The MacBook Touch Bar is a thin touchscreen above the number keys on MacBook Pro keyboards that offers versatile functionality.
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Introduced to MacBooks in 2016, the Touch Bar is a small touchscreen located above the number keys on MacBook Pro keyboards.
The Touch Bar was built to replace the function keys - the numbered F1 through F12 keys that come standard on most keyboards. Despite this, the Touch Bar actually has a variety of features and tools that change depending on what app you're using.
As of this writing, the Touch Bar is only available on 13- and 15-inch MacBook Pro models. However, this might change in the future.
As its name suggests, Apple's Touch Bar is activated by touch, and as such responds to gestures like tapping, swiping, and sliding. You can use these gestures to adjust the brightness and volume, activate Siri, access function keys, and more depending on the app you're using.
For example, if you're checking your email, you'll see actions to reply or flag emails on the Touch Bar. Image editing apps might let you trip or crop with a touch. And a calculator will display the standard adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing symbols.
Try using different apps and watch how the Touch Bar changes to match them.
This Apple Support page shows which buttons pop up when you select a file in Finder (including Preview and Share) and when you view a picture in the Photos app (including Rotate and a slider to quickly navigate through photos).
AP
An advantage of the Touch Bar is its ability to customize which buttons appear. For app-specific functions, you can customize the buttons to include commonly used tasks. To change your Touch Bar's settings, open System Preferences, select "Keyboard" and the "Keyboard" submenu afterward, then choose and adjust among the variety of customizable options available for the Touch Bar.
And if something appears on the Touch Bar that you want to save for later, you can take a screenshot of just the Touch Bar.
While the buttons located in the center of the Touch Bar will change depending on the app you're using, the Control Strip, which is located on the right side, doesn't change. Here, you'll find buttons to activate Siri and adjust settings like brightness and volume. To expand the Control Strip, tap the left facing arrow button.
In the expanded view of the Control Strip, you can also adjust keyboard brightness, control video or music playback (with pause, play, rewind, and fast forward buttons), and more.
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Function keys (F1 to F12) are standard on most keyboards, meaning that you'll likely still need them.
For Macs with a Touch Bar, the function keys are accessed via the Touch Bar. To find them, press and hold the Fn key or Globe key (whichever one you have) on your keyboard.
If this doesn't work, go to your Mac's keyboard preferences to ensure this shortcut is enabled. You can find your keyboard preferences in the "System Preferences" app.
