Perhaps one of the most exciting features announced for iPadOS 15 at this year’s Worldwide Developers Conference was Universal Control, a new way to control your iPad from your Mac. The feature will drop as part of the iOS 15 and macOS Monterey updates coming later this year, likely in September and October respectively.
The feature will allow users to use the keyboard, mouse, and trackpad from their Mac on their iPad, and when you move your mouse from your Mac to your iPad, the cursor will transform from an arrow into a round dot and offer more control and flexibility – ideal for those who like working via multiple screens, such as illustrators.
How to set up Universal Control
What’s even more interesting about this new feature is that you don’t need to set it up – it’ll work immediately when you push your cursor from your iMac or MacBook towards another device, like your iPad Air or iPad Pro, and it’ll pop up on the second device and begin supporting it. If you want the new Universal Control feature to work continuously, head to System Preferences and you won’t need to wait for the devices to automatically link every time you want to use them – instead, there’ll be a continuous connection that’s super easy and reliable.
Is my device eligible for Universal Control?
With Universal Control, you can drag and drop content between up to three devices, but you’ll need a particular MacBook or iPad in order to benefit from the new feature. You’ll need a MacBook Pro from 2016 or beyond, a MacBook from 2016 or later, a MacBook Air sold in 2018 or later, or a 21-5-inch iMac sold after 2017. For the 5K Retina 27-inch iMac, you’ll need a device sold from late 2015 onwards, or an iMac Pro, a 2019 Mac Pro, or a Mac mini sold in 2018 or later. For iPads, you’ll need a 3rd generation and later iPad Air, an iPad mini (5th generation or later) or a sixth-generation iPad. All iPad Pro models are compatible, which is good to know.
Are you looking forward to trying out Universal Control when it launches later this year? Let us know!