macOS Sierra 10.12.1 Public Beta Officially Released

Hot on the heels of seeding the developer beta and the second public beta, Apple has released the third public beta of macOS Sierra 10.12.1. It’s been two weeks since Apple circulated macOS Sierra to the public. The update mostly provides bug fixes and speed enhancements and other routine patches for issues that have come to light since the release of Sierra. You can snag this beta through the Mac App Store if you’re a part of the Beta Software Program, which gives you access to both the macOS beta as well as the iOS beta.

It also includes improvements to the Photos app with support for iOS 10.1’s Portrait Mode, which enables high quality portraits, enhancing focus on the subject while blurring the background by using an effect known in photography-speak as “bokeh”.

macOS Sierra is the newest iteration of Apple’s desktop operating platform, succeeding OS X El Capitan, and will be automatically downloaded onto compatible Macs with enough space. It brings Siri, cross-device copy and paste functions, picture-in-picture viewing, improved iCloud features, and the ability to unlock a Mac with an Apple Watch in close proximity, among other things.

In addition to the third public macOS Sierra beta, Apple has also released watchOS 3.1 and tvOS 10.0.1, which are also routine maintenance updates for Apple’s smartwatch and TV products.

Rumor has it that a new touch bar-equipped MacBook Pro is in the pipeline for later this year, meaning full-fledged versions of these updates may also be impending.