Google releases Featured Photos screen saver for Mac

Google today announced that it has come out with a new Mac screen saver that displays certain photos that people share publicly on Google+. Previously, these kinds of photos have been available as a backdrop on the Chromecast and other devices, but now they’re available for use on Apple’s desktop operating system.

Recently, Google released the Wallpapers app for Android that made its debut exclusively on the Google Pixel smartphone. Today, Google said it has also added these photos into that Wallpapers app, in addition to the Mac screen saver.

“With our new Featured Photos screensaver for Mac, you can display stunning, high-resolution photography from our Google+ members whenever your computer is inactive,” Google product manager Neil Inala wrote in a Google+ post.

To install the screen saver for Mac, download it, double click the “.saver” file in Finder, select “Google Featured” in the Desktop & Screen Saver section of System Preferences, and then allow the app to download automatic updates.

The screen saver shows a different image each time it appears. If you have additional displays attached to your Mac, each display will show a different image.

This isn’t anywhere near the first time that Google has come out with tools for Apple’s products. On iOS, Google already offers many apps, including the Gboard virtual keyboard. On Mac, there are fewer Google apps, the most significant one being Chrome. But the screen saver is an operating system-level feature, and now Google has a presence there, one that promotes content from its social network, something that Google has, in general, been deemphasizing.