Although Apple’s revamped personal assistant is no doubt the headlining feature in macOS 27 Golden Gate, there are many other new features and refinements in this year’s update that don’t involve Siri AI. Read our post as I cherry-pick a few of my favorite new macOS 27 updates, and be sure to watch our video as I walk through them all.

Wait a minute… Is Siri on the Mac good now?

It only took a decade, but with this week’s launch of macOS 27 Golden Gate, Siri has finally come to life on the Mac. It’s still in beta, and it’s not perfect, but the update represents a much improved and highly integrated experience that takes into account personal context while prioritizing privacy.

Watch my full video as I walk through the top macOS 27 features: Siri AI edition, and be sure to subscribe to 9to5Mac on YouTube for more videos.

Former Apple SVP of Retail Ron Johnson joins Overtime to discuss his new book, Shop Different: How Retail Revealed Apple’s Genius. Ron talks about the early days of the Apple Store, what it was like collaborating with Steve Jobs, the launch of the original iPhone, why he left Apple to be CEO of JCPenney, where he thinks Apple retail stands today, and, of course, his take on the iPhone Duo.

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Jeff and Fernando discuss their initial thoughts and impressions of the iPhone Duo, Apple’s first foldable smartphone.

Sponsored by Bitwarden: Register for the free, virtual Open Source Security Summit on September 17, featuring cybersecurity leaders David Sanger and Joseph Menn — and check out Bitwarden for trusted open source password, passkey, and secrets management, with end-to-end encryption and seamless autofill across all your devices.

Fernando connects from IFA in Berlin to discuss Apple’s forthcoming iPhone Ultra, alongside the five other products that will be announced at this Wednesday’s Surprise and Shine event.

Sponsored by Bitwarden: Register for the free, virtual Open Source Security Summit on September 17, featuring cybersecurity leaders David Sanger and Joseph Menn — and check out Bitwarden for trusted open source password, passkey, and secrets management, with end-to-end encryption and seamless autofill across all your devices.

Love Mario Kart 64 and want to play it on iPhone? You may have tried Delta or another N64 emulator in the past to make that happen. And while that works, it’s now possible to run the classic cart racer with native Metal rendering on iPhone. 

As we’ll discuss in this video and post, running Mario Kart 64 with native Metal rendering presents several key advantages over running the same game via an emulator. Combined with a Bluetooth controller like the Mocagen MC1, it’s the best way to play Nintendo’s classic cart racer on iPhone.

Jeff and Fernando delve into the $899 Mac mini, comparing the outgoing M4 model and the new M6 Mac mini. They also discuss the new M5 Pro Mac mini and Apple’s new Mac Studio desktops equipped with M5 Max and M5 Ultra SoCs. Finally, the duo previews Apple’s upcoming ‘Surprise and Shine’ iPhone event.

9to5Mac Overtime is a weekly video-first podcast exploring fun and interesting observations in the Apple ecosystem, featuring 9to5Mac’s Fernando Silva & Jeff Benjamin. Subscribe to Overtime via Apple Podcasts and our YouTube channel for more.

The Sonnet Echo 21 Thunderbolt 5 SuperDock, the follow-up to the similarly named Echo 20 Thunderbolt 4 SuperDock (review), lets you add tons of I/O to your Mac via a single Thunderbolt cable, and brings several noteworthy improvements for those looking to upgrade or future-proof their Mac setups.

Perfect for both laptops like the MacBook Pro, and desktop machines like the just-announced M5 Pro Mac mini, the Echo 21 SuperDock adds a vast array of I/O to these machines. Watch our full hands-on video walkthrough for the details, and be sure to subscribe to 9to5mac on YouTube for more.

Jeff and Fernando discuss Apple’s recent leak of the upcoming AirPods featuring integrated cameras, and why they might be a much bigger deal than they seem on the surface. Is this Apple’s more privacy-centric alternative to the often-criticized and controversial Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses?

9to5Mac Overtime is a weekly video-first podcast exploring fun and interesting observations in the Apple ecosystem, featuring 9to5Mac’s Fernando Silva & Jeff Benjamin. Subscribe to Overtime via Apple Podcasts and our YouTube channel for more.

Even Realities CEO, Will Wang, joins Overtime to talk about his history with Apple, why Silicon Valley is no longer the place for hardware innovations, insights into the Apple supply chain and China, the Even Realities G2, privacy challenges, and why smart glasses are the future of tech.

9to5Mac Overtime is a weekly video-first podcast exploring fun and interesting observations in the Apple ecosystem, featuring 9to5Mac’s Fernando Silva & Jeff Benjamin. Subscribe to Overtime via Apple Podcasts and our YouTube channel for more.

Fernando discusses his Pokémon 3D Mod on Mac, and Jeff shares his experience running a native port of Mario Kart 64 on iPhone. The guys also discuss why tech can feel less exciting than it used to, and share their thoughts on using the same device for many years.

9to5Mac Overtime is a weekly video-first podcast exploring fun and interesting observations in the Apple ecosystem, featuring 9to5Mac’s Fernando Silva & Jeff Benjamin. Subscribe to Overtime via Apple Podcasts and our YouTube channel for more.

Fernando and Jeff discuss Apple Upgrade in depth, including Apple’s motivation, the major players involved, how it may affect the used and refurbished market, and how it might open up the company’s upcoming foldable iPhone to a much wider audience.

• Sponsored by Bitwarden: Check out Bitwarden Password Manager, featuring an Apple Watch authenticator integration, secure autofill on Safari and iOS apps, and enterprise-grade security tools that help you manage credentials with confidence.

9to5Mac Overtime is a weekly video-first podcast exploring fun and interesting observations in the Apple ecosystem, featuring 9to5Mac’s Fernando Silva & Jeff Benjamin. Subscribe to Overtime via Apple Podcasts and our YouTube channel for more.

The Asus ProArt PA27UCGE is a 27-inch 4K display with a few tricks up its sleeve that set it apart from a crowded monitor market. It begins with its high frame rate support, up to 160Hz, which is great for fluid web browsing, gaming, and video editing. It also features an optional monitor hood to help mitigate ambient light, and a built-in motorized colorimeter for scheduled calibration.

We previously reviewed Asus’ 5K ProArt (review) and 6K ProArt Displays (review) and found both to be excellent options for Mac users looking for an affordable third-party option. Can we say the same about this 4K ProArt Display? Watch our hands-on video review for the details.

Fernando and Jeff discuss Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold8 event in depth, including hands-on experience with Samsung’s newest foldable form factor, the pros and cons of the new 4:3 aspect ratio, efforts to address the crease issue, and what this all means for Apple’s upcoming foldable iPhone.

• Sponsored by Bitwarden: Check out Bitwarden Password Manager, featuring an Apple Watch authenticator integration, secure autofill on Safari and iOS apps, and enterprise-grade security tools that help you manage credentials with confidence.

Jeff and Fernando discuss the iOS 27 Public Beta, some of their favorite new iOS 27 new features, and whether or not people should consider installing it on their main device. The pair also talks about ChatGPT vs Siri AI, OpenAI vs Apple, the end of carrier-financed unlocked iPhones, and nine upcoming new emoji.

• Sponsored by Bitwarden: Check out Bitwarden Password Manager, featuring an Apple Watch authenticator integration, secure autofill on Safari and iOS apps, and enterprise-grade security tools that help you manage credentials with confidence.

Jeff and Fernando discuss the new Siri experience on Apple Watch, new Siri features on iOS 27, our Apple Watch feature wish list, enhancements to Messages on iPhone, and the state of social media in 2026.

• Sponsored by Bitwarden: Check out Bitwarden Password Manager, featuring an Apple Watch authenticator integration, secure autofill on Safari and iOS apps, and enterprise-grade security tools that help you manage credentials with confidence.

Fernando and Jeff discuss CarPlay on iOS 27, experience with the Rivian R1S on a road trip, why you might consider buying an iPhone 17 Pro right now instead of waiting for the iPhone 18 Pro, Apple Wallet and Amex Membership Rewards points, Apple’s dramatic hardware price increases, and the idea of getting more out of older technology.

9to5Mac Overtime is a weekly video-first podcast exploring fun and interesting observations in the Apple ecosystem, featuring 9to5Mac’s Fernando Silva & Jeff Benjamin. Subscribe to Overtime via Apple Podcasts and our YouTube channel for more.

If you’re curious to try macOS Golden Gate while it’s still in beta, I highly recommend installing it on a separate APFS volume instead of your main volume. Installing macOS 27 on your main volume would replace macOS Tahoe, leaving you at the mercy of any bugs or compatibility issues that arise with the software and hardware you use.

Unlike iOS and iPadOS betas, macOS betas can pose a greater risk due to the complexity of macOS, which includes support for legacy software and hardware. I’ve been burned too many times in the past with hardware and software that didn’t work properly for months until the inevitable updates came after the public version was released later that fall. In my opinion, it’s just not worth it.

The good news is, thanks to APFS, you can easily create a separate volume and silo the macOS Golden Gate beta installation away from your production Tahoe volume. This allows you to test the macOS beta in full while retaining the stability and reliability of the current public release. Watch our full hands-on video walkthrough for a complete step-by-step guide, and be sure to subscribe to 9to5Mac on YouTube for more macOS tutorials.

In this hands-on guide, I’ll show you how to transform a USB drive into a macOS Golden Gate USB installer. Having access to a macOS Golden Gate USB installer is useful for upgrading from macOS Tahoe or earlier versions of macOS across multiple Macs, among other use cases. Have a look at my full hands-on video walkthrough, and be sure to subscribe to 9to5Mac on YouTube for more Mac guides and tutorials.

I recently explored and tested over 200 new features in the iOS 27 beta, but in this post, I’ve distilled that list down to 10 of my favorite new features for iPhone. From Journal app writing prompts and section links in Notes, to much-improved 3D buildings in Apple Maps, iOS 27 is packed with awesome new enhancements.