Spancontrol between iPad and Mac over Bluetooth

Spanner
#1

Sorry if this is a daft question. The Spanner manual suggests the following for connecting Spanner to the Spancontrol app:

“Bluetooth pairing between a single machine and a single remote (recommended).”

I am using a Mac Studio and an iPad for Spancontrol. How can I ensure that the two are talking to each other over Bluetooth rather than WiFi?

According to Apple, it is impossible to create a direct Bluetooth link between the iPad and Mac Studio. Trying to pair them in the Bluetooth dialog yields a “Mac Studio not supported” error.

To be clear, I am having success getting Spanner and the Spancontrol app working together, but performance is a little buggy and inconsistent. Wondering if part of the problem is Spanner connecting over WiFi. I would like to try/ensure a Bluetooth link in hopes of more consistent performance. Thanks!

#2

AFAIK it should still be possible, unless Apple changed something recently.
This from GPT:

  1. Enable Bluetooth on Both Devices:
  • On the iPad, go to Settings > Bluetooth and turn on Bluetooth.
  • On the Mac Studio, click on the Bluetooth icon in the menu bar (if it’s not there, go to Apple menu > System Preferences > Bluetooth) and turn on Bluetooth.
  1. Pair the Devices:
  • Ensure both devices are discoverable. On the Mac, you might need to click “Set up Bluetooth Device…” or “Connect” next to the device’s name in the Bluetooth preferences pane.
  • The iPad should appear in the Bluetooth devices list on your Mac. Similarly, your Mac might appear on the iPad if the application supports it. Select the device you wish to pair with and follow the on-screen instructions to complete the pairing process.
#3

Thanks so much for your reply. Unfortunately, the steps you provided above don’t really seem to be applicable, but I think it’s sorted in any case. I can confirm that my iPad is functioning as a display extension of my Mac Studio, which leads me to believe that things are connected as they should be.

FWIW, this article details what I am experiencing.

In it, a couple posts, like this one…

[Phil0124]
How are you trying to pair them exactly? They won’t pair over bluetooth directly, nor is it necessary for most features.

What exactly are you attempting to accomplish by pairing them?

…seem to suggest that the devices are connected, in spite of the lack of “normal” Bluetooth pairing protocol