more casual Mac users who aren’t interested in professional-grade editing options, this will definitely do the job.

The other major change, and one that isn’t new with the announcement of an OS X Yosemite update, is improvements to Wi-Fi. Versions 10.1 and 10.2 both included vague updates that promised to improve Wi-Fi, and 10.3 offers the same. Hopefully Apple has locked it down this time, but stating that the update “improves Wi-Fi performance and connectivity in various usage scenarios” doesn’t tell us much, and it will take some time before we see user reports stating whether or not Wi-Fi conditions have improved.

Other smaller changes come to Spotlight, which adds suggestions for Look Up. There’s also some small privacy and stability fixes for Safari, and some improvements to Bluetooth. Business users will find a fix for the problem where a Mac connected to an Active Directory server became unresponsive and some other small enterprise tweaks.

As will all Mac updates, this one can be downloaded from the App Store.

Dave LeClair
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Dave LeClair has been writing about tech and gaming since 2007. He's covered events, hosted podcasts, created videos, and…
The macOS Sequoia public beta just launched. Here’s how to download it
Apple's Craig Federighi introducing the new window tiling feature in macOS Sequoia at the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) 2024.

The public beta for macOS Sequoia is here, and that means anyone with a compatible device can install it and try it out -- no paid developer memberships needed. Here's how to get it.

First of all, you'll need a PC that can run macOS Sequoia. This is the list of compatible models:

Read more
The MacBook Air just got a huge price cut
The gold MacBook Air M1's logo and keyboard.

Apple doesn't currently sell the M1 MacBook Air, meaning its price at third-party retailers is constantly in flux. But in time for back-to-school season, (and ahead of Prime Day next week), Apple and Walmart have announced that it's being sold at a surprising new starting price of $649. These aren't refurbished or preowned laptops, either -- at least, not according to the listing.

Of course, this is the M1 model, the first Apple Silicon MacBook -- which means it uses an older chassis than the newer M2 or M3 models. This is also the base configuration, meaning it only comes with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. Walmart has all three colors on offer at this price too -- Space Gray, Silver, and Gold.

Read more
MacBooks are facing a new problem
The MacBook Air on a white table.

You might have noticed that Apple’s various Macs haven’t had many hardware changes in recent years. The design of the MacBook Pro has barely changed since 2021, while the Mac mini’s chassis has remained the same since 2020 (and has barely been altered in almost 15 years). The Mac Pro, meanwhile, is still rocking the same look it’s had since 2019.

The slowdown in changes is intentional on Apple's part, though it creates an obvious problem with how the company will get you excited about upgrading to devices in the future.
Longer-lasting devices
We shouldn’t really be too surprised about how we got here. Apple’s hardware designs are (usually) great, and they tend to last a lot longer than rivals’ devices, meaning there’s not a desperate need to regularly update them. Software, on the other hand, is moving so fast -- especially when it comes to AI -- that it makes a certain kind of sense that Apple prioritizes upgrades here over hardware tweaks.

Read more