Apple's Missing Hardware - A KVM Switch

Let me start by saying that I'm assuming many of you out there are in a situation quite similar to my own. This situation; having a personal Mac and a work Mac (and maybe an iPad Pro thrown into that mix also). But if you're also like me, you have limited space on your desk and don't want to be surrounded by monitors! This leads me to my most potent complaint about Apple hardware; the lack of a KVM switch.

But Universal Control, Right?

Wrong. While I agree Universal Control is an amazing product, it is only useful if all your devices have a monitor attached. Universal Control is exactly that; a way to allow a single set of control devices (i.e. keyboard and mouse) to work magically across multiple computing devices. Yet, the extent of this magic from a Video perspective is simply that it helps discover device location to make the "hop" of your control devices across each video output (i.e. moving from monitor to monitor).

Living like a Luddite

So here I sit, using my TE Smart 4-port Single-Monitor KVM switch. For the most part, it does what I need by allowing me to share a single monitor across an iPad Pro (personal), mac Mini (personal), and MacBook Pro (work). But, much like the KVMs I used in datacenters 20 years ago, it's ... temperamental. Periodically, a connected device forgets the monitor resolution. Or, sometimes a connected device doesn't see a control device (keyboard or mouse) when re-connecting to control. At that point, troubleshooting involves a myriad of turning the KVM off/on, restarting devices, etc. Overall, it works, but not without a degree of occasional frustration.

Y U NO Make KVM?

When I saw the Apple Studio display released, I was excited. A great display with some excellent features (video and sound) built in. And with nearly the equivalent of an iPhone baked into the hardware package, I had to ask, why couldn't there have been KVM capabilities there? Think about it, why couldn't universal control be software-based in the monitor? Could you plug (or pair) the keyboard and mouse to some form of studio display that then recognized a keystroke combo (or universal control gestures) to switch between attached video sources? I dare to dream. But seriously, I think this is a missed opportunity from Apple.

Feel free to leave your thoughts below...