This week, Apple is expected to publicly release OS X Yosemite. This, along with the imminent iOS 8.1, will enable new Continuity and Handoff features between Apple devices.
One of the new features is the ability to send and receive phone calls from an iPad or Mac. All of this functionality is handled through an iPhone running iOS 8.
During their demo, Apple showed how easy it is to call a contact from a Mac. But while it’s possible to call a phone number found virtually anywhere, whether in Maps or Safari, they didn’t show was any ability to manually dial a phone number. That’s where Continuity Keypad comes in.
Making a phone call with Continuity Keypad
Continuity Keypad, created by young developers Harrison Weinerman and Eytan Schulman, is a Mac app that provides a simple keypad to quickly and easily make a phone call.
The interface is exactly what you’d expect: a typical smartphone keypad. But while providing the ability to manually call a number, it also integrates with your contacts so you can search for a number to call.
Calling a contact. In this case, myself
The app itself is a great addition to OS X Yosemite and is definitely a must-buy for anyone that will be doing a lot of phone calls from their Mac. But when you’ve been given a number that you need to manually dial fast, you don’t even need to open the app. Continuity Keypad includes a widget for the new Notification Center.
The Continuity Keypad widget, the easy way to quickly call a number
From the widget, users can either place a phone call manually or open the app to search through their contacts. There is also a handy ‘Redial’ button. Didn’t get through to someone with your first call? With one click, you can call them again.
While Apple has made it very easy and relatively simple to take phone calls on an iPad and Mac, Continuity Keypad adds just enough to the Mac to complete the experience. It is a perfect compliment to the new features found in OS X Yosemite, which is only made available through iOS 8 on an iPhone.
You can download a beta from the Continuity Keypad website which will work until the 1.0 release. Continuity Keypad 1.0 will be available on the Mac App Store for $0.99 when OS X Yosemite is released.
