Fashionable Mac menu bar administration utility Bartender was lately quietly bought to a different firm, a proven fact that solely got here to gentle after app monitoring service MacUpdater alerted customers that updates to the app from model 5.0.52 may very well be doubtlessly unsafe as a result of lack of transparency surrounding the state of affairs.
The unique developer has since acknowledged the sale. Nonetheless, the brand new Bartender proprietor is a largely unknown entity that has reportedly hiked Bartender’s buy choices, and is alleged to have added code to the app that could be related to amassing analytics information on customers.
On condition that Bartender requires intensive permissions to function in macOS, together with display screen recording, the entire occasion has understandably left many customers involved about privateness. Thankfully, Bartender shouldn’t be the one app of its variety. So except Apple ever will get spherical to integrating higher menu bar administration into macOS, listed here are some different menu bar utilities which are value contemplating.
- Vanilla (Free) – Easy app that allows you to disguise menu bar icons. Simply maintain Command and drag icons between hidden and visual sections. Vanilla Professional ($10) provides keyboard shortcuts, a eliminated part, begin at login, and an auto-hide choice after 5 seconds.
- Ice (Free) – Menu bar administration device that hides objects, affords an always-hidden part, present on hover, present on click on, present on scroll or swipe, computerized rehide, and app menu overlap correction. Additionally consists of hotkeys, launch at login, and choices to vary menu bar look.
- Hidden Bar (Free) – Light-weight device that allows you to drag a divider between icons within the menu bar to separate hidden and proven sections. Consists of launch at login, auto-hide durations, present/disguise world shortcut, and full menu bar mode.
- iBar (Free) – This device hides menu bar icons which will be revealed in a floating bar that extends under the notch on MacBook Air and MacBook Professional.
- Barbee ($3.99) – Administration device with comparable interface to Bartender. Consists of sections for proven, hidden, and at all times hidden objects, in addition to intensive menu bar look settings. Additionally affords capability to shortly search your menu bar objects in a Highlight-style floating window.
- OnlySwitch (Free) – Greater than only a menu bar administration device, OnlySwitch affords a broad vary of customizable toggle switches designed to supply fast entry to system and different settings, equivalent to disguise desktop icons, darkish mode, disguise MacBook notch, mute mic, and extra.
If you’re a BetterTouchTool person, Andreas Hegenberg has an intensive tutorial on how the utility can be utilized to cover menu bar objects. Know of an ideal Mac menu bar administration device that we have not highlighted? Tell us within the feedback under and we would append it to this text.
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