Apple Releases New Big Sur and Catalina Safari 15.1 Betas for Developers With Restored Tab Design

Following in the footsteps of the macOS Monterey release candidate seeded earlier this week, Apple has released a fourth beta version of Safari 15.1 for macOS Big Sur and Catalina to developers that restores the previous tab design that was in place prior to Safari 15.

safari 15 1 old tabs
Safari 15.1 now features a standard Big Sur tab design, which is enabled by default and is labeled "Separate" in Safari preferences. For those who preferred the Safari 15 design rolled out last month, there is also a "Compact" option that merges the URL bar with the tab bar.

As with Safari in the macOS Monterey release candidate, the new Safari 15.1 beta also scales back on the option to have the Safari window chrome blend in with websites, moving the option to the Accessibility section of the Advanced page in Safari preferences and limiting it to only the Compact Tab Bar design.

With the public release of Safari 15.1 in macOS Monterey, Big Sur, and Catalina, Apple is scaling back on many of the design changes made in Safari 15, which was released for those macOS versions last month alongside iOS and iPadOS 15. Many users were unhappy with those design changes, so Apple will now be offering them as an option rather than the default or only layout.

Registered developers can download the new Safari 15.1 beta by logging in to Apple's developer downloads portal and then navigating to the More Downloads section. The latest version of macOS Big Sur or macOS Catalina is required to install the beta.

Tag: Safari

Popular Stories

Apple iPhone 16e Feature

Apple Announces iPhone 16e With A18 Chip and Apple Intelligence, Pricing Starts at $599

Wednesday February 19, 2025 8:02 am PST by
Apple today introduced the iPhone 16e, its newest entry-level smartphone. The device succeeds the third-generation iPhone SE, which has now been discontinued. The iPhone 16e features a larger 6.1-inch OLED display, up from a 4.7-inch LCD on the iPhone SE. The display has a notch for Face ID, and this means that Apple no longer sells any iPhones with a Touch ID fingerprint button, marking the ...
iphone 17 pro asherdipps

iPhone 17 Pro Models Rumored to Feature Aluminum Frame Instead of Titanium Frame

Tuesday February 18, 2025 12:02 pm PST by
Over the years, Apple has switched from an aluminum frame to a stainless steel frame to a titanium frame for its highest-end iPhones. And now, it has been rumored that Apple will go back to using aluminum for three out of four iPhone 17 models. In an investor note with research firm GF Securities, obtained by MacRumors this week, Apple supply chain analyst Jeff Pu said the iPhone 17, iPhone...
apple launch feb 2025

Tim Cook Teases an 'Apple Launch' Next Wednesday

Thursday February 13, 2025 8:07 am PST by
In a social media post today, Apple CEO Tim Cook teased an upcoming "launch" of some kind scheduled for Wednesday, February 19. "Get ready to meet the newest member of the family," he said, with an #AppleLaunch hashtag. The post includes a short video with an animated Apple logo inside a circle. Cook did not provide an exact time for the launch, or share any other specific details, so...
iPhone 17 Roundup Feature 2

iPhone Design to Change 'Significantly' This Year

Monday February 17, 2025 7:09 am PST by
Apple is set to "significantly change" the iPhone's design language later this year, according to a Weibo leaker. In a new post, the user known "Digital Chat Station" said that the iPhone's design is "starting to change significantly" this year. The "iPhone 17 Air" reportedly features a "horizontal, bar-shaped" design on the rear, likely referring to an elongated camera bump. On the other...
Generic iOS 18

Here's When Apple Will Release iOS 18.4

Wednesday February 19, 2025 11:38 am PST by
Following the launch of the iPhone 16e, Apple updated its iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia pages to give a narrower timeline on when the next updates are set to launch. All three pages now state that new Apple Intelligence features and languages will launch in early April, an update from the more broader April timeframe that Apple provided before. The next major point updates will be iOS ...
apple launch feb 2025 alt

Here Are the New Apple Products We're Still Expecting This Spring

Thursday February 20, 2025 5:06 am PST by
Now that Apple has announced its new more affordable iPhone 16e, our thoughts turn to what else we are expecting from the company this spring. There are three product categories that we are definitely expecting to get upgraded before spring has ended. Keep reading to learn what they are. If we're lucky, Apple might make a surprise announcement about a completely new product category. M4...
iOS 18

iOS 18.4 Coming Next Week With These New Features for Your iPhone

Friday February 14, 2025 6:18 am PST by
The first iOS 18.4 beta for iPhones should be just around the corner, and the update is expected to include many new features and changes. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman expects the iOS 18.4 beta to be released by next week. Below, we outline what to expect from iOS 18.4 so far. Apple Intelligence for Siri Siri is expected to get several enhancements powered by Apple Intelligence on iOS...
Apple 2025 Thumb 1

Two of Apple's Oldest Products Are Finally Getting Updated This Year

Friday February 14, 2025 6:03 am PST by
Apple released the HomePod mini in November 2020, followed by the AirTag in May 2021, and both still remain first-generation products. Fortunately, rumors suggest that both the HomePod mini and the AirTag will finally be updated at some point this year. Below, we recap rumors about the HomePod mini 2 and AirTag 2. HomePod mini 2 In January 2025, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said Apple is ...

Top Rated Comments

PsykX Avatar
44 months ago
I was SO GLAD they brought back the current design.
I do UX myself (part-time job let's say) and I don't know what they were thinking.
I was this close to switch to another browser. ??
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Takeo Avatar
44 months ago
Oh thank god. Been using this thing for what… almost a month now? And I STILL find myself being confused over which “tab” is active or clicking in a “tab” to try to edit a URL. Probably happened a dozen times just today.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
macduke Avatar
44 months ago
HALLELUJAH!


I was SO GLAD they brought back the current design.
I do UX myself (part-time job let's say) and I don't know what they were thinking.
I was this close to switch to another browser. ??
I do UI/UX full-time and I don’t know what they were thinking.

Now I can upgrade with no remaining concerns. Sweet!
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Mr. Awesome Avatar
44 months ago

I don’t know why I’m on MacRumors responding to this, but here we go:

Steve Jobs developed NeXT.

Steve Jobs died in 2011.

Apple had to license various things for Safari, because Steve Jobs died.

https://www.chromium.org/

If you think you can fix it, go write the fix and sell it to Apple.
* I have no idea what you’re talking about. Safari was released about 8 years before Steve died.
* Apple didn’t “license various things for Safari.” It was based on an open source browser called Konqueror.
* Contributing to Chromium changes nothing about WebKit. Contribute to WebKit instead.
* Changes to WebKit affect only the engine, not the Safari UI.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Sasparilla Avatar
44 months ago
Ahhhh, nice, no more buttons. Was wondering when we'd get it on the "old" OS's.

Have been liking the color thing, but would rather have tabs that look functionally correct instead.

Thank you for listening to and acting on the feedback Apple.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
iisdan Avatar
44 months ago
People are so afraid of change, the new tab design is way better
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)