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Apple squashes bugs with Mac OS Sierra, Apple Watch and Apple TV updates

Mac OS Sierra 10.12.1, watchOS 3.1 and tvOS 10.0.1 are mostly about fixing little issues -- but they also bring a couple new features.

Sean Hollister Senior Editor / Reviews
When his parents denied him a Super NES, he got mad. When they traded a prize Sega Genesis for a 2400 baud modem, he got even. Years of Internet shareware, eBay'd possessions and video game testing jobs after that, he joined Engadget. He helped found The Verge, and later served as Gizmodo's reviews editor. When he's not madly testing laptops, apps, virtual reality experiences, and whatever new gadget will supposedly change the world, he likes to kick back with some games, a good Nerf blaster, and a bottle of Tejava.
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Sean Hollister
2 min read

If you've got a recent piece of Apple hardware, it may be time to update -- the iPhone 7 Plus, Apple Watch, Apple TV and the Mac all got minor software releases this morning.

For the most part, it's just bugfixes, but the iPhone 7 Plus gets the nifty new Portrait Mode for its camera, which allows you to capture images with some buttery background blur -- and on Mac, the new MacOS Sierra 10.2.1 will automatically filter those photos into a special smart album for later viewing.

WatchOS 3.1 should let you replay the cool effects in the Messages app on your Apple Watch, in addition to squashing some bugs.

Here's the full changelog for each update:

macOS Sierra 10.12.1

  • Adds an automatic smart album in Photos for Depth Effect images taken on iPhone 7 Plus
  • Improves the compatibility of Microsoft Office when using iCloud Desktop and Documents
  • Fixes an issue that may prevent Mail from updating when using a Microsoft Exchange account
  • Fixes an issue that caused text to sometimes paste incorrectly when using Universal Clipboard
  • Improves reliability of Auto Unlock with Apple Watch
  • Improves security and stability in Safari

watchOS 3.1

  • New option to replay bubble and full screen effects in Messages
  • Messages effects can play with Reduce Motion enabled
  • Fixes an issue that could cause the notification for Timer complete to be delivered twice
  • Resolves an issue that could prevent Apple Watch Series 2 from fully charging
  • Resolves an issue where Activity rings may disappear from the watch face
  • Fixes an issue that prevented Force Touch options from appearing in some third-party apps

tvOS 10.0.1

"This update includes general performance and stability improvements."

via 9to5Mac, MacRumors