Apple’s shared ecosystem has long been one of the reasons I’ve continued to gravitate towards the brand. Whether it’s messaging on Mac, using my iPad as an extra display in sidecar, or picking up FaceTime calls on whichever device I’m using through Continuity, I’d find it hard to leave.
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In fact, macOS Tahoe appears to be bringing things closer and closer together. I could take or leave the ‘Liquid Glass’ design, but the new Phone app could be a huge deal as someone that often finds themselves scrambling for their phone when a notification comes in, and I love the Call Screening feature, too.
And yet, one new feature stands above all others: Live Activities on Mac.
We’ll do it Live (Activities)
On any given day, I am essentially propped up by coffee, but it’s not uncommon for me to lean on something like Uber Eats on a busy day where I can’t make a stop after the gym.
Sure, it’s unhealthy, but it’s my only real vice — and it’s so delicious. The (admittedly very minor) problem is that I can order via a website and have to keep opening a tab to be able to check on its progress, or I can order it via my phone and need to keep it handy while I work.
The latter is almost always better because I can use iPhone’s StandBy mode to keep the Live Activity active, but now that doesn’t need to be a concern anymore.
Live Activities will mean that once I’ve ordered my coffee, my Live Activity will show my delivery status on the menu bar which means I can track it while I’m working without needing to break focus from my Mac.
Is it a very specific solution to a very specific problem? Yes, but it’s also just another reason I’d find it hard to stray from Mac—or Apple—in general.
And, with suggestions that the MacBook ‘notch’ could be going the way of the dodo, there’s every chance Live Activities and a potential Dynamic Island could be a match made in heaven.
Some things to consider
That's not to say that the implementation here is perfect. For one, you'll need to make the order on your phone, before switching to the Mac (at least in this iteration).
Sure, it's a small thing, but it's that kind of wrinkle that meant macOS widgets felt laggy when they were copied across from the iPhone. That system did improve, and we're still in the beta phase so here's hoping Apple can streamline it.
It could be the kind of API that pulls from Safari, for example, meaning that macOS can understand where my order is coming from, wherever it's paid for, or that it ties into Apple Pay.
Many retailers support Apple Pay tracking already, and while it's not the same as a live activity, I love the idea of being able to pay for my coffee in my browser of choice (Chrome, for my sins), with Apple Pay, and have it automatically pop up as a Live Activity.
Is that asking a lot for a relatively minor feature in the grand scheme of things? Maybe, but if you don't ask, you don't get.
So Much Room For Activities!
I'm also curious to see if Live Activities will be useful in other scenarios that don't involve a regular hit of caffeine.
As a big football fan (soccer for those the other side of the pond), I use Live Score for instant goal notifications. It's great, and on Mac it allows for notifications, but if I'm working I'd rather have a score Live Activity ticking over than getting a ping that distracts me after a goal, red card, or anything else.
Windows 11 actually already does something along those lines, offering score updates on the taskbar that are pretty unobtrusive. The only issue is that they can sometimes be a day or two behind. Apple letting third-party developers do what they're already experts at (like instant score notifications) is probably the best way to go forward.
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