Top 10 BEST Mac Apps For Productivity: M1 & M2

Chris Tomshack
3 Apr 202311:09

TLDRIn this video, software developer Chris shares his top 10 must-use Mac apps for productivity, particularly for those with M1 and M2 chips. He begins with Alfred, an advanced search tool that surpasses Spotlight for both internal and external searches. Next, he recommends Hand Mirror for quick webcam previews, Rectangle for customizable screen splitting, and Hidden Me to tidy desktop clutter. Chris also discusses Bartender 4 for menu bar organization and Temp Box for managing email subscriptions without spam. He introduces Drop Zone 4 for efficient file management and sharing, Cheat Sheet for keyboard shortcut accessibility, Monitor Control for adjusting external monitor brightness, and App Cleaner for thorough app uninstallation. Chris emphasizes the apps' practicality and potential to enhance workflow and user experience on a Mac.

Takeaways

  • 🚀 **Alfred**: The first app recommended is Alfred, which is described as 'Spotlight on steroids', enhancing the ability to search both internally and externally on your Mac.
  • 🪞 **Hand Mirror**: Useful for remote workers, this app allows for a quick check of your appearance via webcam without the need to open a separate application.
  • 📝 **Rectangle**: A multitasking aid that improves upon the built-in split screen feature of macOS, offering customizable hotkeys for various screen divisions.
  • 🖥️ **Hidden Me**: Ideal for minimalists, this app lets you hide all desktop files and folders with a click, perfect for clean desktops and screen sharing.
  • 🍹 **Bartender 4**: A tool for decluttering and organizing your menu bar, offering features to rearrange, hide, or show icons to your preference.
  • 🎁 **Giveaway**: The speaker is running a giveaway for an Amazon gift card, encouraging viewers to like, subscribe, and comment on their favorite app from the list.
  • 📬 **Temp Box**: A solution for avoiding email clutter by generating fake email addresses for signing up on websites, thus protecting your personal inbox.
  • 📁 **Drop Zone 4**: A productivity booster that lets you drag and drop files into the menu bar for easy organization and sharing.
  • 🧀 **Cheat Sheet**: Offers quick access to keyboard shortcuts for any open application, saving time by eliminating the need to remember or look up shortcuts.
  • 🖲️ **Monitor Control**: Particularly useful for users with external monitors, this app simplifies the adjustment of brightness levels across multiple screens.
  • 🧹 **App Cleaner**: A utility that not only uninstalls apps but also scans and removes leftover files, ensuring a thorough clean-up.

Q & A

  • What is the first app recommended in the video for improving productivity on a Mac?

    -The first app recommended is called Alfred, which is described as a powerful tool that enhances the functionality of the Spotlight search on Mac.

  • How can Hand Mirror help users before joining a Zoom meeting?

    -Hand Mirror allows users to quickly open a preview of their webcam from the menu bar, ensuring they look presentable before joining a Zoom meeting.

  • What is the primary function of Rectangle and how does it improve on the built-in split screen view of macOS?

    -Rectangle is an app that allows users to use hotkeys to split their screen in various ways, offering more flexibility and user-friendliness compared to the built-in macOS split screen view.

  • How does the Hidden Me app assist users in maintaining a clean desktop?

    -Hidden Me provides a menu icon that allows users to temporarily hide all files and folders on their desktop, which is particularly useful for screen shares during meetings.

  • What is the purpose of the Bartender 4 app and what does it offer to users?

    -Bartender 4 is an app that helps declutter and organize the menu bar, allowing users to rearrange, hide, or show menu bar icons according to their preferences.

  • What is the Temp Box app used for and how does it benefit users?

    -Temp Box generates fake email addresses that users can use for signing up on websites to avoid receiving marketing emails in their personal inbox.

  • How does Drop Zone 4 help with file management and sharing?

    -Drop Zone 4 allows users to drag files into the menu bar icon, which acts as a storage container. Users can then combine multiple files into a single shareable file for easy transfer.

  • What does the Cheat Sheet app provide to users and how does it save time?

    -Cheat Sheet provides quick access to keyboard shortcuts for any open application, saving users time by eliminating the need to memorize or look up shortcuts.

  • How does Monitor Control benefit users who use external monitors?

    -Monitor Control simplifies the process of adjusting the brightness of multiple monitors by allowing users to set the brightness level through a dropdown menu in the menu bar.

  • What is the App Cleaner app used for and what additional feature does it provide?

    -App Cleaner is used for uninstalling applications. It not only removes the app but also scans the system for any leftover files and deletes them.

  • How can viewers participate in the Amazon gift card giveaway mentioned in the video?

    -To participate in the giveaway, viewers need to like the video, subscribe to the channel, and leave a comment specifying their favorite app from the list or the one they think they'll get the most use out of.

  • What is the primary concern the video aims to address regarding Mac applications?

    -The video aims to address the issue of downloading apps based on overhyped recommendations and then not using them, which can lead to wasted storage space on the Mac's SSD.

Outlines

00:00

🚀 Essential MacBook Apps for Productivity

The video introduces 10 essential apps for MacBook users to enhance productivity and utility. The host, Chris, a software developer, shares his personal experience with these apps after trying numerous recommendations from YouTube. Each app is briefly explained for its usefulness, followed by instructions on how to download and set them up. The first app highlighted is Alfred, a powerful search tool that extends beyond the built-in Spotlight. Hand Mirror is recommended for quick video conference preparations, while Rectangle is praised for its superior split-screen functionality. The fourth app, Hidden Me, allows users to hide desktop files for a clean workspace, and Bartender 4 is introduced for menu bar customization.

05:02

🛠️ Tools for Streamlining Your MacBook Experience

The video continues with a focus on apps that streamline the MacBook user experience. Bartender is highlighted for decluttering the menu bar with custom menus and hidden icons. A quick announcement about a giveaway for subscribers is made, encouraging engagement with the channel. Temp Box is introduced as a solution for managing email subscriptions without cluttering the user's personal inbox. Drop Zone 4 is showcased for its file management capabilities, allowing users to combine multiple files into a single shareable package. Cheat Sheet provides quick access to keyboard shortcuts, and Monitor Control is recommended for adjusting the brightness of external monitors. The paragraph concludes with the setup instructions for Monitor Control and a brief mention of the next app to be covered.

10:03

🧹 Cleaning Up Your Digital Space with App Cleaner

The final paragraph of the video script focuses on App Cleaner, a tool that not only uninstalls applications but also removes leftover files for a thorough clean. The process for downloading App Cleaner is outlined, involving a search through Alfred and visiting the app's website. The video concludes with a recap of the top 10 MacBook applications recommended for actual use, ranging from productivity enhancers like Alfred and Cheat Sheet to quality of life apps such as Rectangle and Hidden Me. Links to the apps are provided in the video description, and the viewer is encouraged to like, subscribe, and comment to participate in the Amazon gift card giveaway.

Mindmap

Keywords

💡Alfred

Alfred is a highly efficient productivity app for Mac that serves as an enhanced version of the built-in Spotlight search tool. It allows users to search for files, folders, and applications on their computer, but its real strength lies in its ability to perform web searches, find products on Amazon, and search for videos on YouTube. In the video, it is presented as the first app the presenter installs on any new MacBook because it significantly improves the user's ability to find information both internally on their computer and externally on the web.

💡Hand Mirror

Hand Mirror is a utility app designed to provide a quick and easy way to check one's appearance before joining a video call, such as a Zoom meeting. It allows users to open a preview of their webcam feed directly from the menu bar, eliminating the need to open a separate application like Photo Booth. This app is particularly useful for remote workers who frequently engage in video conferences and want to ensure they are presentable before each call.

💡Rectangle

Rectangle is a window management app for Mac that offers a superior alternative to the built-in split-screen view. It enables users to easily split their screen into multiple sections using customizable hotkeys, allowing for a more organized and efficient multitasking experience. The app supports not only horizontal splits but also vertical and corner splits, providing flexibility in arranging windows to suit the user's preference.

💡Hidden Me

Hidden Me is an app that allows users to temporarily hide all files and folders on their desktop with a single click. This feature is beneficial for creating a clean and uncluttered workspace, especially during screen shares in professional settings like Zoom meetings. The app is a paid tool, but the presenter considers it a worthwhile investment for those who value a minimalist desktop aesthetic.

💡Bartender 4

Bartender 4 is a menu bar customization app that helps declutter and organize the menu bar on a Mac. It provides users with the ability to rearrange, hide, or show menu bar icons according to their preferences, creating a more streamlined and personalized user interface. The app includes advanced features such as creating custom menus and accessing hidden icons, offering users greater control over their menu bar.

💡Temp Box

Temp Box is a free and open-source app that generates temporary email addresses for users. This is particularly useful when signing up for online services or downloading content from websites that may subsequently send marketing emails. By using Temp Box, users can avoid cluttering their personal inbox with unwanted emails and maintain a cleaner email environment.

💡Drop Zone 4

Drop Zone 4 is a productivity app that facilitates the organization and sharing of files. It allows users to drag files into the menu bar icon, which acts as a storage container, and then combine multiple files into a single shareable file. This streamlined process simplifies file transfers, making it easier to share documents via messaging apps, Dropbox, or other platforms that accept file uploads.

💡Cheat Sheet

Cheat Sheet is an app that provides users with quick access to keyboard shortcuts for any open application. By holding down the command key, a menu appears displaying all available shortcuts for the active app, which can significantly speed up workflows and improve efficiency. The app is free and not available on the App Store, but it can be downloaded directly from the developer's website.

💡Monitor Control

Monitor Control is an app designed to simplify the adjustment of brightness levels across multiple external monitors. It allows users to set their preferred brightness levels via a dropdown menu in the menu bar. The app also offers settings to control the volume of the monitors and is free and open-source, providing an accessible solution for users who work with multiple display setups.

💡App Cleaner

App Cleaner is a utility app that aids in the uninstallation of applications on a Mac. Unlike the standard method of dragging an app to the trash, App Cleaner not only removes the app itself but also scans the system for any leftover files associated with the app and deletes them. This ensures a more thorough and clean uninstallation process, freeing up space and maintaining system cleanliness.

💡Productivity

Productivity is the main theme of the video, focusing on the use of various Mac applications to enhance work efficiency and optimize the user experience. The term is central to the narrative as each app introduced is designed to streamline tasks, reduce time spent on routine operations, and create a more organized digital workspace. The video provides examples of how these apps can be integrated into daily routines to improve productivity.

Highlights

Alfred is a powerful tool that enhances the Spotlight search functionality with external search capabilities.

Hand Mirror allows for quick webcam previews before joining video meetings, improving remote work readiness.

Rectangle is a versatile screen management app that offers customizable hotkeys for efficient multitasking.

Hidden Me provides a clutter-free desktop by temporarily hiding files and folders for a clean workspace.

Bartender 4 is a menu bar organizer that declutters and arranges menu bar icons to user preferences.

Temp Box generates fake email addresses to prevent inbox clutter from marketing emails.

Drop Zone 4 streamlines file sharing by combining multiple files into a single shareable file.

Cheat Sheet provides quick access to keyboard shortcuts for any open application, expediting workflows.

Monitor Control simplifies the adjustment of brightness levels across multiple monitors.

App Cleaner removes applications along with any leftover files for a thorough uninstallation process.

The video provides a comprehensive guide on downloading and setting up each recommended app.

Hand Mirror's paid version is questioned for its necessity, suggesting the free version is sufficient.

A giveaway for a 100 Amazon gift card is being run for subscribers, with high chances of winning due to the channel's current subscriber count.

Temp Box is free and open-source, offering a solution to manage email subscriptions without impacting personal inboxes.

Drop Zone 4 offers a direct download from its website or through the App Store, catering to different user preferences.

Cheat Sheet, while not available on the App Store, can be easily downloaded through a web search and a link provided.

Monitor Control, being free and open-source, provides a flexible way to control monitor settings through Homebrew or direct download.

App Cleaner's thorough removal process ensures no residual files are left behind post-uninstallation, enhancing system cleanliness.