New in 1.0.172
Every App Update, One List
macOS has no single answer to “what is out of date?”. The App Store knows its apps, Homebrew knows its casks, and every downloaded app checks its own feed. Notchy's Packages tab asks all three and shows one list. Free.
Three update systems, merged
Homebrew casks and formulae via your own brew, Mac App Store apps via mas when you have it, and every app that updates itself through Sparkle — which is most apps downloaded from the web.
Update in place where it can
Homebrew rows upgrade right in the panel, one by one or all at once. App Store rows open the App Store page; Sparkle rows open the app so its own updater takes over. Nothing is installed behind your back.
No background polling
Checking costs a network request per app, so Notchy only checks when you open the tab or press Refresh — never on a timer.
It's where you already look
Packages is a tab in the notch, on by default, next to your clipboard, music and timers — not another menu bar app that exists only to nag.
Everything Notchy does, for free
- Fluid Dynamic Island animations on the Mac notch
- Command palette (⌃⌥K) — every action one keystroke away
- Knock — double-tap a modifier key to open the notch
- AI usage tracker (Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, Copilot)
- Detach any tab into a menu-bar popover
- Now Playing music controls (Apple Music & Spotify)
- Time-synced karaoke lyrics under the notch
- Mac clipboard history shelf (password-manager safe)
- Searchable clipboard — filter by text, file name, or OCR'd words
- On-device OCR — copy a screenshot, get its text (Apple Vision)
- Window snapping — drag a window to the notch to tile it
- App Launcher — pin apps to the notch, open with one tap
- Text snippets — TextExpander-style pastes from the ⌘K palette
- One-tap screen capture to clipboard + shelf
- Color eyedropper — sample any pixel, hex auto-copied
- System-wide mic mute for every meeting app at once
- Keystroke HUD for demos & screencasts (secure-input safe)
- Keyboard cleaning lock with countdown island (⌘⎋ unlocks)
- Menu-bar icon hiding — Bartender-style separator & chevron
- Live CPU / memory / network stats flyout
- Open GitHub PR count in the notch (Keychain-stored token)
- iPhone-style call island — Answer/Decline FaceTime on the notch
- Notch Terminal — real VT100/xterm shell in a PTY, its own tab
- Camera Guard — alert (or block) when any app opens your camera
- Caps Lock HUD — brief island on every toggle
- Full Charge island with adjustable threshold + low-battery sound
- Alt HUD styles — edge-pinned bar or circular gauge off the notch
- Audio-reactive Now Playing visualizer (real FFT of system audio)
- Custom closed-notch idle animation — drop in your own Lottie JSON
- Drag-and-drop file drop shelf — persists across relaunches
- Zip & unzip files right from the shelf
- Image converter (HEIC, PNG, JPEG, TIFF, PDF) + video → GIF
- Run Apple Shortcuts with one tap
- Screenshots auto-staged on the shelf, ready to drag
- Download finished alerts with Reveal in Finder
- USB drive mount island with one-tap Eject
- Apple Reminders quick capture & due list
- macOS Pomodoro notch timer & stopwatch — streaks + 7-day chart
- Resizable expanded panel (width & height, live preview)
- System HUDs (volume, brightness, battery)
- Audio output switcher (speakers, AirPods, monitor)
- AirPods connection manager & battery
- Magic Mouse, Keyboard & Trackpad battery + low-battery alerts
- Quick notes & Calendar widgets
- Camera Mirror (check your appearance)
- Keep Awake (caffeine toggle)
- Teleprompter (Cuely) for Zoom calls
- Focus-aware alerts & native haptic feedback
- Lock screen widgets & hide-the-notch mode
- 133 languages, fully localized
- Native SwiftUI, tuned for Apple Silicon
Mac App Updater — FAQ
How do I update all apps on a Mac at once?
macOS only updates App Store apps from one place. Notchy's Packages tab, new in 1.0.172, lists App Store, Homebrew and Sparkle-based apps together; Homebrew packages can be upgraded all at once from the panel.
MacUpdater was discontinued — what replaces it?
CoreCode ended MacUpdater on 1 January 2026 and no longer verifies updates. Latest (free, open source) covers App Store and Sparkle apps, and Notchy's Packages tab covers those plus Homebrew, free.
Why don't my App Store apps show up?
The App Store has no public “what is outdated” API, so Notchy uses the mas command-line tool when it is installed. Install it with brew install mas and App Store updates appear in the list.
Does Notchy install Homebrew for me?
No. It uses the brew you already have and never ships or bootstraps its own. Without Homebrew, the tab still lists Sparkle and App Store updates.
Does it install updates automatically?
No. Every update starts with a click. Homebrew upgrades run in the panel; App Store and Sparkle updates are handed to the system that owns them.
Is it free?
Yes. Notchy has no trial, licence key, subscription or in-app purchase.