Apple announced “Handoff,” a new feature in iOS 8 and OS X Yosemite that lets users begin a task on one platform and transfer it to another, during its WWDC keynote. Arguably, it’s one of the most impressive additions to reach the mobile and desktop operating systems, however it could be your Mac (and even your iOS device) is unable to take advantage of Handoff.
The news comes from Apfeleimer (via BGR), which draws attention to the fact that Handoff is expected to rely on the Bluetooth low energy (LE) protocol in order to function.
If this is the case, Handoff is going to be limited to a selection of more recent Mac computers, and will even be incompatible with the iPad 2 (the only iOS 8-compatible device to not support Bluetooth LE).
As per Apfeleimer’s reasoning, the Macs presumably compatible with Handoff would include the mid-2011 MacBook Air and above, the mid-2012 MacBook Pro and above (including all iterations of the MacBook Pro with Retina display), the late-2012 iMac and above, the mid-2011 Mac mini and above, and the late-2013 Mac Pro.
The publication even put together a useful infographic illustrating Bluetooth LE compatibility on Mac computers:
Apple hasn’t confirmed whether Handoff will be limited to the above computers, and as such owners of older Macs may still be in luck. However, if Handoff does require the low energy Bluetooth standard, it will indeed likely be that your computer isn’t capable of “handing off” items to your iPhone or iPad. Time to buy a new Mac?
We’ll keep you updated with further information as we receive it.
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