macOS Monterey Tidbits: Animated Memoji on Login Screen, Change the Color of the Mouse Pointer, and More

We've highlighted several new features coming in macOS Monterey, such as Low Power Mode and the option to erase a Mac without reinstalling the operating system, but there are some smaller tidbits that we wanted to share.

macos monterey tidbits feature copy

Animated Memoji on Login Screen

One small but fun new feature in macOS Monterey is the addition of a personalized Memoji on the login screen, complete with animated facial expressions.

Change the Color of the Mouse Pointer

A new Accessibility feature added to macOS Monterey is the ability to customize the outline and fill color of the mouse pointer so it's easier to recognize when it moves or changes to an insertion point, crosshair, hand, or other shape. The pointer can be customized in System Preferences under Accessibility > Display > Pointer.

'Go to Folder' Redesign in Finder

On macOS Monterey, the "Go to Folder" window in Finder has been redesigned and now features an improved autocompletion engine to help you get to the files or folder you're looking for more quickly, according to Apple. "Go to Folder" can be found under "Go" in the Finder menu bar, or by using the ⌘⇧G keyboard shortcut.

File Copying Enhancements

macOS Monterey features a new pie chart progress indicator when copying files. It is also now possible to stop or cancel a copy session and resume it later.

macOS Monterey is available now in beta for developers, with a public beta to follow in July. The software update will be released in the fall.

Related Forum: macOS Monterey

Popular Stories

Apple Logo Black

Apple Just Made Its Second-Biggest Acquisition Ever After Beats

Thursday January 29, 2026 10:07 am PST by
Apple today confirmed to Reuters that it has acquired Q.ai, an Israeli startup that is working on artificial intelligence technology for audio. Apple paid close to $2 billion for Q.ai, according to sources cited by the Financial Times. That would make this Apple's second-biggest acquisition ever, after it paid $3 billion for the popular headphone and audio brand Beats in 2014. Q.ai has...
Aston Martin CarPlay Ultra Screen

Apple's CarPlay Ultra to Expand to These Vehicle Brands Later This Year

Sunday February 1, 2026 10:08 am PST by
Last year, Apple launched CarPlay Ultra, the long-awaited next-generation version of its CarPlay software system for vehicles. Nearly nine months later, CarPlay Ultra is still limited to Aston Martin's latest luxury vehicles, but that should change fairly soon. In May 2025, Apple said many other vehicle brands planned to offer CarPlay Ultra, including Hyundai, Kia, and Genesis. In his Powe...
14 inch MacBook Pro Keyboard

Apple Changes How You Order a Mac

Saturday January 31, 2026 10:51 am PST by
Apple recently updated its online store with a new ordering process for Macs, including the MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, iMac, Mac mini, Mac Studio, and Mac Pro. There used to be a handful of standard configurations available for each Mac, but now you must configure a Mac entirely from scratch on a feature-by-feature basis. In other words, ordering a new Mac now works much like ordering an...
Apple Logo Black

Apple's Next Launch is 'Imminent'

Sunday February 1, 2026 12:31 pm PST by
The calendar has turned to February, and a new report indicates that Apple's next product launch is "imminent," in the form of new MacBook Pro models. "All signs point to an imminent launch of next-generation MacBook Pros that retain the current form factor but deliver faster chips," Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said on Sunday. "I'm told the new models — code-named J714 and J716 — are slated...
Apple MacBook Pro M4 hero

New MacBook Pros Reportedly Launching Alongside macOS 26.3

Sunday February 1, 2026 5:42 am PST by
Apple is planning to launch new MacBook Pro models with M5 Pro and M5 Max chips alongside macOS 26.3, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. "Apple's faster MacBook Pros are planned for the macOS 26.3 release cycle," wrote Gurman, in his Power On newsletter today. "I'm told the new models — code-named J714 and J716 — are slated for the macOS 26.3 software cycle, which runs from...

Top Rated Comments

Digital Dude Avatar
61 months ago
I'm soOoo sick of this Memoji craze. When I saw the WWDC splash page full of those damn things' I was embarrassed that I'm an Apple guy. Made me feel like we should all be about eight years old to appreciate them. Okay, let the poison pens fly.
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Maconplasma Avatar
61 months ago

Memoji at login. Why? It's stupid stuff like this that make macos bloated. Again, my 9 year old rMBP shouldn't run Windows 10 better than Catalina.
Not everything in computing needs to be so serious. I enjoy fun things to make my computing experience enjoyable. You saying it makes the system bloated? Where's your proof on that?
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Bug-Creator Avatar
61 months ago
Well lets see:

- the code to display short animations is used elsewhere, so a whole lotta nothing
- if you created no Memoji there is no Memoji
- displaying that Meomji on the login-screen, about 10 lines of Swift (being generous) resulting in 10k of extra binary size (which hopefully gets discarded after you logged in)
- whatever 1st year entry level developer did it in about 30min wouldn't have been of much use in areas that matter anyways

Yeap, 3 metric tons of bloat on this one....
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Mr.Blacky Avatar
61 months ago

Memoji at login. Why? It's stupid stuff like this that make macos bloated. Again, my 9 year old rMBP shouldn't run Windows 10 better than Catalina.
Does Apple force you to use it? And what exactly about it makes macos bloated?
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Apple Knowledge Navigator Avatar
61 months ago

Memoji at login. Why? It's stupid stuff like this that make macos bloated.
Could you explain, in purely technical terms, how a small animated image on the login screen 'bloats' the operating system?
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
boswald Avatar
61 months ago

Memoji at login. Why? It's stupid stuff like this that make macos bloated. Again, my 9 year old rMBP shouldn't run Windows 10 better than Catalina.
I feel the same way about my mini, and it’s from 2018. ?‍♂️
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)