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The default configuration of the Touch bar on a MacBook has the ‘Control Strip’. This strip has controls for managing the volume, brightness, and media playback on your Mac. It also has a button for Siri and you may, or may not find it useful. Siri coming to macOS was a big deal but it hasn’t really lived up to its potential. Siri can’t open an app on macOS. If you don’t get much use out of Siri, you can remove it from the touch bar fairly easily. Here’s how.
Remove Siri from the Touch bar
There are two ways to remove Siri from the Touch Bar. The first and simple method is to remove the control strip from it. All you have to do is uncheck one little option. The second method is also simple and it lets you keep the control strip but remove Siri from it.
Open the System Preferences app and go to the Keyboard preference. Uncheck the ‘Show Control Strip’ option and the Control Strip will no longer appear on the Touch Bar.
If you like the Control Strip, and you only want to remove Siri from the Touch Bar, click the ‘Customise Control Strip’ button on the Keyboard preference. This will take you to the Touch Bar edit mode. Expand the Control Strip. Drag the Siri button from the bar and drop it onto the dustbin icon at the left edge.
Click Done, and that will do the trick. The Control Strip, whether it’s in its collapsed or expanded form, will no longer show the Siri button.
Any time you want to get the Siri button back, you need to open the System Preferences app and select the Keyboard preference again. Click the ‘Customise Control Strip’ button, and you’ll see a whole panel of buttons appear at the bottom of the screen. There will be a Siri button there. Drag & drop it onto the Touch Bar, and it will be added back to the Control Strip.
The Touch Bar is hit and miss. Some users love it, others do not. If you don’t like it, you may disable it or try and get some other use out of it. There are apps that can add buttons and additional features to the Touch Bar. You can, for example, add a clock to the Touch Bar or even add the Dock to it.
The Siri button might be useful but it’s poorly placed in the corner where it’s easy to tap on it by accident and that alone might be reason enough for users to want to remove it.
