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Apple Computing Products:
macOS - Desktop Hardware
Using an iPhone as a webcam
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<blockquote data-quote="25thirtysix" data-source="post: 1928376" data-attributes="member: 416980"><p><em>Modern Macs and iPhones cannot be PAIRED via Bluetooth, and there is NO NEED to pair them, so please stop trying.</em></p><p><em></em></p><p><em>They can be CONNECTED, which is a different thing entirely, and the Mac will show the connected devices.</em></p><p><em></em></p><p><em>Apple provides a raft of functions that use the Bluetooth connection. NONE of them require pairing: </em><a href="https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204681" target="_blank"><em>Use Continuity to connect your Mac, iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, and Apple Watch - Apple Support</em></a></p><p></p><p>From: <a href="https://discussions.apple.com/thread/253303612?login=true&page=11" target="_blank">Bluetooth pairing between iPhone and Mac … - Apple Community</a></p><p></p><p>There are a number of similar posts on that thread. This one is interesting:</p><p></p><p><em>OK, here's the deal: I got in touch with an Apple engineer, and was told that <strong>"with bluetooth pairing, this is an expected behavior since Mac to iPhone is not yet supported with both devices."</strong></em></p><p><em></em></p><p><em>The iPhone and Mac are in fact talking over BT, despite not being paired, but it's at a low level. Apps like AirDrop use WiFi for the file transfers. (I suspect that the BT chatter has to do with security, which would explain why it's invisible to the user.)</em></p><p><em></em></p><p><em>There is outdated Apple guidance floating about that instructs you to pair the devices, but it only applies to Big Sur and earlier, and in many cases this is not made clear. Any instructions to "pair" an iPhone to a Mac via BT do not apply if your OS is Mojave or later. <strong>BT may need to be on for some applications, but pairing is not implemented. </strong> (I don't know what to make of the "yet" in his statement.)</em></p><p></p><p>[URL unfurl="true"]https://discussions.apple.com/thread/253303612?login=true&page=7[/URL]</p><p></p><p>So I can get the iPhone to work as an "Input" device only when connected to my Mac Mini via a USB cable. Remove the cable and there is no "Input" device.</p><p></p><p>So it looks like I'm stuck with a cable connection or buy a webcam with a microphone (any relatively cheap recommendations).</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="25thirtysix, post: 1928376, member: 416980"] [I]Modern Macs and iPhones cannot be PAIRED via Bluetooth, and there is NO NEED to pair them, so please stop trying. They can be CONNECTED, which is a different thing entirely, and the Mac will show the connected devices. Apple provides a raft of functions that use the Bluetooth connection. NONE of them require pairing: [/I][URL='https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204681'][I]Use Continuity to connect your Mac, iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, and Apple Watch - Apple Support[/I][/URL] From: [URL="https://discussions.apple.com/thread/253303612?login=true&page=11"]Bluetooth pairing between iPhone and Mac … - Apple Community[/URL] There are a number of similar posts on that thread. This one is interesting: [I]OK, here's the deal: I got in touch with an Apple engineer, and was told that [B]"with bluetooth pairing, this is an expected behavior since Mac to iPhone is not yet supported with both devices."[/B] The iPhone and Mac are in fact talking over BT, despite not being paired, but it's at a low level. Apps like AirDrop use WiFi for the file transfers. (I suspect that the BT chatter has to do with security, which would explain why it's invisible to the user.) There is outdated Apple guidance floating about that instructs you to pair the devices, but it only applies to Big Sur and earlier, and in many cases this is not made clear. Any instructions to "pair" an iPhone to a Mac via BT do not apply if your OS is Mojave or later. [B]BT may need to be on for some applications, but pairing is not implemented. [/B] (I don't know what to make of the "yet" in his statement.)[/I] [URL unfurl="true"]https://discussions.apple.com/thread/253303612?login=true&page=7[/URL] So I can get the iPhone to work as an "Input" device only when connected to my Mac Mini via a USB cable. Remove the cable and there is no "Input" device. So it looks like I'm stuck with a cable connection or buy a webcam with a microphone (any relatively cheap recommendations). [/QUOTE]
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Apple Computing Products:
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Using an iPhone as a webcam
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