macOS has a built-in screen saver, but it can’t use your own photos mixed with videos, it doesn’t shuffle, and it doesn’t respect all the settings you’ve carefully tuned for your slideshow. Slideshower’s Screen Saver Mode does - it turns your existing slideshow setup into a screen saver that starts automatically when you walk away and disappears the instant you come back.

What Screen Saver Mode Actually Does

When Screen Saver Mode is on, Slideshower watches your Mac for idle time - no keyboard input, no mouse movement, no clicks. Once you’ve been away for a set number of minutes (you choose), the slideshow starts by itself, full-screen.

The moment you come back - move the mouse, press a key, click anything - the slideshow stops immediately and your screen returns to normal.

When you enable Scree Saver mode, the main Slideshower window shows a small purple moon icon with the text “Screen saver mode is ON (X min)” so you can always confirm it’s turned on.

How to Enable Screen Saver Mode

It’s super easy to configure:

1. Open Slideshower and click the Advanced Options button
2. Go to the Other tab
3. Toggle “Screen saver mode” ON
4. Set your preferred idle timeout in minutes using the field that appears
5. Load your photos or folders as you normally would and that’s it.

Slideshower now watches for inactivity in the background. When you step away long enough, it fires.

Adjusting the Idle Timeout

The idle threshold is how many minutes of inactivity trigger the slideshow. The default of 5 minutes works well for most setups, but you might want to change it depending on your use case:

• 1–2 minutes: Good for a home display you want running almost constantly
• 5 minutes: The sweet spot for a desk or home office - fires after a short break
• 10–15 minutes: Better for environments where you step away less often

You can change the value any time - the watcher restarts automatically with the new threshold.

Everything You’ve Set Up Still Works

Screen Saver Mode doesn’t override your other slideshow settings. It uses exactly what you’ve already configured:

• Shuffle - photos play in random order if you have it enabled
• Transitions - your chosen cross-fade or Ken Burns effect
• Delay - the delay between photos you’ve set
• Display mode - single, 2×2, 3×3, or side-by-side grid
• Background music - your audio tracks play alongside the photos
• Photos and videos together - any MP4, MOV, or M4V files in your folders are included

Getting Started

Screen Saver Mode is available in the current version of Slideshower. If you haven’t downloaded it yet, grab it for free - the free version supports up to 150 photos. Unlimited photos with a one-time license for $19, no subscriptions.

If you’re already using Slideshower and want to try it out, open Advanced Options → Other tab and flip the toggle.

Questions? Reach me at hello@slideshower.com.

Happy slideshowing!

Best, Pawel