Perhaps the most interesting of all the features due to appear in Apple's new operating systems -- iPhone Mirroring -- is now live for the beta testers of iOS 18 and macOS Sequoia. The latest beta drops for these two promise the ability to mirror your iPhone directly to the Mac, so you can use your phone on your computer, even launching and running iPhone apps, and moving files from the Mac to the iPhone.

First up on June 2 at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) was the official announcement of iPhone Mirroring, which enables consumers to run Mac apps alongside their iPhone apps. For instance, a demo at the event showed how a video clip that had been edited using Final Cut Pro can be dropped into a template on the iPhone for further edits. In readiness for this interoperability, Apple launched the final release of Final Cut Pro for iPad 2 and Final Cut Camera and updates for Final Cut Pro on Mac.

Another use case for iPhone Mirroring will be the ability to launch your iPhone apps without unlocking your device. You can check iPhone notifications right on the Mac desktop with this feature and respond through various applications to any incoming alerts. The audio from your iPhone will also come through on the Mac, Apple said at WWDC.

In addition, developers who sometimes have to demo their apps to others on video calls or in the course of live presentations will find it easier to switch to their iPhones.

If the iPhone is mirrored on the Mac, the physical device stays locked and thus no one would be able to gain access to the same phone without your permission even if left in a bag across the room.

This feature also is compatible with Standby mode, the company said, so you can see information at a glance while mirroring.

While public betas are still weeks away, and official launches of the new operating systems aren't due until later this fall, iPhone Mirroring is now available to developers testing the iOS 18 beta 2 and macOS Sequoia beta 2.

The developer betas should not be installed on the actual device due to instability and some bugs. I guess that's very true for the second beta too, at least according to reports about serious battery life problems, heat-intensive phones, and other crashes.