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Thanks to the Apple ecosystem, all your devices interact with each other seamlessly. This unique interdependence is highlighted in how Macs and iPhones work together perfectly. But what if you donโt want them to work together? Donโt worry! You can always disconnect your Mac from your iPhone and use them separately.
However, youโd need to manually disconnect the two, especially if you previously set them up to work together. There are many ways to disconnect your iPhone from your Mac, and Iโll guide you through the different methods. Letโs go!
Generally, your iPhone should not appear on Macโs Finder unless connected to your Mac through a USB cable. Simply removing the USB cable should do the trick. However, your iPhone might still show in Finder if youโve previously set it to detect your device through your Wi-Fi network.
Just head to the sidebar, and click your iPhone. Under the General, go to Options โ deselect Show This iPhone when on Wi-Fi.
If youโve ever used your Mac in a place without internet, youโve likely used your iPhoneโs cellular data to access the internet through its personal hotspot.
To disconnect your Mac from your iPhoneโs personal hotspot, go to the menu bar and click the Personal Hotspot icon to open the Wi-Fi menu.
Your iPhoneโs name should be blue if itโs actively being used. Click the Personal Hotspot icon on its left to disconnect, and select from a different hotspot or Wi-Fi network.
If youโve used your iPhoneโs hotspot to connect your Mac to the internet, it will automatically connect with your iPhone or ask you to join in when your Mac detects it. If you donโt want this to happen:
You can also prevent anyone elseโincluding your Macโfrom joining your iPhoneโs personal hotspot. Head to Settings โ Personal Hotspot โ toggle off Allow Others to Join.
AirDrop uses close-range wireless communication to allow your iPhone and Mac toย send files to each other. You would need to turn off your iPhone or your Macโs AirDrop to stop them from detecting each other.
To prevent your iPhone from detecting your Mac, simply head to Finder โ click AirDrop in the sidebar โ click the drop-down menu beside Allow me to be discovered by: โ select No One.
You can go to Settings โ General โ AirDrop โ select Receiving Off to prevent your iPhone from being shown as an AirDrop location on your Mac. However, doing this prevents others from locating you as well.
The Apple ecosystem uses Bluetooth to allow two devices to work seamlessly in features like Handoff and Universal Clipboard. Turning off your Bluetooth, with other continuity requirements like Wi-Fi, prevents the two devices from communicating.
To turn off Bluetooth on your iPhone, go to Settings โ Bluetooth โ toggle it off. If you can find it under My Devices, you can remove it from the list by tapping the Info (i) button โ selecting Forget This Device.
Turn off your Macโs Bluetooth by heading to the menu bar โ clicking the Bluetooth icon โ toggling it off.
Continuity best displays the seamless integration of the Apple ecosystem. It allows you to start a task on one Apple device and continue it on another.
As soon as you use the same Apple ID for your devices, your device is added to your iCloud. This automatically syncs everything across all your devices.
If you want your Mac to stop syncing data and other features to your other Apple devices:
Similarly, you can prevent your iPhone from syncing data to the devices connected to your Apple ID. Just do the following:
One of the most convenient features I love about the Apple ecosystem is the ability toย forward messages from my iPhone to my Mac. This ensures that I wonโt miss out on messages even when my iPhone is not within reach.
By default, your Mac should only be able to receive iMessages. However, if you enabled Text Message Forwarding in the past, you will also see SMS messages on your Mac.
If you find this a nuisance and would rather turn the feature off, hereโs what you need to do:
You can also make these changes on your iPhone. Just go to Settings โ Messages โ tap Send & Receive โ deselect Apple ID to stop receiving iMessages from your Apple ID.
Further, go back, scroll down and tap Text Message Forwarding. Toggle it off for the devices you no longer want to send and receive text messages from.
Whenever somebody calls you on your iPhone, whether through a regular or FaceTime call, chances are your Mac will also ring and notify you. This can be frustrating if youโre busy with something important.
Disable calls from reaching your Mac by going to your iPhone and doing the following:
Aside from emails and calendars, iCloud also syncs your notes between your iPhone and Mac, which is, TBH, handyโespecially if you use your Notes for clipping articles, saving images, collaborating with others, etc.
Hereโs aย comprehensive list of things to do with Notes on your iPhone. Weโve also written severalย tips on how you can utilize Notes on your Mac.
If you donโt want the Notes on your iPhone to sync to your Notes on Mac, you can disable syncing and save them locally on your iPhone. Go to Settings โ Notes โ toggle on On My iPhone Account.
The single best way to prevent your iPhone and Mac from communicating isย by removing one of your devices from your Apple ID. As long as they are both using your Apple ID, communication between the two is inevitable.ย
Note that you cannot remove a device from your Apple ID using the same device. On your Mac, go to System Preferences โ Apple ID โ choose your iPhone on the sidebar โ click Remove from account.
If youโre on your iPhone, go to Settings โ [your name] โ select your Mac โ tap Remove from account.
On your iPhone, go to Settings โ [your name] โ iCloud โ tap Photos โ toggle off iCloud Photos.
The simplest way to disconnect an iPhone from a Mac is to remove one of these devices from your Apple ID. On your iPhone, do this by going to Settings โ [your name] โ select your Mac from your list of devices โ tap Remove from account.
Yes. Simply reconnect the two by enabling features like Handoff, Bluetooth, AirDrop, iCloud syncing, and personal hotspot. If you removed a device from your Apple ID, sign in on your device using your Apple ID to reconnect it again.
Wrapping upโฆ
iPhones and Macs are built to work seamlessly in Appleโs ecosystem. However, there are plenty of ways to disconnect the two devices. This is especially true if someone else uses one of your devices and you want to maintain some privacy.
What are your reasons for disconnecting your Mac and iPhone? Share them in the comment section below!
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