iPhone continuity camera not working

Hello baldoyler,

You're right, there have been reports of iPhone Continuity Camera not working properly on iOS 16.5.1. first Install the latest software updates for both your iPhone and Mac. This includes any macOS updates, iOS updates, facetime app update.

Check for these settings:

iPhone: Go to Settings > General > AirPlay & Handoff. Check if "Continuity Camera" is turned on.

Mac: Go to System Preferences > Bluetooth and check if your iPhone is connected under "Devices.

Both devices are connected to the same Wi-Fi network and have Bluetooth enabled

If your Mac is using AirPlay or Sidecar, Continuity Camera might not work wirelessly

If none of these works try Reset Network Settings On your iPhone, go to Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPhone > Reset. Choose "Reset Network Settings." This will erase saved Wi-Fi passwords and network settings.

In my case, I just solved with a reboot.

After rebooting the Mac and iPhone, it worked.

I'm pretty sure the iPhone reboot did it.

This morning, Continuity Camera stopped working on my OBS and video calls. Yesterday, it had worked just fine.

Disabling and re-enabling Continuity Camera in my iPhone did not work, nor did reconnecting to the same wifi, checking Bluetooth connectivity, or rebooting the Mac.

After rebooting my iPhone, it worked just fine.

(For reference, MacBook Pro 16 M1 Pro 2021 with MacOS 13.6, iPhone 15 Pro Max with iOS 17.4.1)

FWIW, my Continuity camera stopped working after a year or more of using this feature where the camera wasn't listed as an option at all. I tried all of the troubleshooting steps provided here, but what I think resolved my issue was ensuring I didn't have any other app on my phone open that was using the camera. In other words, the Camera app was open on my phone and as soon as I closed it, the phone showed up as an option in Zoom on my MCB

I had the same problem. Here's what solved it for me: disable AirPlay Receiver and quit VPN app.

• On the Mac, go to System Settings > General > AirDrop & Handoff. Switch "AirPlay Receiver" off.

• VPN: not only turn it off, but close the app altogether. In my case, it's PrivateVPN.

It had to be both – each one in isolation wasn't sufficient.

[Mac OS 15.3.1]

[iOS 18.3.1]

Had same issue recently, today is 07/08/24, and DNICOB had it figured out, the VPN issue. I wasn't even using a VPN at the moment, but the xfinity vpn to connect to their public network was preventing me from using continuity camera. I removed the profile from my iphone and then the continuity cam starting working right away. thanks!

Hey guys! I'd been struggling with the same issue for a few days.

I tried restarting my phone, erasing network settings, restarting my mac, but nothing worked.

WHAT DID WORK: turning off my VPN!

If you've been having the same issue, and have a VPN, that might be the cause of the black screen.

Firewall! For me on Sequoia 15.2 (it has been happening since 14.x), Firewall was enabled and set to blocking all incoming connections, I turned that off and there were many applications with various allowed/blocked statuses.

ContinuityCaptureAgent was blocked I guess by default because this is fairly new MBP and I didn't even know Firewall was turned on.

Allow incoming connections to ContinuityCaptureAgent and retry selecting your iPhone and bam it should work. Whew, super frustrating...

Cheers.

Had the same problem on my Mini M4. My fix was:

Settings - Network - Thunderbolt Bridge - Make Inactive

Continuity camera started working immediately after that change.

I have had this issue for a long time. I only just found a solution for it today. The problem I had with it the iPhone not being detected by the Mac when starting Facetime stemmed from the "Privacy & Security" Settings. FaceTime was listed as an approved application under the bluetooth section. However I toggled it on and off and that seems to have resolved the issue. You may even want to try removing FaceTime and then adding it back in to see if that clears on the issue.

I hope this helps.

Guess what. I tried everything below and none of them worked.

I connected my phone via type-c cable and added this Mac mini as trusted device on my iPhone and BOOM it worked even after disconnecting from the cable.

Hope this helps..

I fixed this issue by entering firewall settings and allowing incoming connections.

I disabled thunderbolt bridge - rebooted iphone by holding vol up and then vol down and then holding in side button and voila! Works fine!.

I tried rebooting in the past by telling Siri - REBOOT - maybe it was the thunderbridge thing, maybe it was the manual reboot using the buttons instead of Siri. Who knows but all the sudden I went into Whats App and bam the video appeared. NO USB CABLE CONNECTED. Flakey Stuff.

Thanks for the tip! Even if the VPN isn’t active, connecting and then disconnecting VPN (on the iPhone) seems to kickstart the iPhone Continuity Camera and resolve the issue. Much appreciated! But, it only worked with Usb-C cable Mac Mini M1 to iPhone 16 Pro.

However, If I unplug my Ethernet, and ONLY use WiFi (not both simultaneously) it works. I guess that also is not expected behavior.

YES! Thank you! Turning off my vpn worked.

Yeah, I had this wrong. The secret sauce was actually to just have my phone in a landscape orientation.