If you’re completely immersed in the flowers and fragrance of Apple’s walled garden, you’ll also be constantly annoyed by the few apps and features that don’t carry over between your computers. apple, iPador iPhone. First round of macOS Sequoia beta adds iPhone mirroring feature, which may be Apple’s best addition to the latest computer operating systemespecially for those who can’t stand dancing back and forth between their phone and computer.
It’s very simple to set up. After downloading the macOS Sequoia public beta released by Apple on Monday, you can head to Launchpad and search iPhone mirroring. Then you just make sure you’re logged in with the same Apple account (for some reason, the Apple ID has been renamed in this latest update), and then you just connect a nearby phone. Once inside, you can use the cursor to select applications and even use the keyboard to enter. Any audio played on your iPhone will now play through your Mac.
The latter point is a big reason why this feature is so effective. There are several iPhone apps that I wish could run on macOS but still be included in Apple’s mobile devices. Top of my list is apple music classical. It’s still exclusive to iPhone, iPad, and Android. Through iPhone mirroring, you can play Apple Music Classical through Mac. It comes in handy when I don’t want to put on headphones or listen through the smaller iPhone speakers. Can you pair an iPhone with Homepod or any other speaker? Sure, but it’s a great second option when I’m not home.
However, there are other benefits to iPhone mirroring that you might not notice right away until you use it. First, I don’t need to look away from the screen or jump to another tab to view Messenger. There are several services that I’m not logged into on my Mac, but are logged in on my iPhone. If I don’t want to log into my bank account on my work computer, I don’t have to do that now. if i want to jump in Netflix version Games that were unplayable on the Mac, I could now play, despite the small screen size and lack of two-thumb controls. Point and click adventures, e.g. oxfree Still works pretty well.
limited. The iPhone needs to stay within Bluetooth range of the computer, and the Mac and iPhone need to be connected to the same WiFi. Mirroring cannot access the phone’s camera or recordings. If I want to use the instant translation feature on iOS, I have to use my phone directly. The Cupertino company is limiting access to cameras and voices due to privacy concerns, and there may not be any plans to change that.
That’s fair, but there’s still room for improvement. You currently don’t have access to some common gestures on iPhone, such as swiping down from the top-right corner to use the new Control Center layout in iOS 18. Text is clearer on small screens. You also can’t change app icons or delete apps from iPhone without switching to iPhone, but that’s not a big deal.
We also have to wait for the promised ability to drag and drop files between Mac and iPhone via mirroring. Still, even in its current state, I still like the interoperability. There are some other extra features in Sequoia, such as Windows 11’s Snap-like tiling feature. You can hold down the Option key to see where you can snap windows, or hover your mouse over the green button on each window for more placement options. It’s not perfect. I wish there were more options for placing windows in the corners without having to arrange them all at once. I also wish Apple would add the ability to resize multiple windows simultaneously.
We’re still waiting to see how it goes AI, or “Apple Intelligence” Features are constantly changing, but at the same time, I’m really happy with the changes we’re seeing in Sequoia in the open beta. I really doubt that those ugly-looking images generated by artificial intelligence will actually affect the way I use my computer. Not yet on WindowsI doubt it will show up on Mac.