How to Setup and Use Handoff Between Your Mac and iOS Devices

Assuming you have both a Mac and an iOS device, you can use a feature called Handoff to continue what you’re doing on one device on the other. For example, if you’re browsing the web on your iPhone and come across a website you want to continue viewing on your Mac, you can “hand off” the browsing session to your Mac. Conversely, if you’re working on a document in Pages on your Mac and want to continue editing it on your iPad, you can “hand off” the document to your iPad.

Here’s how to set up and use Handoff between your Mac and iOS devices:

1. Make sure both your Mac and iOS device are signed in to the same iCloud account.

2. On your Mac, open System Preferences and click on the General preference pane.

3. Make sure the “Allow Handoff between this Mac and your iCloud devices” checkbox is checked.

4. On your iOS device, open the Settings app and tap on the General tab.

5. Make sure the “Handoff & Suggested Apps” switch is turned on.

6. Now, when you’re using your Mac and an iOS app that supports Handoff, you’ll see a small icon in the Dock (on the Mac) or in the App Switcher (on the iOS device). Tapping on that icon will let you “hand off” the current activity to the other device.

7. Once you’ve “handed off” an activity to another device, you can continue working on it there. For example, if you hand off a web browsing session from your iPhone to your Mac, you can continue browsing on the Mac where you left off on the iPhone. Likewise, if you hand off a document from your Mac to your iPad, you can continue editing the document on the iPad.

What is Handoff?

Handoff is a feature that allows you to continue what you’re doing on one Apple device, on another Apple device. For example, if you’re browsing the web on your iPhone and you want to continue on your Mac, you can “hand off” the activity to your Mac. Or, if you’re working on a Keynote presentation on your Mac and you want to continue on your iPad, you can “hand off” the activity to your iPad.

How to Set Up Handoff

In order to use Handoff, you must have the following:

-Two or more Apple devices that are compatible with Handoff (i.e., an iPhone 5s or later, an iPad (4th generation) or later, or a Mac running Yosemite or later)
-Each device must be signed in to iCloud with the same Apple ID
-Each device must have Bluetooth turned on
-Each device must be within range of the other device (generally, about 30 feet or 10 meters)

Once you have all of the above, you can set up Handoff by doing the following:

1. On each device, go to Settings > General > Handoff & Suggested Apps.
2. Turn on Handoff.
3. On your Mac, you may also need to turn on Bluetooth in System Preferences > Bluetooth.

How to Use Handoff

Once you have Handoff set up, using it is easy. Let’s say, for example, you’re browsing the web on your iPhone. To “hand off” the activity to your Mac, simply do the following:

1. Swipe up from the bottom of your iPhone’s screen to access the Control Center.
2. Tap the Handoff icon (it looks like a little rectangle with a curved arrow).
3. Your Mac will then display a Safari window with the same webpage that you were viewing on your iPhone.

To “hand off” an activity from your Mac to your iPhone (or any other compatible Apple device), simply do the following:

1. Click the Handoff icon in the Dock (it looks like a little rectangle with a curved arrow).
2. Your iPhone (or other compatible Apple device) will then display the same activity that you were working on your Mac.

And that’s all there is to it! Handoff is a great way to seamlessly continue what you’re doing on one Apple device, on another Apple device.

How to Setup Handoff

To set up Handoff between your Mac and iOS devices, you’ll need to make sure that Bluetooth is enabled on both devices and that they are signed in to the same iCloud account. Once you’ve done that, you can start using Handoff by following these steps:

1. On your Mac, open the apps you want to use with Handoff.

2. On your iOS device, open the Settings app and go to the General section.

3. Tap on Handoff & Suggested Apps.

4. Turn on the Handoff switch.

5. Now, whenever you’re using an app on your Mac and you want to continue using it on your iOS device, just click on the Handoff icon in the Dock. The app will open on your iOS device and you can pick up where you left off.

How to Use Handoff

Assuming you have everything set up (see above), using Handoff is dead simple.

Just start what you were doing on one device and then switch to the other. For example, if you’re browsing the web in Safari on your iPhone and come across a website you want to look at later on your Mac, just tap the Share button and then select the Handoff option.

You’ll see the Safari icon appear on your Mac’s dock, and when you click it, the same webpage will open up in Safari on your Mac. Similarly, if you’re using an app on your Mac and want to continue using it on your iPhone, just click the Handoff icon in the dock and the app will open up on your iPhone.

If you’re using an app that doesn’t have a Handoff icon in the dock, you can still use Handoff by opening up the App Switcher (press Command+Tab on your keyboard or double-click the Home button on your iPhone) and selecting the app you want to continue using from the list of apps.

Conclusion

Assuming you have all of the necessary hardware and software, setting up and using Handoff is relatively simple. Here’s a quick overview of what you need to do:

1. Make sure your Mac and iOS device are signed in to the same iCloud account.
2. Turn on Handoff on your Mac and iOS device.
3. On your Mac, open the app you want to use with Handoff.
4. On your iOS device, open the app you want to use with Handoff.
5. Start using the app on your Mac, and then pick up where you left off on your iOS device (or vice versa).

That’s all there is to it! With Handoff, you can start working on something on your Mac and then finish it up on your iOS device, or vice versa. It’s a great way to stay productive when you’re on the go.