macOS 13.3 and iPadOS 16.4 Users Report Issues With Continuity Features

Some Mac and iPad users who updated their devices to Apple's latest software updates are reporting problems with Continuity features like Universal Control and Handoff.

Universal Control Colored Feature
Since last week's release of macOS 13.3 and iPadOS 16.4, many users have taken to the MacRumors Forums, Reddit, Twitter, and Apple's Support Communities to voice their frustration at the lack of functionality after updating.

Users also variously report problems with Handoff, Universal Clipboard, and Auto Unlock and Approve with Apple Watch. Based on online reports, the main Continuity feature to be negatively impacted by the updates appears to be Universal Control.

To recap the feature‌‌, if you have a Mac and an ‌‌iPad‌‌ next to each other and signed into the same Apple ID, you can use the keyboard and cursor on one device across both of them. So a Mac's trackpad can be used over on the ‌‌‌iPad‌‌‌ just by swiping across, and the Mac's keyboard will become the ‌‌iPad‌‌'s input device. The reverse is also true of an ‌‌‌iPad‌‌‌ if you have a keyboard and mouse attached to it.

Barring a restore of the previous OS, suggested solutions that have worked for some users include: Signing out of one's iCloud account on both devices; disabling, restarting, then re-enabling Handoff/Auto Unlock with Apple Watch; turning Wi-Fi and/or Bluetooth on and off again; and toggling checkboxes related to Universal Control features.

Apple has not commented on the Continuity bugs, but it is likely aware of them and working on solutions. The company is rumored to be preparing to release iOS 16.4.1 for the iPhone, so it could release iPadOS 16.4.1 and macOS 13.3.1 in tandem. Such minor updates are typically focused on bug fixes and security improvements.

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Top Rated Comments

antiprotest Avatar
36 months ago
Fix one thing, break three things. Like my old mechanic.
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Prabas Avatar
36 months ago
Yeah, you can't depend on these features to work consistently, they've been hit or miss since launch. For me, Mac to iPhone clipboard started working just recently, iPhone to Mac hasn't worked for more than a year, same with continuity.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jdclifford Avatar
36 months ago
I thought it was just me. Universal control has been sporadic at best between my M1 iMac and M2 MBA but usually works between MBA and M1 iPad Pros. Sometimes I’ve been able to get it to work by turning on screen mirroring then turning it off.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
HackMacDaddy Avatar
36 months ago
Can't wait for all the new features in i(Pad)OS/ 17 and MacOS 14 that may or may not work randomly!
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
evertjr Avatar
36 months ago
Yes, handoff is fully broken for me, it's annoying because I use it all the time, I'm relying on airdrop in the meantime. After a reboot it functions for a while and suddenly stop working.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Verified Whiskey Avatar
36 months ago

Is pram and smc resetting still a thing?
Only on Intel machines I think
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)