Bartender

Hidden Bar is a free Bartender alternative which might find itself seeing quite an uptake in demand, following the surprise takeover of the popular Mac utility.

While Bartender’s creator did later chip in with some comforting words, Bartender has a fairly frightening list of permissions – including the ability to take screengrabs of our Macs – so it’s not surprising that a number of us have opted to err on the side of caution …

Earlier this week, users of the popular Menu Bar utility, Bartender, were surprised to learn that the app had been sold months ago with no formal announcement. Users on Reddit expressed concerns about whether the app was safe to use anymore.

Now, the app’s original developer and owner has released a formal statement. He confirms the app’s acquisition by new owners, and seeks to bring assurance that Bartender’s future is bright.

The menu bar manager app Bartender 4 has just been updated with macOS Big Sur and M1 Macs support. The app gives the user control over the menu bar items, what’s displayed, and only showing the items when needed.