Mac and iPad users that upgraded to macOS 13.3 and iOS/iPadOS 16.4 reported issues using Continuity features across Mac and iPad since updating to the new software. Certainly, those recent updates caused issues for me with various Continuity-related features. But the good news is that Apple says the issues have been resolved with another MacOS update.
macOS 13.3.1 reportedly solves these issues with Continuity.
When macOS 13.3 was released it included:
- 21 new emojis, including animals, hand gestures and objects are now available in the emoji keyboard
- Remove background option in Freeform automatically isolates the subject in your image
- Photos duplicates album expands support to detect duplicate photos and videos in an iCloud Shared Photo Library
- Transliteration support for Gujarati, Punjabi and Urdu keyboards
- New keyboard layouts for Choctaw, Chickasaw, Akan, Hausa and Yoruba
- Accessibility setting to automatically dim video when flashes of light or strobe effects are detected
- VoiceOver support for maps in the Weather app
- Resolves an issue where Trackpad gestures may occasionally stop responding
- Fixes an issue where Ask to Buy requests from children may fail to appear on the parent’s device
- Addresses an issue where VoiceOver may be unresponsive after using the Finder
The release notes for macOS 13.3.1 note a couple of security fixes for issues detected by Clément Lecigne of Google’s Threat Analysis Group and Donncha Ó Cearbhaill of Amnesty International’s Security Lab. The two issues they discovered resolve issues that may have been exploited by malicious actors.
Updates to iOS 16.4.1 and iPadOS 16.4.1 have also been issued which fix that side of the Continuity problem. Those updates bring:
- 21 new emoji including animals, hand gestures and objects are now available in the emoji keyboard
- Notifications for web apps added to the Home Screen
- Voice Isolation for phone calls prioritises your voice and blocks out ambient noise around you
- Duplicates album in Photos expands support to detect duplicate photos and videos in an iCloud Shared Photo Library
- VoiceOver support for maps in the Weather app
- Accessibility setting to automatically dim video when flashes of light or strobe effects are detected
- Visual Look Up is now available in New Zealand
- Fixes an issue where Ask to Buy requests from children may fail to appear on the parent’s device
- Addresses issues where Matter-compatible thermostats could become unresponsive when paired to Apple Home
- Crash Detection optimisations on iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Pro models
While there can be some reticence to upgrade as soon as new updates are released because of issues like this, the security benefits and fixes outweigh the risks in my view.
Go into the Settings app on your device and use the search function to find Software Updates to manually update your device. Or enable automatic updates and let things happen in the background.
Anthony is the founder of Australian Apple News. He is a long-time Apple user and former editor of Australian Macworld. He has contributed to many technology magazines and newspapers as well as appearing regularly on radio and occasionally on TV.