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Animation Evaluation • Updated 2026-10-18 • 6 min read

Evaluate Mac notch animations without frame-rate claims

A display’s advertised refresh rate is not a measurement of one app’s animation. This guide helps you report what you see with the hardware and display settings attached.

Separate display capability from app results

Some MacBook Pro displays support variable refresh rates, but an app’s observed motion also depends on the current display mode, system load, animation, and app state. Core Animation APIs do not establish a measured frame rate for NotchDock. This page makes no 120 fps, zero-dropped-frame, or “jitter-free” claim.

Capture a useful reproduction

  1. Record the exact Mac model, macOS version, NotchDock build, and selected display refresh option.
  2. Use the same interaction each time: for example, expand the notch, switch to one widget, and collapse it. Note any visual pause and the step that triggers it.
  3. Repeat with the same apps open and the same power mode. If testing another display mode, change only that setting and label the run.
  4. Attach a short screen recording if it captures the issue. A recording is evidence of the recorded run, not a frame-rate benchmark by itself.

Check the display settings

Open System Settings > Displays and review the options shown for that display. Apple notes that display options vary by model and connection. Avoid inferring the app’s rendering rate from the display’s maximum specification.

For a performance claim, publish a measured trace with the tested build, hardware, exact interaction, capture method, and raw result. No such NotchDock trace is supplied here.