Find essential apps and settings to make your MacBook or Mac more productive and easy to use.
These recommendations work best on the latest macOS versions and Apple Silicon devices. My setup:
- MacBook Pro M3 Pro
- macOS Sonoma & Sequoia
Note: Always check for the latest app versions to ensure compatibility
- Rectangle
- TopNotch
- Stats
- AlDente ⭐️
- Shottr
- Clipy
- AltTab
- BetterDisplay ⭐️💰
- Amazon Q
- Ice ⭐️
- Grab2Text ⭐️
- Macs Fan Control
- Mac Mouse Fix ⭐️💰
- Itsycal
- System Settings
⭐️ Highly recommended
💰 Purchased the premium version
Here are the applications I use most. Each serves a specific purpose, which I'll outline, and offers functionality that complements the default macOS utilities.
Free and Open source app that allows to move and resize windows like in Windows, using keyboard shortcuts or snap areas.
Note: this feature has been added to the newest macOS Sequoia system. So, it's more recommended to those who are still using older OS versions, like me.
Rectangle - configuration 1
Rectangle - configuration 2
allows you to hide or reveal the notch on the new MacBooks as desired.
Top Notch - disabled
Top Notch - enabled
Displays real-time stats about the Mac in the menu bar. It allows you monitor power usage, fan speed, CPU, RAM, etc.
Stats - menu bar
Stats - monitors available
I mainly use the power, fan, CPU, and RAM features, but there are many more for you to explore.
Stats - cpu usage
Stats - cpu configuration 1
Stats - cpu configuration 2
Stats - cpu configuration 3
Stats - ram usage
Stats - ram configuration 1
Stats - ram configuration 2
Stats - ram configuration 3
Stats - fans usage (bottom) in RPM
Stats - fans configuration 1
Stats - fans configuration 2
Stats - power (top)
Stats - power configuration 1
Stats - power configuration 2
If you, like me, often keep your MacBook connected to the charger for extended periods, you might be concerned about the health of your battery. Continuous charging at 100% can potentially cause chemical and irreversible damage to the battery.
You may have also heard about the lifespan of lithium-ion batteries, typically around 1000 charge cycles. When your MacBook is constantly plugged in, the system may draw power from the battery even while it's charging, further accelerating its degradation.
Aldente helps protect battery health by limiting the maximum charge, ensuring the MacBook draws power primarily from the adapter rather than the battery.
Aldente - menu bar
Aldente - system battery not charging
Aldente - premium functionalities 1
Aldente - premium functionalities 2
Aldente - premium functionalities 3
Aldente - premium functionalities 4
A multifunctional screenshot tool that offers a range of features to enhance your screenshot-taking experience. All the screenshots in this document were captured using Shottr.
Shottr - configuration
Allows you to store and access previously copied content.
Clipy - interface
It brings the power of Windows’s alt-tab window switcher to macOS or customize as you desired.
Alt Tab - feature
Alt Tab - configuration
Unlock your displays on your Mac!
Flexible HiDPI scaling, XDR/HDR extra brightness, virtual screens, DDC control, extra dimming, PIP/streaming, EDID override and lots more!
Control your display by yourself.
BetterDisplay - some features
Amazon Q (previously known as CodeWhisperer) is an AI tool designed for enhancing shell command line interactions. It offers a range of functionalities including personalized code completions, inline documentation, and translation of natural language into code.
Currently, it is exclusively available for macOS, so enjoy it :)
Code Whisperer - IDE-style completions
Code Whisperer - Natural language-to-bash translation
Enables you to group icons occupying space into a fixed folder directly on your menu bar.
Ice - icon in menu bar
Enables to extract text from images as if taking screenshots.
Grab2Text - configurations
A powerful utility for controlling your Mac's cooling fans. While Stats app offers fan control also, this provides more reliable functionality.
It also displays detailed temperature data from various system sensors and allows precise manual control of fan speeds. Particularly useful during intensive workloads when the default fan behavior isn't proper.
Mac Fan Control - interface
As the name says, it fixes all those annoying mouse problems on your Mac.
It lets you set up custom button combinations that mimic trackpad gestures you'd normally miss out on when using a mouse. One of its coolest features is infinite scroll which is something you'd usually need to pay $100 for with the MX Master 3 mouse.
Once you try it, you won't want to go back to using a mouse without it.
Mac Mouse Fix - settings 1
Mac Mouse Fix - settings 2
its a very cool app if you are someone like me that uses intensively the calendar to register event. it displays on the menu bar a icon which you can get all the calendar information.
Itsycal - interface
Itsycal - settings
Occasionally, the Mac dock occupies space on our desktop. You can use the key combination ⌥⌘D to hide/show the dock. However, the animation for the dock to reappear is too slow.
- To make the Dock instantly leap back into view when it’s needed, rather than slide, type the following in your terminal:
defaults write com.apple.dock autohide-time-modifier -int 0; killall Dock- If you’d like the animation for the dock to reappear to last for a split-second, try the following:
defaults write com.apple.dock autohide-time-modifier -float 0.15; killall DockTo explain, changing "0.15" with any number can let you tailor things as it represents the time in seconds taken for the dock to reappear fully.
- To revert back to the default sliding effect, type the following:
defaults delete com.apple.dock autohide-time-modifier; killall DockIf you frequently change your mac's position while connected to an external monitor, arranging display can be inconvenient as you always have to go to the settings to adjust them.
Here is a solution: Using displayplacer allows you to switch between predefined display arrangements using Apple shortcuts.
You can check this video or simply follow my tutorial below:
-
Install displayplacer
-
Run the command
displayplacer list. This will show the current display configuration, including the displays arrangement. The output should look something like this:
displayplacer "id:9076392E-4B37-4774-9515-15116BB566BE res:1920x1080 hz:75 color_depth:8 enabled:true scaling:on origin:(0,0) degree:0" "id:37D8832A-2D66-02CA-B9F7-8F30A301B230 res:1800x1169 hz:120 color_depth:8 enabled:true scaling:on origin:(-1800,598) degree:0"
- Save the codes for different display configurations and create shortcuts to switch between them easily:
- In Apple Shortcuts, add a new
Run Shell Scriptaction - Paste the displayplacer command for the desired configuration
- Add the shortcuts to easily accessible places, like the notification center
Mac's space-switching animation is slow and reduces productivity and efficiency.
Fortunately, there's a solution to remove it!
Shut your mac down, turn it back on holding power button until you see, startup options text on screen.
Then type in your password and proceed with opening up a terminal session.
type in:
csrutil disable
type your password in then reboot.Once booted into the Operating System check system integrity status by
csrutil statusShould return
System Integrity Protection status: disabled.Install brew if missing.
brew install koekeishiya/formulae/yabai
sudo yabai --load-sa
brew install jq
brew install koekeishiya/formulae/skhdmkdir $HOME/.config/yabai/
mkdir $HOME/.config/skhd/
touch $HOME/.config/yabai/yabairc
touch $HOME/.config/skhd/skhdrc
chmod +x $HOME/.config/yabai/yabairc
chmod +x $HOME/.config/skhd/skhdrcSet shortcuts to use to shift spaces. Usually ctrl + arrows or alt + arrows, or both.
nano $HOME/.config/skhd/skhdrc
alt - right : yabai -m space --focus next
alt - left : yabai -m space --focus prev
ctrl - right : yabai -m space --focus next
ctrl - left : yabai -m space --focus prevReboot
sudo yabai --load-sa
yabai --start-service
skhd --start-serviceI will keep an eye on this repository and make updates as needed.
If you got till there, leave a star ⭐️ to support me.