Why isn't iPhone mirroring work?

I had the same issue once I updated the IOS on my macbook and then I restarted the iphone and then it worked.

I'm using M3 Macbook Pro / OS 15.1 and iPhone 13 Pro / iOS 18.1 and cannot get a connection.

I live in the U.S. and I've followed all troubleshooters on the official iPhone Mirroring help doc without success.

Also tried these 7 steps.

Also tried logging out of Apple ID on both iPhone and Mac without success. There was also some commands in Terminal used to restart something related and remove a ~/Library .plist file. Didn't help.

Couple odd things I notice that both devices have no entries for each other in their mirroring Settings:

Example is iOS Settings -> General -> AirPlay & Continuity -> iPhone Mirroring. There is no iPhone Mirroring there let alone a reference to my Mac.

Similarly, there's no reference to my iPhone in my Mac Settings -> Desktop & Dock -> Widgets -> iPhone.

See steps 7 / 8 on this webpage.

I've been searching the web everyday for any help and still no luck.

I found the most comprehensive iPhone Mirroring help page that will hopefully help others.

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iPHONE / MAC BLUETOOTH PAIRING

One thing that still confuses me is the fact that my iPhone won't connect via Bluetooth to either of my Macbook Pros (13" 2017 Intel and 14" M3 2024). Specifically, the MacBooks never sees the iPhone in Mac OS Bluetooth Settings panel. But my iPhone WILL see both of my MacBooks in the Other Devices section of its Bluetooth Settings. However, I always get an error when selecting my MacBook: Pairing Unsuccessful.

This has been the case over at least a few years across multiple devices so I doubt it's an issue. Also, according to various forum posts from "Apple engineers" there is no need for direct Bluetooth Pairing between iPhones / Macs since Big Sur OS. Nowadays it's lower level access and many system services connect via Bluetooth without having to manually pair them.

Ok but it's odd that I can see my MacBooks in my iPhone Bluetooth Other Devices at all then. If there's no need to pair them, I don't see why Apple engineers would allow my MacBook to show up on the iPhone only to fail permanently. Ugh.

I can also confirm that as of macOS 15.1 and iOS 18.1, it still does not work. This is with iPhone 13 Pro and Macbook Air M3. I am also in the US and meet all the requirements, and I completed all troubleshooting steps on the support document including rebooting.

When I launch the iPhone Mirroring app, for a split second it will say Unlock iPhone and then promptly display unable to connect. The app gives the impression that it is not even trying.

I will just file this under broken/buggy new feature that will probably be fixed in the next year or so.

This might not be new to you, but have there is a support document about iPhone mirroring here - iPhone Mirroring: Use your iPhone from your Mac - Apple Support - includes settings you need on both devices.

Good luck.

This instruction shows up in lots of help docs. For me there's nothing to revoke because my phone has never been listed.

In MacOS settings, iPhone Mirroring supposedly requires the following to be activated: System Settings > Desktop & Dock > Widgets > use iPhone widgets.

It doesn't seem to do anything whether on or off.

Update to my previous post. I was finally able to get it working. What I did wrong initially was that my Macbook was connected to wired Ethernet through a usb-c adapter. Even though it was on the same subnet as the WiFi, that was not enough. Both the Macbook and the iPhone have to be on WiFi. Ethernet will not work. I hope this is something that is changed later because I prefer Ethernet when docked with my external usb-c monitor.

This leads me to my second issue. Since I am docked to said monitor, I also use the built in external monitor speakers. MacOS cannot natively adjust volume of external speakers so that means the iPhone mirror app is playing audio at full blast, at least in games. So the iPhone mirror app needs a volume adjuster.

Last issue, the app window size. My usb-c monitor is a 43" 4K so I use the More space option in display settings which is 1:1 scaling. This means the iPhone Mirror app is way too small to see, even on the larger size setting. The window is fixed and the larger setting only increases it very little. I was hoping to be able to increase the window size much more than that.

So as it is now, the iPhone mirror app is not acceptable to me. I still stand by my previous comment of waiting a year or so before trying again.

On your Mac go to iPhone Mirroring app > Settings > Revoke Access. Then re-pair your iPhone.