Apple today seeded the fourth beta of iOS 8.3 to developers, nearly two weeks after seeding the third iOS 8.3 beta and more than a month and a half after releasing the first iOS 8.3 beta. Today's beta is also available for public beta testers.
The beta, build 12F61, is available as an over-the-air download and through the iOS Developer Center. Apple has also released Xcode 6.3 beta 4.
Previous iOS 8.3 betas have included features like a new emoji picker and all new diversified emoji and skin tone modifiers, new country flag emoji and updated emoji icons to represent the iPhone, iMac, and Apple Watch.
Along with those emoji changes, iOS 8.3 brings wireless CarPlay connectivity, support for Google 2-step verification, Apple Pay for the China UnionPay network, several new Siri languages, filters for Messages, a UI change for the space bar in Safari, and more. We've been tracking all the iOS 8.3 changes in our iOS 8 Features Roundup.
What's new in iOS 8.3 beta 4:
iCloud Photo Library - iCloud Photo Library's beta label has been removed again. It has been removed and re-added in past iOS 8.3 betas, so it is not clear whether the service will be out of beta when iOS 8.3 launches.
Messages filtering - An earlier beta introduced filtering in Messages, allowing users to separate messages received from friends and those received from strangers into two categories. In beta 4, the category for iMessages sent from those who are not in a user's contact list has been renamed to "Unknown Sender."
Thursday January 29, 2026 10:07 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple today confirmed to Reuters that it has acquired Q.ai, an Israeli startup that is working on artificial intelligence technology for audio.
Apple paid close to $2 billion for Q.ai, according to sources cited by the Financial Times. That would make this Apple's second-biggest acquisition ever, after it paid $3 billion for the popular headphone and audio brand Beats in 2014.
Q.ai has...
Sunday February 1, 2026 10:08 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Last year, Apple launched CarPlay Ultra, the long-awaited next-generation version of its CarPlay software system for vehicles. Nearly nine months later, CarPlay Ultra is still limited to Aston Martin's latest luxury vehicles, but that should change fairly soon.
In May 2025, Apple said many other vehicle brands planned to offer CarPlay Ultra, including Hyundai, Kia, and Genesis. At the time,...
Saturday January 31, 2026 10:51 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple recently updated its online store with a new ordering process for Macs, including the MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, iMac, Mac mini, Mac Studio, and Mac Pro.
There used to be a handful of standard configurations available for each Mac, but now you must configure a Mac entirely from scratch on a feature-by-feature basis. In other words, ordering a new Mac now works much like ordering an...
Monday January 26, 2026 1:55 pm PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple today introduced its first two physical products of 2026: a second-generation AirTag and the Black Unity Connection Braided Solo Loop for the Apple Watch.
Read our coverage of each announcement to learn more:Apple Unveils New AirTag With Longer Range, Louder Speaker, and More
Apple Introduces New Black Unity Apple Watch BandBoth the new AirTag and the Black Unity Connection Braided...
A newly surfaced resale operation is seemingly offering Apple Store–exclusive display accessories to the public for the first time, potentially giving consumers access to Apple-designed hardware that the company has historically kept confined to its retail environments.
Apple designs a range of premium MagSafe charging stands, display trays, and hardware systems exclusively for displays in ...
