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Issue link: https://digital.macdirectory.com/i/1401427
the other device. That being said, you do need to meet some requirements before starting using Universal Control. What Do You Need to Use Universal Control? Before you start using Universal Control, well, you need to make sure you can actually use it. First, not every Mac or iPad will support this feature, so you’ll need to make sure yours has Universal Control available. Which Macs Support Universal Control? 1. 2016 or later MacBook Pro. 2. 2016 or later MacBook. 3. 2018 or later MacBook Air. 4. 2017 or later iMac. 5. Late 2015 and later 27-inch iMac. 6. iMac Pro. 7. 2018 and later Mac mini. 8. 2019 and later Mac Pro. Which iPads Support Universal Control? 1. iPad Pro. 2. 3rd Generation and later iPad Air. 3. 6th Generation and later iPad. 4. 5th generation and later iPad mini. As you can see, the list is pretty broad, so chances are your Mac and iPad will support Universal Control. But there are other requirements. First, all devices must be signed in to the same iCloud account and that the Apple ID is using two-factor authentication. If you want to use Universal Control wirelessly, you’ll also need to make sure both devices have Bluetooth, Wi-Fi turned on and that the Handoff feature is also enabled. Handoff is on by default, but you can check it on your iPad by going to Settings, then General and then going to AirPlay & Handoff. Make sure Handoff is turned on. On Mac, you need to click the Apple Menu on the top left and go to System Preferences. Once there, go to General and make sure that Allow Handoff between this Mac and your iCloud devices is checked. You’ll also need to make sure both devices are at least 30 feet—or around 9 meters—close to each other if you’re using Universal Control with no USB connection. You can also use Universal Control with a USB connection, but you’ll need to make sure that your Mac trusts the iPad you’ll use. You can make it trust your iPad as soon as you plug it in. Last but not least, both your iPad and Mac will need to have iPadOS 15 and macOS Monterey, respectively. How Many Devices Can You Connect to Universal Control? Just like we saw during the Apple Keynote, Universal Control lets you connect up to three devices at once. It can be one Mac and two iPads or two Macs. One thing to note is that if you have several devices that support Universal Control, your Mac or iPad will automatically connect to the device you used most recently. But instead of using the device you want, you can add a default device, so your Mac or iPad automatically connects to it. What Can You Do with Universal Control? Connecting two or three devices by using Universal Control will let you control all devices with a single mouse and keyboard. Universal Control will also allow you to share files across all devices. For instance, if you need an image from your iPad to finish a presentation on your Mac, you can move the image from one device to the other simply by dragging it and dropping it on your Mac. You can also move files from your Mac to your iPad, but you’ll first need to make sure that your iPad has an app open that supports the file. For instance, you need to have the Files app open if you want your iPad to receive a file from your Mac. When Will Universal Control Be Available for Everyone? Even though Universal Control sounds amazing, we all need to wait before using it. Apple hasn’t said when this feature would be available, and, as of right now, Universal Control isn’t available even in the first developer beta of iPadOS 15 or macOS Monterey. Apple mentioned to The Verge that “there are still details to hash out,” so it’s quite possible that Apple won’t release this feature until the full versions of both iPadOS 15 and Monterey are available this fall.