OMG! Universal Control is Freakin’ Revolutionary

[Marshall73]

no but what is drag and drop if not glorified copy/paste?

just pointing out there have been solutions developed already that don't need a 2016 or newer machine

Seamlessly dragging that video from the iPad to the iMac in that demo is the biz. Plus, I have an M1 Mac and iPad so I’m sorted.

 

[luapre]

Does anybody here know if universal control will also 'work the other way', i.e. using an iPad with a Magic Keyboard attached to control a Mac?

 

[bbplayer5]

Is it in the beta? If so, how do we enable it and test it? I can't find it.

 

[Minato1990]

It isn’t an M1-only feature, surprisingly:

I am chucking my early maxed out 2015 mbp out the window 😖

 

[Brammy]

So, I am guessing it working on "iPad Pro" means it will work on my 1st Generation 12.9?

 

[GubbyMan]

Does anyone know how it will determine if the second device is to the left or to the right? It would have to use something like the U1 chip which no iPad or Mac has. Or does the user have to specify the direction manually?

 

[darngooddesign]

So, I am guessing it working on "iPad Pro" means it will work on my 1st Generation 12.9?

The page says my 9.7 Pro is compatible so yours should be as well.

 

[pshufd]

Does anyone know how it will determine if the second device is to the left or to the right? It would have to use something like the U1 chip which no iPad or Mac has. Or does the user have to specify the direction manually?

Synergy brings up a grid and you just drag the computers around the grid to indicate where they are in relation to one another. Similar to what you do in Settings -> Display when arranging the monitors on a multi-monitor system.

 

[Maconplasma]

no but what is drag and drop if not glorified copy/paste?

Hardly the same experience. When dragging files from the desktop to the Final Cut Pro timeline I can easily drop the file between other files in the exact spot I need. It takes more time to place a marker in the proper spot then paste the file.

 

[chrfr]

I just read what Universal Control is. It's basically Target Display Mode with multiple targets. I will be interested to see the list of supported devices. All of my older devices are potential monitors. If both machines have to run Monterey, then it will be less useful.

It’s not Target Display Mode at all. It’s a software KVM. Each device runs independently but you can use a single input device across the multiple devices. Target Display Mode is when an iMac acts as an external display; Universal Access isn’t doing that.

 

[pshufd]

It’s not Target Display Mode at all. It’s a software KVM. Each device runs independently but you can use a single input device across the multiple devices. Target Display Mode is when an iMac acts as an external display; Universal Access isn’t doing that.

Yeah, I figured that out. The first article I saw implied TDM but it was confusing two features: Universal Remote and AirPlay Target.

 

[Apple_Robert]

Is it in the beta? If so, how do we enable it and test it? I can't find it.

I don't think it is available in the current beta release.

 

[pshufd]

I don't think it is available in the current beta release.

I suspect it will work just like Synergy.

 

[SoYoung]

Unfortunately, its not supported on my late 2015 iMac. In fact, not many feature are supported on my machine at a point I'm wondering why this model will have macOS 12 lol.

 

[Kung gu]

Unfortunately, its not supported on my late 2015 iMac. In fact, not many feature are supported on my machine at a point I'm wondering why this model will have macOS 12 lol.

"Available on MacBook Pro (2016 and later), MacBook (2016 and later), MacBook Air (2018 and later), iMac (2017 and later), iMac (5K Retina 27-inch, Late 2015), iMac Pro, Mac mini (2018 and later), and Mac Pro (2019); and iPad Pro, iPad Air (3rd generation and later), iPad (6th generation and later), and iPad mini (5th generation and later). Both devices must be signed in to iCloud with the same Apple ID using two-factor authentication. To use wirelessly, both devices must have Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and Handoff turned on and must be within 10 meters (30 feet) of each other. iPad and Mac must not be sharing a cellular and internet connection. To use over USB, you must trust your Mac on the iPad."

yes it is supported.
Unless your iMac is a 21.5" 2015?

 

[pshufd]

Unfortunately, its not supported on my late 2015 iMac. In fact, not many feature are supported on my machine at a point I'm wondering why this model will have macOS 12 lol.

I run Synergy on my Late 2009 iMac. It uses trivial resources.

 

[thingstoponder]

Does this replace sidecar or is it a separate thing?

 

[iStorm]

Does anyone know how it will determine if the second device is to the left or to the right? It would have to use something like the U1 chip which no iPad or Mac has. Or does the user have to specify the direction manually?

There's no need to configure it manually like you would with external monitors, and no U1 chip would be needed either. Just move the mouse to the side of the screen where the other Mac or iPad is to initiate the Universal Control feature. An animation will appear at the edge of the screen, and then you continue moving the mouse further to complete the connection. This action basically tells the system where the other device is. Here's a link to the demo to see how Craig connected to the iPad. (It appears that the MacBook and iMac were already connected prior to the demo since he didn't do that initial step there.)

Does this replace sidecar or is it a separate thing?

This is a separate thing and doesn't replace Sidecar. See the link above for a demo of Universal Control if you haven't seen it already.

 

[SoYoung]

"Available on MacBook Pro (2016 and later), MacBook (2016 and later), MacBook Air (2018 and later), iMac (2017 and later), iMac (5K Retina 27-inch, Late 2015), iMac Pro, Mac mini (2018 and later), and Mac Pro (2019); and iPad Pro, iPad Air (3rd generation and later), iPad (6th generation and later), and iPad mini (5th generation and later). Both devices must be signed in to iCloud with the same Apple ID using two-factor authentication. To use wirelessly, both devices must have Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and Handoff turned on and must be within 10 meters (30 feet) of each other. iPad and Mac must not be sharing a cellular and internet connection. To use over USB, you must trust your Mac on the iPad."

yes it is supported.
Unless your iMac is a 21.5" 2015?

oh, my mistake then, I was not reading properly! Yes, I have the 27' one so I'm good!

 

[Kung gu]

oh, my mistake then, I was not reading properly! Yes, I have the 27' one so I'm good!

just a heads up, Universal Control is not in beta 1 of macOS Monterey yet!

 

[Caviar_X]

Why is the MBP Retina early 2015 ALWAYS shut out? Damn.

 

[zimacn]

Does anyone know whether Apple provides a way of directly accessing other device file systems without drag? For example, use Finder or Iterm?

 

[m.x]

I'm really curious how the Mac knows if the iPad is left or right to it? Bluetooth?

 

[alien3dx]

install the macos on imac - mouse still stuck on edge.. and m1 laptop not install with latest thou.

 

[Lvivske]

I dunno about revolutionary, Logitech mice came with software to do this for years