Color me as an adult who is in favor of a little more automation in my life. If there were anyway I could automate losing a few pounds, or keeping a little more of my hair, I’d do it in a heartbeat.
Anyway, here’s a clever new way to unlock your Mac’s screen by using your iPhone and Bluetooth. This is the kind of automation we love to see. After all, entering a password is totally manual labor.
Wirelessly Unlock A Locked Mac
Here’s the scenario. It’s ripe for a little automation exercise. Your Mac’s screen is locked while you’re away. You come back and want to unlock the screen.
What do you do? You do as most of us do. Enter the password and start working, browsing, writing, viewing, or doing whatever you and your Mac do in the privacy of your home.
Wait. If the Mac is so smart, how come it doesn’t know who I am and just unlock itself and let me get at my business?
A number of Mac apps work with facial recognition to allow a recognized face into a Mac, but Bluetooth Screen Unlock takes a different approach.
Bluetooth. Hmmm. Could it be that simple? As it turns out, it is.
Use Bluetooth Screen Unlock to pair your Mac, using Bluetooth, with your iPhone (also running Bluetooth).
Enter your Mac’s login password in the settings.
By the way, there are two windows you’ll need to setup Bluetooth Screen Unlock.
The Bluetooth settings in System Preferences to pair the device. And, the Preferences for Bluetooth Screen Unlock.
So, set the password. Select the Bluetooth device (your iPhone or Android phone). Set preferences to In Range or Minimum Signal Strength. You can even set a delay of x-number of seconds before the screen unlocks.
Now, when you’re near your Mac, Bluetooth tells your Mac that it’s you nearby, and the unlock process begins. Automatically.
