There are plenty of improvements with MacOS Sierra that bring the parts of Apple’s ecosystem even closer together.

A host of features add up to a better way to use your computer.

The operating system has been rebranded as MacOS, to keep it in line with the Apple’s naming system across devices.

If you’re one of those folks who just cannot wait, MacOS Sierra will be out as a public beta next month. If the idea of a loading potentially buggy operating system on to your computer fills you with dread, the final version is due in the third quarter of the year.

Here are 10 things you’re should enjoy about MacOS Sierra.

1. Siri

Let’s start with the biggest thing coming to your computer. The surprising thing about Siri now on the Mac is that it’s taken this long. You access Siri by clicking the logo in the dock, the Menu Bar, or a keyboard shortcut.

We tried it out by asking for “what movies are showing today” and “what’s the weather in Canberra tomorrow” and got the results we were after, although the first time it misheard Canberra and a noisy office does present Siri with challenges.

That aside, what makes Siri different on the Mac than it is to your iPhone, iPad or Watch is that you can pin the results to your notifications or drag and drop the results into an email or document.

MacOS Sierra: Siri now has a home on the MacSource:Supplied

2. Copy and paste:

We tested this feature and it really is as simple as copying text on one device and pasting it on to another. On behalf of everyone who has emailed something from their phone to their computer, we are yelling “at last!” The catch is, you need iOS 10 on your mobile device, and that’s not out until third quarter of the year. If we had to rate them, this is our favourite feature of the new operating system.

3. Password bypass:

If you wear an Apple Watch, unlocking your Mac has just become easier. As long as your Watch is on your wrist, your computer will unlock when you come within 3m of it. No more typing passwords.

4. Checkout:

Apple Pay on the iPhone means not having to grab your wallet. Apple Pay on your Mac is even more convenient because you don’t have to type in your credit card details.

The catch is that it will only work with online stores which offer it. Apple has been speaking with back-end e-commerce companies so fingers crossed it will get a wide take-up.

Potentially, this is a cool feature but only if enough stores embrace that potential. With Apple Pay on the Mac, you used Touch ID on your iPhone to confirm your identity.

MacOS Sierra: With Apple Pay on the Mac, you use the TouchID on your iPhone to confirm your identity and complete a paymentSource:Supplied

5. In the cloud:

The problem with storing Mac files in iCloud is you have to think about storing them in the cloud.

That system gets a revamp and you can automatically have files you put in your documents folder or even your Mac’s desktop in the cloud, and accessible from any of your other Apple devices or through the iCloud website on a Windows PC.

MacOS Sierra: a redesigned iCloud lets you access the files on your Mac desktop from your iPhone and iPadSource:Supplied

6. Tabs:

It’s a good feature, although again one of those “why has it take until now?” items. Tabs are now part no longer just a thing for browsing the web and looking for files but part of other programs including Mail, Pages and Maps.

7. Messages and more:

The Messages revamp is one of the biggest features in iOS 10 and some carries over to the Messages app on Macs.

If someone sends you a link, rather than a long underline hypertext address you’ll see a preview of the website.

If a link is to a YouTube video, for example, that will play directly in Messages.

If someone sends you a message with “invisible ink” from an iOS 10 device (the message comes through as obscured until you click on it to decode it), you can read that message on your Mac — although you can’t send “invisible ink” messages from the Mac.

MacOS Sierra: new features in Messages includes larger emoji and embedded video linksSource:Supplied

8. Picture this:

If you’ve played with animations in Google Photos, the new Memories feature in Photos will seem familiar.

Memories goes a few steps further, however, combining photos and videos into editable short movies. Similar to the way iMovie offers themes combining text and music, with Memories you can choose different themes to change the vibe of the clip.

Other improvements with the Photos app includes better search tools. You can use Siri to “show me pictures of …” and name a person (assuming you have identified them in the People section of Photos) and a location or time.

Or you may skip Siri and type in a search term such as “mountains,” “beach” or “dog”.

We tested it by typing the word “fish” and it instantly found a picture taken in 2009 of a rather small fish caught on a fishing trip. Very impressive.

Mac OS Sierra: The new Photos app automatically combines photos and videos on a theme in the Memories sectionSource:Supplied

9. Touch up:

Photo-editing on the Mac gets a few changes. You can now edit Live Photos, including cropping and adding filters and vignette. There is also a “brilliance” slider where you can brighten and enhance selected parts of an image.

10. Moving pictures:

This feature did not work for us with the beta version of Sierra, but the final release will have the ability to resize, drag and pin a video to your screen. A handy thing if you’re staring at a spreadsheet while trying to watch the cricket.