Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Yosemite 'Hand Off' Feature Limited to Macs with Bluetooth LE
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
If Apple doesn't support usb bt 4.0 dongles I'm sure you fanboys will rush to defend that too.
I chose the iMac back then, but I have had this feature for years and years already thanks to cloud services, so I couldn't really care less.
It is frustrating, but remember, you will still have the ability to continue writing an e-mail that you started on your iPhone on your iMac (or vice-versa), drafts are saved in the cloud. Hand Off just presents that app on your dock (or lock screen) so that it saves you an extra step.
If someone promised you a 2011 iMac was more future proof than the other devices, obviously they made a promise they would have no hope of keeping. The iMac was more expensive because it came with a screen built-in, it was a complete computer, unlike the Mac Mini. Anyway as I said before, different components are used every year, and what devices get newer radios is all dependent on whether that device is getting other upgrades so as to make the switch "worth it" for Apple.
On a PC the answer would be to simply switch out (or add on) a new Bluetooth module. On an iMac, upgrading is a tad more difficult. (For example, upgrading the hard drive on an iMac is more difficult than upgrading a hard drive on a Mac Mini).
At this point we don't know for sure, but it's entirely possible that you can purchase a Bluetooth LE module that works over USB to your iMac and still make use of these features. If Hand Off works over Bluetooth LE, it shouldn't matter whether it's a built-in Bluetooth radio or one added on later, because Bluetooth LE is a protocol standard. It's like saying "this should work over 802.11 ac Wi-Fi," it doesn't matter if the 802.11ac radio was built-in to the Mac or if you added a USB Wi-Fi dongle later on, the 802.11ac Wi-Fi thing is a standard.
Standards change over time. Sometimes devices get left behind, and sometimes you can upgrade the older device, and other times you can't.
I hate to quote myself but I will, I think it's solely bluetooth because Hand Off should be proximity based. If you do it over wi-fi, I can be in a house but be on different floors/rooms and Hand Off on the other device would have no way of knowing WHERE in the house I am, and whether it should or shouldn't present the work I'm doing on the second device. Bluetooth LE uses low energy state to detect when the other device is nearby and automatically present the work.
----------
Is there a 3rd-party app that can bring Hand Off features? Or do you mean you can work on the same document because of cloud services and it stays in sync across devices? Because Hand Off is a little different.
Hand Off isn't "cloud services," Hand Off is a feature that makes cloud services a little more convenient for the average user. Even now people can start writing an e-mail on their iPhone in their iCloud account and continue on their Mac or iPad. What Hand Off is doing is intelligently recognizing that you were doing this and automatically presenting that app to you when you get near the other device.
So it's not at all a cloud service, it is a user-service that utilizes cloud services and bluetooth services to bring convenience to the user.
I still think it's not worth it to get upset over this. It's a minor convenience feature. You may use it a lot if you have it, but if you don't have it (or later lost it) you will get by without any problems (since all it did was save 1 or 2 extra clicks/taps in your work flow.)
Assuming is nice isn't it? I am hardly a fanboy. I have a Nexus 4 and a Mac how is that fanboyish? Furthermore what did I say was false? I stated facts and you call it fanboyism?
Yep it would be stupid if they didn't support BT4.0 dongles.
I was playing with a bluetooth 4.0/le dongle this week to "upgrade" my 2011 iMac if needed.
(Thread is in the iMac forum section)
I was able to make the dongle bluetooth primary, with the unfortunate side effect of losing the apple boot commands from my wireless keyboard. (But can be worked around with a wired keyboard when you need the boot keys.)
Hopefully Apple will do something to just let it work with a usb upgraded bluetooth, but I guess a custom plist to allow an unsupported computer with USB dongle might be an alternative if works as well.
(Thread is in the iMac forum section)
I was able to make the dongle bluetooth primary, with the unfortunate side effect of losing the apple boot commands from my wireless keyboard. (But can be worked around with a wired keyboard when you need the boot keys.)
Hopefully Apple will do something to just let it work with a usb upgraded bluetooth, but I guess a custom plist to allow an unsupported computer with USB dongle might be an alternative if works as well.
Use the about this Mac menu under the apple. Go to system report. Go to the bluetooth tab, and look under LPM version. Bluetooth 2.1 is 0x4. Bluetooth 4.0 is 0x6.
Windows 8 has new features, aka touch-centric modern UI. Does it give your 2007 Alienware a touchscreen? No? PLANNED OBSOLESCENCE!!!My 2007 alienware is still running fine and playing games everyday, and office and windows 8.1.
Sure it's not as fast as my new imac i bought last month or my main work PC but it still does everything and is usable.
Although i love mac's (i have macbook, macmin, imac , ipads, iphones etc) the built in obsolescence is really getting on my nerves.
With how much they cost they really don't last as long as they should
Oh and lets not even think about how horrible this is going to be for battery life. My iphone barely goes a full day now with bluetooth turned off
Does Yosemite make your Macs stop booting and render them dead? Or are you that shallow to think your current Macs are obsolete based one one single tiny feature?
And how does the iPhone's battery have anything to do with this? And if you actually go to Bluetooth spec, especially 4.0, it uses very little power.
You can add BT 4.0 capability with a $12 USB micro-dongle.
However the question remains whether Apple will simply require BT 4.0, or if they will restrict this feature to Apple devices that shipped with BT 4.0.
If it's the latter, it'd going to piss off a lot of people - myself included.
----------
http://www.amazon.com/IOGEAR-Blueto...8&qid=1402905854&sr=8-10&keywords=bt+4+dongle
Before you run out and buy one, though, we should wait to hear whether Apple will allow Continuity to work using 3rd party BT 4.0 upgrades ir restrict the feature to Macs that came with BT 4.0 built-in.
----------
If you're not paying for it, you're not the customer. You're the product being sold.
----------
Mid-2011 Macbook Airs:
Bluetooth 4.0 wireless technology
http://support.apple.com/kb/SP683?viewlocale=en_US&locale=en_US
http://support.apple.com/kb/SP631?viewlocale=en_US&locale=en_US
----------
BT 4.0 consumes far less power than wi-fi or BT 2.1, which makes it feasible to leave on all the time on a portable device without draining its battery.
----------
Please get a clue.
All great points freediverx.
I do think 3rd party dongles should work, but of course we won't know until Apple says something. The point is to save power for the mobile device, right? So as long as the 3rd party dongle properly executes Bluetooth LE (BTLE) properly, I can't see why Apple would have a problem with it. But you're completely right, in the end it's up to Apple and what they deem is a solution best for their customers. (This top down nature of their ecosystem is pretty frustrating sometimes, but it is the bad that comes with the good of the wonderful integration they accomplish).
As freediverx said, BTLE (a specific BT 4.0 protocol) uses less power than BT 2.1. This is probably the primary reason for using it, so as to keep your iPhone, iPad and portable Mac's battery life from dropping. But BTLE also transfers data faster, from a further distance, and with less data loss and latency than previous BT protocols. Also it wasn't just power which made Apple pick BTLE over previous BLWiFi for this Hand Off feature. BTLE has discovery features, meaning it can 'discover' when you're close to another BTLE device. This feature is of particular import for Hand Off. WiFi has 'discovery' (in the sense that you can find other devices on the same network) but it isn't proximity based like you can do with BTLE, meaning you can be on the same wifi network but be on a different floor. But Hand Off is meant for when you're within 5 feet of the other device.
This is a mantra said over and over as a response to people who talk about free version competitors to what Apple is doing. It's true, but to each their own. I don't mind this. I think people on this forum use this slam way too much. Especially if you at what's been made possible by this business model, it's astounding.
I've seen Facebook's and Whatsapp simple and free (or nearly free, with Whatsapp) nature allow people >60 years learn how to use a computer or mobile device so they can keep in touch with their loved ones around the world.
Obviously Android being 'free' and allowed to install on any manufacturer has created a race to the bottom where now you can get $50 smart phones bringing technology, and fairly recent tech, to the masses. And Google's efforts to bring faster internet to rural areas or 3rd world countries is likely based on profits/data to be gathered for them ('product being sold') but if it enriches their lives and puts them on an even playing field, opens up possibilities for new economies, then for many the price is worth it.
Not everyone has the luxury to pay for a product and keep their privacy. We're fortunate in that we can. Some of us still choose to avail ourselves of services we know are designed to sell us (Facebook, Gmail included). Some of us (in the world) depend on free services because they could not afford their privacy, but they can also not afford to be left behind for the sake of privacy.
I do think 3rd party dongles should work, but of course we won't know until Apple says something. The point is to save power for the mobile device, right? So as long as the 3rd party dongle properly executes Bluetooth LE (BTLE) properly, I can't see why Apple would have a problem with it. But you're completely right, in the end it's up to Apple and what they deem is a solution best for their customers. (This top down nature of their ecosystem is pretty frustrating sometimes, but it is the bad that comes with the good of the wonderful integration they accomplish).
As freediverx said, BTLE (a specific BT 4.0 protocol) uses less power than BT 2.1. This is probably the primary reason for using it, so as to keep your iPhone, iPad and portable Mac's battery life from dropping. But BTLE also transfers data faster, from a further distance, and with less data loss and latency than previous BT protocols. Also it wasn't just power which made Apple pick BTLE over previous BLWiFi for this Hand Off feature. BTLE has discovery features, meaning it can 'discover' when you're close to another BTLE device. This feature is of particular import for Hand Off. WiFi has 'discovery' (in the sense that you can find other devices on the same network) but it isn't proximity based like you can do with BTLE, meaning you can be on the same wifi network but be on a different floor. But Hand Off is meant for when you're within 5 feet of the other device.
So yes, I think Hand Off could work without having the devices on the same wi-fi network. For example you took the bus home, you were working on an iCloud document over LTE and you have wi-fi off on your iPhone. When you get close to your iPad at home, Hand Off can present that document on the lock screen as it should because the doc is in the cloud, it's not like the file is transferred over wifi to your iPad. (So you probably need BTLE to be on in both devices).
This is a mantra said over and over as a response to people who talk about free version competitors to what Apple is doing. It's true, but to each their own. I don't mind this. I think people on this forum use this slam way too much. Especially if you at what's been made possible by this business model, it's astounding.
I've seen Facebook's and Whatsapp simple and free (or nearly free, with Whatsapp) nature allow people >60 years learn how to use a computer or mobile device so they can keep in touch with their loved ones around the world.
Obviously Android being 'free' and allowed to install on any manufacturer has created a race to the bottom where now you can get $50 smart phones bringing technology, and fairly recent tech, to the masses. And Google's efforts to bring faster internet to rural areas or 3rd world countries is likely based on profits/data to be gathered for them ('product being sold') but if it enriches their lives and puts them on an even playing field, opens up possibilities for new economies, then for many the price is worth it.
Not everyone has the luxury to pay for a product and keep their privacy. We're fortunate in that we can. Some of us still choose to avail ourselves of services we know are designed to sell us (Facebook, Gmail included). Some of us (in the world) depend on free services because they could not afford their privacy, but they can also not afford to be left behind for the sake of privacy.
Sure, how else would they work?
I leave WiFi on all my devices all the time (tablets, phones, laptops) so this isn't very different.
I only have Bluetooth on all times on laptop and phone since each connects to things via Bluetooth. Whatever decline in battery is offset by the convenience those Bluetooth devices bring me.
In short while you may complain about battery life being shorter now perhaps later you'll decide the convenience offsets any battery loss you have.
And if it isn't worth that convenience well then you can turn off the feature.
Neither of which negatively effect battery drain an appreciable amount anymore.
We regularly get 10-12hrs usage time on an iPhone 5.