Use universal clipboard to alleviate iCloud password pain
Amid the storm of negative narratives on the state of Apple—and more generally how horrible life is today in the First World with all the worry over our expensive computers—it’s easy to lose sight of the fact that some things really are more awesome today than they used to be. And there is still much delight to be found in the details.
One dash of unicorn tears introduced by iOS 10, and then later brought to macOS in Sierra, is universal clipboard. When I first heard Apple announce it, I was skeptical, but I really wanted to believe it would work. I imagined being able to copy text on my iPhone and paste it on my Mac (and vice versa). As amazing as that idea sounded last summer, actually seeing it work is even more amazing. I’ve yet to see it not work.
Very recently I came across a use case for it that I never envisioned before: copying my iCloud password from one device to another. Before universal clipboard, if I had to enter an Apple ID or iCloud password in a prompt on, say, an iPad screen, I had to close the prompt, find 1Password, copy the password, then return to the prompt.
Now, if I encounter a password prompt on an iPad, I just pull out my phone, copy it from 1Password there, and bang: It pastes right into the field on the iPad—even from the initial “splash” iCloud screen you get after an iOS update. Magic meets practicality.
I still think Apple could alleviate iCloud password pain by making Touch ID more available on general password prompts in the App Store and iTunes, but with universal clipboard, life is just a little less bad in the First World.