Handoff, which was introduced in iOS 8 and Yosemite, lets you start a task on one device and continue it on another, without having to save, transfer, and open files. It works with many of Apple’s apps—including Mail, Messages, Reminders, Calendar, Contacts, Safari, and Maps—as well as a short but growing list of third-party apps.
For Handoff to work, you must have the app in question installed on each device—for example, the Yosemite version (or later) of Pages on your Mac and the iOS 8 version (or later) of Pages on your iPhone. In addition, the following must be true for each device:
It must support Bluetooth 4.0, also known as Bluetooth LE (low energy)—but not all devices with Bluetooth 4.0 also work with Handoff. According to this page from Apple, Macs introduced in 2012 or later support Handoff. iOS devices with a Lightning connector and iOS 8 (or later) also support Handoff, which should include the iPhone 5 or later, the 5th-generation iPod touch or later, and the 4th-generation iPad or later. For another way to confirm whether your Mac will work with Handoff, see the sidebar below “Check for Handoff Compatibility.”
It must have Bluetooth turned on.
It must be signed in to the same iCloud account as the device you’re sharing tasks with.
On a Mac, Handoff must be enabled (in System Preferences > General).
If your Mac isn’t already running 10.11 El Capitan, upgrade if possible—El Capitan offers better Handoff performance than 10.10 Yosemite.
Start a Task
In most cases, you can merely open a compatible app (such as Mail, Safari, or Maps) to trigger Handoff. Sometimes you may have to take further action, such as opening or creating a document, to give Handoff a specific piece of content to hand off.
But in any case, the key is starting something. If you already have Safari open on your iPhone, going to a new Web page won’t trigger Handoff—but closing and opening Safari will.
Hand Off a Task
Having started a task, go to another device to pick up where you left off:
On a Mac: An icon showing the app from the first device pops up on the left edge of your Dock ① (or the top, if oriented vertically). Click it to open the relevant Mac app and continue the task.
① This icon on the left edge of your Dock indicates a task that can be handed off from another device. Hover over the icon to see the app and device name in a tooltip.
On an iOS device: An icon appears in the bottom left corner of your Lock screen ②. (Yes, you must lock your device if it’s on and then wake it up to see the Lock screen icon.) Slide upward on this icon, unlock your device if necessary, and the relevant app opens.
② The Lock screen Handoff icons on various iOS devices for Safari, Calendar, Mail, Maps, Reminders, and Messages.
Alternatively, open the app switcher by double-pressing the Home button and then look at the bottom of the screen to see a Handoff banner with the name of the app and the other device.
