MacBook Pro’s notch is getting in the way
The notch at the top of the display on Apple’s new MacBook Pro is obstructing certain apps, MacRumors has reported.
The publication spotted two videos posted on Twitter by Snazzy Labs YouTuber Quinn Nelson, which showed the problem.
In the iStat Menus app, Nelson showed that menu items were hidden behind the notch.
In an older version of the video editing app DaVinci Resolve, the mouse pointer would jump from one side of the notch to the other, completely ignoring the concealed space behind it.
Apple has clarified that this is an intentional feature of MacOS Monterey to prevent older apps from showing menus in that space.
It said that this is a compatibility feature and ensures that app menus are shown on either side of the notch.
iStat Menus developer Bjango said this feature would not help fix the hidden menu items when other apps are in the foreground.
A screenshot from one of the videos showing a menu behind the notch
The notch has divided the MacBook community, with some saying it is a smart way of using extra space while slimming the bezel down, while others maintain it is obtrusive.
Several apps help to conceal the notch by making the entire status bar black.
However, those do not stop the status bar from wrapping around the notch, so certain apps might still have their menu items hidden.
Following the complaints, Apple published a support document detailing a new setting that scales the app to fit below the notch, or “camera housing”, as Apple calls it.
Turning it on forces the entire status bar below the notch within specific apps and makes the space on either side of the notch black.
Users who want to use this can click on the Finder icon in the Dock, open Applications, and select the app they wish to behave differently.
They must then choose File and Get Info and in the next window, check the “Scale to fit below built-in camera” box.
Apple said developers can update apps to work better with the areas next to the notch, in which case the scaling option would no longer be available.
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