Apple’s WWDC 2025 event opens next Tuesday, and iOS 26 (the replacement of iOS 19) will be the star of the show. The iPhone operating system is always the most exciting development coming out of Apple’s event. While the first iOS 26 beta will surely be something to experience, I just realized I still can’t use one of the best features iOS 18 brought over, and it’s the European Union’s fault.
Android users have been able to hook up their devices to Windows phones for years, but Apple only introduced a similar feature for iPhone and the Mac last year. Called iPhone Mirroring, the Continuity feature is one of the iOS 18 highlights. Unfortunately, it’s also a feature Apple still hasn’t launched in the EU, and there’s no telling when it’ll do so.
What iPhone Mirroring can do
We’re all using smartphones everywhere these days, including in places or at times we shouldn’t. We check notifications, respond to texts, or just doomscroll in social media apps. Do that at work or school, and it’ll certainly impact your productivity.
Thankfully, there are ways to connect your smartphone to your computer to reduce interruptions. Mirroring your iPhone to a device with a larger screen still counts as using the smartphone, but at least you’re not picking it up that often. Also, you might limit the mirroring session to specific uses, like checking messages from certain people.
Another benefit from mirroring your iPhone concerns battery life. You won’t turn on the handset’s screen that often, so the battery won’t drain as fast. You can also keep the device on a charger while it’s mirrored wirelessly to your laptop or desktop.
Also, iPhone Mirroring pauses the wireless connection after periods of inactivity, which can further help with battery life.
Apple said it disabled iPhone Mirroring and SharePlay Screen Sharing in Europe due to the “regulatory uncertainties” that the Digital Markets Act (DMA) created. I’m a longtime iPhone user in Europe, and I long said that the DMA forces vendors like Apple to alter their products in ways I never wanted them to.
The iPhone Mirroring feature is just an example of that.
Will iOS 26 change any of that?
Before the iPhone 16 rolled out, I said that we were about to witness the biggest software fragmentation in iPhone history. iOS 18 would offer two different experiences depending on your iPhone’s ability to run Apple Intelligence features. I also said the problem would go away in a few years, once the iPhones that can’t run Apple Intelligence features are replaced.
Nearly a year after Apple introduced that exciting Apple Intelligence vision at WWDC 2024, that’s not exactly the case. That is, Apple Intelligence isn’t what we were expecting it to be, and that’s thanks to Apple’s inability to ship the smart Siri it introduced last year.
I no longer think that type of fragmentation will matter. However, the EU’s DMA might force Apple to deliver a different kind of fragmentation. European users like myself might not be able to run certain Apple features, with iPhone Mirroring being a good example of that.
I don’t expect iOS 26 to bring over the feature to Europe. If anything, things might get worse before they get any better. Apple announced it’s appealing the EU’s interoperability verdict from March, earlier this week, providing the following statement:
At Apple, we design our technology to work seamlessly together, so it can deliver the unique experience our users love and expect from our products. The EU’s interoperability requirements threaten that foundation, while creating a process that is unreasonable, costly, and stifles innovation. These requirements will also hand data-hungry companies sensitive information, which poses massive privacy and security risks to our EU users. Companies have already requested our users’ most sensitive data — from the content of their notifications, to a full history of every stored WiFi network on their device — giving them the ability to access personal information that even Apple doesn’t see. In the end, these deeply flawed rules that only target Apple—and no other company—will severely limit our ability to deliver innovative products and features to Europe, leading to an inferior user experience for our European customers. We are appealing these decisions on their behalf, and in order to preserve the high-quality experience our European customers expect.
As you can easily see, there’s a stark warning in there. Apple might ship “inferior user experiences” in Europe if the EU decides to enforce the DMA in ways that Apple considers dangerous to user security and privacy.
On the other hand, the EU should also enforce better security and privacy in Europe through the DMA and other laws. Hopefully, iPhone Mirroring will come to Europe soon enough.
As for iOS 26, we expect a major redesign for the iPhone’s next-gen OS update. We’ve covered the rumored iOS 26 changes in detail at this link.
