Use Continuity to connect your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, and Mac

Continuity lets you seamlessly move between your iPhone, iPad, and Mac, or use them together.

Continuity features include Handoff, Phone Calling, Instant Hotspot, and SMS. You can start an email or document on iPhone, for example, and then pick up where you left off on your iPad. You can use your iPad or Mac to make and receive phone calls through your iPhone.

Before you get started

Check that the iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, or Mac you'd like to use meet the system requirements for Continuity.

Handoff

Use Handoff with Apple apps such as Mail, Safari, Maps, Messages, Reminders, Calendar, Contacts, Pages, Numbers, and Keynote. Start a document, email, or message on one device and pick up where you left off on another device. You can also use Handoff with some third-party apps.

To use Handoff:

• Sign in to the same iCloud account on all your devices.
• Turn on Bluetooth on all the devices you want to use. Make sure your devices are near each other.
• Connect all your devices to the same Wi-Fi network.

Then, use one of the apps listed above on one of your devices.

On your second iOS device, swipe up from the bottom-left edge of the Lock screen, where you see the app’s activity icon.

You can also go to the multitasking display by double-clicking the Home button on your your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch. Then tap the app.

On your Mac, the Handoff app icon appears on the Dock. Or you can press Command-Tab to switch to an app with a Handoff icon.

Turn off Handoff

To turn off Handoff on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch, go to Settings > General > Handoff & Suggested Apps, and turn off Handoff.

On your Mac, go to System Preferences > General and uncheck the Allow Handoff setting.

Phone calls

With Continuity, you can make and receive cellular phone calls from your iPad, iPod touch, or Mac when your iPhone is on the same Wi-Fi network.

To make and receive phone calls, here's what you need:

1. Sign in to the same iCloud account on all your devices, including your Mac.
2. Your iPhone and your iPad or iPod touch need to use iOS 8 or later. Your Mac needs to use OS X Yosemite.
3. All devices must be on the same Wi-Fi network.
4. All devices must be signed in to FaceTime using the same iCloud account. This means any device that shares your Apple ID will get your phone calls. Look below for instructions on how to turn off iPhone cellular calls.
5. Wi-Fi Calling needs to be off. Go to Settings > Phone. If you see Wi-Fi Calling, turn it off.

Make a call

To make a phone call on your Mac, iPad or iPod touch tap or click a phone number in Contacts, Calendar, or Safari.

You can also tap a phone number from a recent contact in the multitasking display on your iPad or iPod touch.

Answer a call

To answer a phone call on your iPad or iPod touch, just slide to answer:

On your Mac, you see a notification when you receive a call on your iPhone. You can answer the call, send it to voicemail, or send the caller a message, right from your Mac.

Turn off iPhone cellular calls

To turn off iPhone cellular calls on your iPad or iPod touch, go to Settings > FaceTime and turn off iPhone Cellular Calls.

On your Mac, open the FaceTime app and go to FaceTime > Preferences. Click Settings and deselect the iPhone Cellular Calls option.

SMS

With Continuity, all the SMS and MMS text messages you send and receive on your iPhone also appear on your Mac, iPad, and iPod touch. Even if the person you’re communicating with doesn’t have an iPhone. And regardless of what phone they have, you can reply from whichever device is closest to you, including your iPad or Mac. You can also initiate a  conversation by clicking a phone number in Safari, Contacts, or Calendar.

To use Continuity for SMS and MMS with your iPhone and your Mac, iPad or iPod touch

Your iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch need to use iOS 8.1, and your Mac needs to use OS X Yosemite.

1. Sign in to iMessage on your iPhone, your other iOS devices, and your Mac using the same Apple ID.
2. On your iPhone: Go to Settings > Messages > Send & Receive > You Can Be Reached By, and add a check to both your phone number and email address. Then, go to Settings > Messages > Text Message Forwarding, and enable the device(s) you would like to forward messages to.
3. Your Mac, iPad, or iPod touch will display a code. Enter this code on your iPhone to verify the SMS feature.

Instant hotspot

You can use Personal Hotspot on your iPhone to provide Internet access to your other devices without additional setup. You'll need to sign in to iCloud using the same Apple ID as your iPhone. Also, your cellular provider needs to provision your Personal Hotspot.

To get Internet access from your iPhone:

On your iPad or iPod touch, go to Settings > Wi-Fi on your other iOS device and select your iPhone or iPad that has a cellular connection.

On your Mac, go to the Wi-Fi menu at the top of your screen and select your iPhone or iPad that has a cellular connection.

Last Modified: Jul 2, 2015

iOS Device Compatibility Reference

Device Compatibility

The information property list (Info.plist) file contains critical information about your app’s configuration and must be included in your app bundle. Every new project you create in Xcode has a default Info.plist file configured with some basic information about your project. You can modify this file to specify additional configuration details for your app.

The UIRequiredDeviceCapabilities key lets you declare the hardware or specific capabilities that your app needs in order to run. All apps are required to have this key in their Info.plist file. The App Store uses the contents of this key to prevent users from downloading your app onto a device that cannot possibly run it. The tables in this chapter show all iOS devices and their capabilities.

Important: All device requirement changes must be made when you submit an update to your binary. You are permitted only to expand your device requirements. Submitting an update to your binary to restrict your device requirements is not permitted. You are unable to restrict device requirements because this action will keep customers who have previously downloaded your app from running new updates.

Important: If you require a capability listed in bold, you must build your app as a fat binary (armv6 and armv7) or require a minimum iOS version of 4.3 or later. See the individual device tables for a specific key requirement.

Declaring the Required Device Capabilities

The value of the UIRequiredDeviceCapabilities key is either an array or a dictionary that contains additional keys identifying features your app requires (or specifically prohibits). If you specify the value of the key using an array, the presence of a key indicates that the feature is required; the absence of a key indicates that the feature is not required and that the app can run without it. If you specify a dictionary instead, each key in the dictionary must have a Boolean value that indicates whether the feature is required or prohibited. A value of true indicates the feature is required and a value of false indicates that the feature must not be present on the device. If a given capability is optional for your app, do not include the corresponding key in the dictionary.

Table 1-1 lists the keys that you can include in the array or dictionary for the UIRequiredDeviceCapabilities key. You should include keys only for the features that your app absolutely requires. If your app can run without a specific feature, do not include the corresponding key. 

Table 1-1  Dictionary keys for the UIRequiredDeviceCapabilities key

Key	Description	Minimum iOS Required
accelerometer	Include this key if your app requires (or specifically prohibits) the presence of accelerometers on the device. Apps use the Core Motion framework to receive accelerometer events. You do not need to include this key if your app detects only device orientation changes.	iOS 3.0
armv6	Include this key if your app is compiled only for the armv6 instruction set.	iOS 2.0
armv7	Include this key if your app is compiled only for the armv7 instruction set.	iOS 3.1
auto-focus-camera	Include this key if your app requires (or specifically prohibits) autofocus capabilities in the device’s still camera. Although most developers should not need to include this key, you might include it if your app supports macro photography or requires sharper images in order to perform some sort of image processing.	iOS 3.0
bluetooth-le	Include this key if your app requires (or specifically prohibits) the presence of Bluetooth low-energy hardware on the device.	iOS 5.0
camera-flash	Include this key if your app requires (or specifically prohibits) the presence of a camera flash for taking pictures or shooting video. Apps use the UIImagePickerController interface to control the enabling of this feature.	iOS 3.0
front-facing-camera	Include this key if your app requires (or specifically prohibits) the presence of a forward-facing camera. Apps use the UIImagePickerController interface to capture video from the device’s camera.	iOS 3.0
gamekit	Include this key if your app requires (or specifically prohibits) Game Center.	iOS 4.1
gps	Include this key if your app requires (or specifically prohibits) the presence of GPS (or AGPS) hardware when tracking locations. (You should include this key only if you need the higher accuracy offered by GPS hardware.) If you include this key, you should also include the location-services key. You should require GPS only if your app needs location data more accurate than the cellular or Wi-fi radios might otherwise provide.	iOS 3.0
gyroscope	Include this key if your app requires (or specifically prohibits) the presence of a gyroscope on the device. Apps use the Core Motion framework to retrieve information from gyroscope hardware.	iOS 3.0
healthkit	Include this key if your app requires (or specifically prohibits) HealthKit.	iOS 8.0
location-services	Include this key if your app requires (or specifically prohibits) the ability to retrieve the device’s current location using the Core Location framework. (This key refers to the general location services feature. If you specifically need GPS-level accuracy, you should also include the gps key.)	iOS 3.0
magnetometer	Include this key if your app requires (or specifically prohibits) the presence of magnetometer hardware. Apps use this hardware to receive heading-related events through the Core Location framework.	iOS 3.0
metal	Include this key if your app requires (or specifically prohibits) Metal.	iOS 8.0
microphone	Include this key if your app uses the built-in microphone or supports accessories that provide a microphone.	iOS 3.0
opengles-1	Include this key if your app requires (or specifically prohibits) the presence of the OpenGL ES 1.1 interfaces.	iOS 3.0
opengles-2	Include this key if your app requires (or specifically prohibits) the presence of the OpenGL ES 2.0 interfaces.	iOS 3.0
opengles-3	Include this key if your app requires (or specifically prohibits) the presence of the OpenGL ES 3.0 interfaces.	iOS 7.0
peer-peer	Include this key if your app requires (or specifically prohibits) peer-to-peer connectivity over a Bluetooth network.	iOS 3.1
sms	Include this key if your app requires (or specifically prohibits) the presence of the Messages app. You might require this feature if your app opens URLs with the smsscheme.	iOS 3.0
still-camera	Include this key if your app requires (or specifically prohibits) the presence of a camera on the device. Apps use the UIImagePickerController interface to capture images from the device’s still camera.	iOS 3.0
telephony	Include this key if your app requires (or specifically prohibits) the presence of the Phone app. You might require this feature if your app opens URLs with the telscheme.	iOS 3.0
video-camera	Include this key if your app requires (or specifically prohibits) the presence of a camera with video capabilities on the device. Apps use the UIImagePickerController interface to capture video from the device’s camera.	iOS 3.0
wifi	Include this key if your app requires (or specifically prohibits) access to the networking features of the device.	iOS 3.0

For detailed information on how to create and edit property lists, see Information Property List Key Reference. 

iPhone Devices

Table 1-2 and list the capabilities for iPhone devices.

Table 1-2  iPhone 4, iPhone 5, and iPhone 6 device compatibility

Compatibility	iPhone 4	iPhone 4s	iPhone 5	iPhone 5c	iPhone 5s	iPhone 6	iPhone 6 Plus
accelerometer	X	X	X	X	X	X	X
armv6	X	X	X	X	X	X	X
armv7	X	X	X	X	X	X	X
auto-focus-camera	X	X	X	X	X	X	X
bluetooth-le		X	X	X	X	X	X
camera-flash	X	X	X	X	X	X	X
front-facing-camera	X	X	X	X	X	X	X
gamekit	X	X	X	X	X	X	X
gps	X	X	X	X	X	X	X
gyroscope	X	X	X	X	X	X	X
healthkit		X	X	X	X	X	X
location-services	X	X	X	X	X	X	X
magnetometer	X	X	X	X	X	X	X
metal					X	X	X
microphone	X	X	X	X	X	X	X
opengles-1	X	X	X	X	X	X	X
opengles-2	X	X	X	X	X	X	X
opengles-3					X	X	X
peer-peer	X	X	X	X	X	X	X
sms	X	X	X	X	X	X	X
still-camera	X	X	X	X	X	X	X
telephony	X	X	X	X	X	X	X
video-camera	X	X	X	X	X	X	X
wifi	X	X	X	X	X	X	X

Table 1-3  iPhone and iPhone 3G device compatibility

Compatibility	iPhone	iPhone 3G	iPhone 3GS	iPhone 3GS (China)
accelerometer	X	X	X	X
armv6	X	X	X	X
armv7			X	X
auto-focus-camera			X	X
bluetooth-le
camera-flash
front-facing-camera
gamekit			X	X
gps		X	X	X
gyroscope
healthkit
location-services	X	X	X	X
magnetometer			X	X
metal
microphone	X	X	X	X
opengles-1	X	X	X	X
opengles-2			X	X
opengles-3
peer-peer		X	X	X
sms	X	X	X	X
still-camera	X	X	X	X
telephony	X	X	X	X
video-camera			X	X
wifi	X	X	X

iPad Devices

Table 1-4 and , and list the capabilities for iPad devices.

Table 1-4  iPad (4th generation), and iPad Air device compatibility

Compatibility	iPad Wi-Fi  (4th gen)	iPad Wi-Fi + Cellular (4th gen)	iPad Air Wi-Fi	iPad Air Wi-Fi + Cellular	iPad Air 2 Wi-Fi	iPad Air 2 Wi-Fi + Cellular
accelerometer	X	X	X	X	X	X
armv6	X	X	X	X	X	X
armv7	X	X	X	X	X	X
auto-focus-camera	X	X	X	X	X	X
bluetooth-le	X	X	X	X	X	X
camera-flash
front-facing-camera	X	X	X	X	X	X
gamekit	X	X	X	X	X	X
gps		X		X		X
gyroscope	X	X	X	X	X	X
healthkit
location-services	X	X	X	X	X	X
magnetometer	X	X	X	X	X	X
metal			X	X	X	X
microphone	X	X	X	X	X	X
opengles-1	X	X	X	X	X	X
opengles-2	X	X	X	X	X	X
opengles-3			X	X	X	X
peer-peer	X	X	X	X	X	X
sms
still-camera	X	X	X	X	X	X
telephony
video-camera	X	X	X	X	X	X
wifi	X	X	X	X	X	X

Table 1-5  iPad mini device compatibility

Compatibility	iPad mini Wi-Fi	iPad mini Wi-Fi + Cellular	iPad mini 2 Wi-Fi	iPad mini 2 Wi-Fi + Cellular	iPad mini 3 Wi-Fi	iPad mini 3 Wi-Fi + Cellular
accelerometer	X	X	X	X	X	X
armv6	X	X	X	X	X	X
armv7	X	X	X	X	X	X
auto-focus-camera	X	X	X	X	X	X
bluetooth-le	X	X	X	X	X	X
camera-flash
front-facing-camera	X	X	X	X	X	X
gamekit	X	X	X	X	X	X
gps		X		X		X
gyroscope	X	X	X	X	X	X
healthkit
location-services	X	X	X	X	X	X
magnetometer	X	X	X	X	X	X
metal			X	X	X	X
microphone	X	X	X	X	X	X
opengles-1	X	X	X	X	X	X
opengles-2	X	X	X	X	X	X
opengles-3			X	X	X	X
peer-peer	X	X	X	X	X	X
sms
still-camera	X	X	X	X	X	X
telephony
video-camera	X	X	X	X	X	X
wifi	X	X	X	X	X	X

Table 1-6  iPad 1, iPad 2, and iPad (3rd generation) device compatibility

Compatibility	iPad  Wi-Fi	iPad  Wi-Fi + 3G	iPad 2 Wi-Fi	iPad 2 Wi-Fi + 3G	iPad Wi-Fi (3rd gen)	iPad Wi-Fi + Cellular (3rd gen)
accelerometer	X	X	X	X	X	X
armv6	X	X	X	X	X	X
armv7	X	X	X	X	X	X
auto-focus-camera					X	X
bluetooth-le					X	X
camera-flash
front-facing-camera			X	X	X	X
gamekit	X	X	X	X	X	X
gps		X		X		X
gyroscope			X	X	X	X
healthkit
location-services	X	X	X	X	X	X
magnetometer	X	X	X	X	X	X
metal
microphone	X	X	X	X	X	X
opengles-1	X	X	X	X	X	X
opengles-2	X	X	X	X	X	X
opengles-3
peer-peer	X	X	X	X	X	X
sms
still-camera			X	X	X	X
telephony
video-camera			X	X	X	X
wifi	X	X	X	X	X	X

iPod Touch Devices

Table 1-7 list the capabilities for iPod touch devices.

Table 1-7  iPod touch device compatibility

Compatibility	iPod touch	iPod touch 2nd gen	iPod touch 3rd gen	iPod touch 4th gen	iPod touch 5th gen	iPod touch 5th gen 16GB (no rear-facing camera)
accelerometer	X	X	X	X	X	X
armv6	X	X	X	X	X	X
armv7			X	X	X	X
auto-focus-camera					X
bluetooth-le					X	X
camera-flash					X
front-facing-camera				X	X	X
gamekit		X	X	X	X	X
gps
gyroscope				X	X	X
healthkit					X	X
location-services	X	X	X	X	X	X
magnetometer
metal
microphone		X	X	X	X	X
opengles-1	X	X	X	X	X	X
opengles-2			X	X	X	X
opengles-3
peer-peer		X	X	X	X	X
sms
still-camera				X	X
telephony
video-camera				X	X
wifi	X	X	X	X	X	X