Huge CPU hog. Features that exist on mobile are missing on desktop. There’s no timestamps on messages. I’m not sure search even exists. Sync with iCloud only mostly works.
To be honest, the apple ecosystem stuff and how well it works, for me, is one of the biggest benefits of Apple. I walk up to my computer and my watch unlocks it. I can take a call or respond to a message literally on whatever device I happen to be on. For me, I can put up with UI/UX quirks in features like system preferences that I use maybe one or twice a month.
Its the holistic experience that matters to me.
Search works great. My CPU is idle. Sync iCloud works perfectly if you toggle your iPhone to also share SMS with your Mac.
Right click in the message pane and select "Show Times"
> I’m not sure search even exists
Search exists and seems to work pretty well