Apple finally delivers Mac and iPad harmony in Universal Control

Apple finally delivers Mac and iPad harmony in Universal Control — how it works

(Image credit: Apple | YouTube)

Universal Command is one of the most heady upcoming features announced for macOS Monterey. It will permit you to use a unmarried mouse, trackpad and keyboard across multiple Macs and likewise the iPad, which should brand it easier to movement content between devices. It's a great characteristic that will no dubiousness be a huge hit amongst Apple enthusiasts.

Universal Control was originally slated to launch late terminal year. Unfortunately, the feature was delayed and is at present prepare to release in the Spring of 2022. However, early on adopters demand wait no longer, equally Universal Control is now available in the latest programmer beta of Monterey 12.3 and iPadOS 15.4.

Read on to observe out how to utilize Universal Control on Macs and iPads.

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The characteristic is bachelor after updating to the new betas. You'll find the settings in the macOS Monterey Settings card (which you tin can detect by opening the Apple tree carte du jour in the elevation-left corner) and navigating to Displays > Advanced. On the iPad, it's in the Airplay & Handoff section under General, which has a new Cursor and Keyboard (Beta) option.

When you showtime connect your Mac and iPad by moving the pointer to the edge of the screen, you lot will see the icon of the device you are connecting from. MacBooks, iMacs and other macOS Monterey machines can exist set up to continuously work with Universal Control in Displays > Arrangement Preferences. If you want to connect an iPad, it seems you'll need to reconnect (by sliding your cursor off the edge of your Mac and onto your iPad) each time the device is moved or put to sleep.

macOS Monterey new features, release date, beta and compatibility — With Universal Control you'll see a niggling purlieus-breaking animation when you move your cursor to the border of the screen near a compatible device. (Prototype credit: Apple tree | YouTube)

Afterward an iPad is connected, you can arrange it like you would an external brandish using the Display Preferences menu. This is useful if, for instance, y'all have a hot corner on the lower right-manus side corner of the Mac set to Quick Note and don't want that part of the edge used for Universal Control.

For now, Universal Control is only available for registered macOS and iPadOS beta testers, merely we expect the feature to roll out for full general use in the almost future. This is good news for Apple tree users since Universal Control looks to be a handy feature that tin can help yous exist more productive with your Apple hardware.

Tony is a computing writer at Tom's Guide covering laptops, tablets, Windows, and iOS. During his off-hours, Tony enjoys reading comic books, playing video games, reading speculative fiction novels, and spending too much time on Twitter. His not-nerdy pursuits involve attending Hard Rock/Heavy Metal concerts and going to NYC bars with friends and colleagues. His work has appeared in publications such as Laptop Mag, PC Magazine, and various independent gaming sites.