Five Interesting Mac Apps Worth Checking Out - August 2018 - MacRumorsOpen MenuShow RoundupsShow Forums menuVisit ForumsOpen Sidebar
Skip to Content

Five Interesting Mac Apps Worth Checking Out - August 2018

Apps created for the Mac don't receive as much attention as apps made for iOS devices, so we have a bi-monthly series here at MacRumors that's designed to highlight useful and interesting Mac apps that are worth checking out and potentially investing in.

This week's picks include apps for streamlining your email, focusing on tasks, checking the weather, cleaning up your Mac, and managing all of your messaging services. Many of our highlighted apps this week were chosen by MacRumors forum members.

Watch on YouTube

  • Focus (Free with in-app purchases) - Focus is a time management app and monitoring service that's designed to help you keep track of your time so you can stay on task. It encourages users to work in focus sessions, which are 25 minute blocks of time for working accompanied by a 15 to 20 minute break. There's an included task manager so you can stay on top of tasks, along with detailed statistics so you can see how you've spent your day. Focus is free to download, but it costs $4.99 per month or $39.99 for year to use across all of your devices.
  • Carrot Weather ($11.99) - Carrot Weather is a well-known weather app that delivers weather information with a little bit of attitude to make checking outdoor conditions more fun. It has different dialogue and graphics for various weather conditions, and what comes up is always a surprise. Carrot Weather uses data from Dark Sky so it's super accurate and it offers up tons of data like 7-day forecasts, rain and snow predictions, weather maps, and a time machine so you can see past weather conditions.
  • Dr. Cleaner (Free) - Dr. Cleaner from TrendMicro is an app that offers a Disk Clean Map so you can see what's taking up space on your Mac, a memory cleanup feature for freeing up memory, a scanner for large files, and a junk file cleaner that's designed to get rid of temporary files, trash, and other unwanted items taking up disk space. Dr. Cleaner is free from the Mac App Store, but there is a $19.99 Pro version that finds and eliminates duplicate files, shreds deleted files, and uninstalls apps.
  • Canary Mail ($19.99) - Those who previously used the now-eliminated Newton Mail might be looking for a new mail app, and Canary could fit the bill. Canary Mail offers one-click encryption, natural language search, smart filters, read notifications, snooze options, email templates, one-click unsubscribe, and more.
  • All-in-One Messenger (Free) - This is technically a Chrome extension rather than a Mac app, so it's limited to Chrome users. All-in-One Messenger is designed to combine all of your chat and messenger services into one convenient web app so you can keep up with all of your chats in a single spot. It works with a wide range of messaging apps, like WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Skype, Telegram, Slack, Discord, Google Hangouts, and more.

If you have a favorite must-have Mac app that we haven't highlighted yet, let us know in the comments, and we might feature it in a future video. Many of this month's app picks came directly from recommendations from our forum members, and it's these recommendations that have helped make this series useful.

For more of our Mac app picks, make sure to check out our Mac app archives.

Popular Stories

Apple MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display family lineup feature

Apple Announces OLED MacBook Pro With Touch Display

Wednesday October 28, 2026 10:11 am PDT by
Apple today announced a new high-end MacBook Pro, which is available in 14-inch and 16-inch sizes. The new device has a PROLED XDR display that supports touch gestures, and a glowing rear Apple logo. Pricing on the MacBook Pro starts at $2,899 for the 14-inch model and $3,399 for the 16-inch model. Apple says the MacBook Pro has the "world's best display in a pro laptop." The PROLED...
iPad mini OLED feature 1

Apple Executive Comments on New iPad Mini Lacking 120Hz Display

Thursday October 29, 2026 1:47 pm PDT by
While the new iPad mini has an OLED display, the device does not support ProMotion, meaning the display's refresh rate is limited to 60Hz instead of 120Hz. ProMotion support would have allowed for the iPad mini's refresh rate to automatically adjust from 10Hz to 120Hz depending on the content being displayed, but evidently Apple has kept the feature exclusive to the iPad Pro among iPad...
apple pro tell logo

Apple Opened Pre-Orders for Five New Products This Week

Wednesday October 28, 2026 2:49 am PDT by
Apple opened pre-orders for five new products on Wednesday, October 28, including its first touchscreen MacBook Pro models. Pre-orders opened for the following new products: iPad mini with OLED display and A20 Pro chip iMac with M6 chip 14-inch MacBook Pro with M6 chip 14-inch MacBook Pro with OLED touchscreen 16-inch MacBook Pro with OLED touchscreen Pre-orders for the iPad mini,...

Top Rated Comments

keysofanxiety Avatar
107 months ago
Not sure about Dr. Cleaner, MR. Memory clean (purge) applications don’t have any benefit and messes up macOS’s already great memory management. If lots of RAM is being used that’s good for system performance unless it’s paging to disk. Free RAM is wasted RAM.

If anything I’d be advising readers against using those sort of apps.

If you just want an app that shows what’s taking up space I’d recommend OmniDiskSweeper.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
107 months ago
Pretty terrible list this time. Every single app has a much better free alternative.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
boswald Avatar
107 months ago
I wouldn't touch memory/disk cleaners or "optimizers" with a 10-foot pole.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
107 months ago
You can use Dr. Cleaner for RAM too.

I’m curious: why is freeing up RAM a bad thing in the MacOS? I’m not familiar with how the management system works.
These types of apps are borderline malware. The Mac OS does all the cleaning needed. If you feel there is a memory problem, just restart your computer. I get paid to uninstall this type of app because of the problems they cause on my clients Mac's. They are not as bad as full blown malware or ransomware and they are NOT needed.

Former Apple employee, independent Mac Consultant for over 25 years and a Mac owner since they came out in 1984
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
maflynn Avatar
107 months ago
Please recommend a good free app that show temperatures and fans on the MacBook next...
Not free but quite cheap - iStat Menus. Its probably the best out there. For free (but no fans) is Intels Power Gadget.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
107 months ago
I vote for Canary Mail... also for the easy encryption, plus i like little furry birds :)

five mac apps august 2018 image
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Latest Stories
'Pluribus' Season 2 Reportedly Starts Production Today
'Pluribus' Season 2 Reportedly Starts Production Today
23 minutes ago
iPhone 18 Pro Sales Surge in China, Offsetting Decline in U.S. and Japan
iPhone 18 Pro Sales Surge in China, Offsetting Decline in U.S. and Japan
1 hour ago
HomeView Software 27.2: Wallpapers, Control Center, and More
HomeView Software 27.2: Wallpapers, Control Center, and More
8 hours ago
Apple Alerts Stores to iPhone Duo's Display Cracking Issue
Apple Alerts Stores to iPhone Duo's Display Cracking Issue
9 hours ago
iOS 27.3 Will Enable These Apple Intelligence Features in China
iOS 27.3 Will Enable These Apple Intelligence Features in China
9 hours ago
Apple Says iOS 27.3 Beta Coming Next Week
Apple Says iOS 27.3 Beta Coming Next Week
9 hours ago
Apple's Flash Storage Suppliers Are Finally 'Getting Their Revenge'
Apple's Flash Storage Suppliers Are Finally 'Getting Their Revenge'
11 hours ago
14 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 27.2
14 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 27.2
11 hours ago
iPhone Duo Review: One Week Later
iPhone Duo Review: One Week Later
12 hours ago
Samsung Mocks iPhone Duo Display Cracks in New Ad Campaign
Samsung Mocks iPhone Duo Display Cracks in New Ad Campaign
14 hours ago
The MacRumors Show: OLED MacBook Pro, iPad Mini 8, and More
The MacRumors Show: OLED MacBook Pro, iPad Mini 8, and More
14 hours ago
MacBook Pro With Touch Display: 15 More Details Revealed
MacBook Pro With Touch Display: 15 More Details Revealed
14 hours ago
Russia Places Apple on State Surveillance Registry
Russia Places Apple on State Surveillance Registry
16 hours ago
Halloween Weekend Brings Discounts on Apple Accessories and Pre-Orders
Halloween Weekend Brings Discounts on Apple Accessories and Pre-Orders
17 hours ago
Apple Has Released More Than 25 New Products in the Past Two Months
Apple Has Released More Than 25 New Products in the Past Two Months
17 hours ago
Local Code Launches as Free, Private AI Assistant Tool for Mac
Local Code Launches as Free, Private AI Assistant Tool for Mac
17 hours ago
Apple Acquires Ascend.io
Apple Acquires Ascend.io
18 hours ago
HomePod Mini 2 Launches Today: All the New Features
HomePod Mini 2 Launches Today: All the New Features
18 hours ago
AirTag 2 4-Pack Drops to New Low Price of $69.99
AirTag 2 4-Pack Drops to New Low Price of $69.99
19 hours ago
Rian Johnson's iPhone Camera App Goes Viral
Rian Johnson's iPhone Camera App Goes Viral
19 hours ago
Where Did All the iPhone Duos Go? Mostly to Apple's Stores
Where Did All the iPhone Duos Go? Mostly to Apple's Stores
21 hours ago
Apple's Touchscreen MacBook Pro Could Ship 1.5M Units in 2027
Apple's Touchscreen MacBook Pro Could Ship 1.5M Units in 2027
22 hours ago
New Apple TV 4K and iPad Mini: RAM Amounts Revealed
New Apple TV 4K and iPad Mini: RAM Amounts Revealed
1 day ago
Apple Executive Comments on New iPad Mini Lacking 120Hz Display
Apple Executive Comments on New iPad Mini Lacking 120Hz Display
1 day ago
Here's a Hands-On Look at HomePod Mini 2's New Two-Tone Colors
Here's a Hands-On Look at HomePod Mini 2's New Two-Tone Colors
1 day ago
Apple Lowers App Store Fees in Taiwan Starting October 31
Apple Lowers App Store Fees in Taiwan Starting October 31
2 days ago
HomeView Pre-Order Returns to $289.99 on Amazon
HomeView Pre-Order Returns to $289.99 on Amazon
2 days ago
Apple Avoids Showing Pinched Fingers on iPad Mini Page in South Korea
Apple Avoids Showing Pinched Fingers on iPad Mini Page in South Korea
2 days ago
Old 'Popcorn Time' App Left Hundreds of Thousands of Macs at Risk
Old 'Popcorn Time' App Left Hundreds of Thousands of Macs at Risk
2 days ago
You Can Turn Off the New MacBook Pro's Touchscreen Functionality
You Can Turn Off the New MacBook Pro's Touchscreen Functionality
2 days ago

🔗 Related Apple News & Rumors

Stay updated with the latest Apple ecosystem news and verified rumors