Apple adds new ‘Hello’ screensaver in macOS Big Sur 11.3

macOS Big Sur 11.3 includes a hidden “Hello” screen saver that appears to be designed for the new iMac models, but can also be installed on any Mac running the 11.3 update.

hello screensaver 1


As described by 9to5Mac, the new screensaver is not available by default, but with a simple set of instructions it can be opened even on non-M1 ‌iMac‌ machines.

hello 2


Follow these instructions on a Mac with ‌macOS Big Sur‌ 11.3:

  1. Open the system folder.
  2. Click on Library.
  3. Click on Screen Savers. screen savers system library
  4. Drag the file “Hello.saver” to the desktop.
  5. Rename the “Hello” file to something else.
  6. Double click on the file. hello screensaver
  7. Follow the instructions to install it.

From there, you should see the “Hello” screen saver added as an option in the list of Mac screen saver available in System Preferences> Desktop> Screen Saver> Screen Saver.

hello screensaver installed


The Hello screen saver goes through different colors and there are several themes to choose from, including “Soft Tones”, “Spectrum” and “Minimal”. Soft Tones uses the pastels introduced with the new iMacs and matching colored text, while Spectrum uses more saturated tones with lighter text. “Minimal” shows the “Hello” words in black, white and gray.

hello 3


By default, the screen saver will display “Hello” in multiple languages, but you can force it to use only your native language by deselecting “Show ‘hello’ in all languages” in the Screen Saver options.

hello 4


A “match system appearance” toggle button is also available to use to adjust light and dark mode preferences.

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