Apple Releases First OS X 10.11.1 El Capitan Public Beta

Apple today seeded the first beta of OS X 10.11.1 El Capitan to public beta testers, just days after first releasing the beta to developers and roughly a week and a half before OS X El Capitan will be released to the public on September 30.

The new beta is available through the Software Update mechanism in the Mac App Store.

os_x_el_capitan_roundup
The first beta of OS X 10.11.1 introduced support for Unicode 8 and new emoji like taco, burrito, cheese wedge, hot dog, middle finger, and unicorn head. The emoji are also included in iOS 9.1, which is also in testing.

Beyond new emoji, there have been no other outward-facing changes discovered, suggesting OS X 10.11.1 is a minor update that will bring bug fixes and performance enhancements. According to Apple's release notes, the beta offers stability, compatibility, and security improvements.

Related Forum: OS X El Capitan

Popular Stories

streaming black friday 2025

Black Friday Streaming Deals Include Big Savings on Disney+, Hulu, Apple TV, and More

Monday November 24, 2025 8:03 am PST by
We've been focusing on deals on physical products over the past few weeks, but Black Friday is also a great time of year to purchase a streaming membership. Some of the biggest services have great discounts for new and select returning members this week, including Disney+, Hulu, Paramount+, Peacock, and more. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a...
iOS 26 on Three iPhones

iOS 27 Will Reportedly Have Two Key Upgrades

Sunday November 23, 2025 8:48 am PST by
iOS 27 will reportedly have two major elements: quality improvements and new AI features. In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said that iOS 27 will be similar to Mac OS X Snow Leopard, in the sense that Apple is focused on improving "quality and underlying performance" over adding new features. Gurman said there is one exception to this rule, though, as he expects...
iOS 26

iOS 26.2 Adds These New Features to Your iPhone

Thursday November 20, 2025 10:50 am PST by
iOS 26.2 is currently in beta testing. The upcoming update includes a handful of new features and changes on the iPhone, including a new Liquid Glass slider for the Lock Screen's clock, offline lyrics for Apple Music, and more. In a recent press release, Apple confirmed that iOS 26.2 will be released to all users in December, but it did not provide a specific release date. Keep reading...
General Black Friday Deals 25 Red

Apple Black Friday Deals Available Now on AirPods, iPads, Accessories, and More

Friday November 21, 2025 8:48 am PST by
We're only a few days away from Black Friday, which will take place on Friday, November 28 in 2025. As always, this will be the best time of the year to shop for great deals, including popular Apple products like AirPods, iPad, Apple Watch, and more. In this article, the majority of the discounts will be found on Amazon. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When...
maxresdefault

The MacRumors Show: iPhone 18 Pro Looks Like a Huge Upgrade

Friday November 21, 2025 9:10 am PST by
On this week's episode of The MacRumors Show, we talk through all of the new features and improvements expected to come to next year's iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max models. Subscribe to The MacRumors Show YouTube channel for more videos Apple's next-generation iPhones are less than ten months away and we already have a good idea about what to expect based on corroborated leaks, rumors,...
apple news banner

Apple News Loses CNN

Monday November 24, 2025 7:56 am PST by
American multinational news company CNN has abruptly pulled its content from Apple News, Semafor reports. CNN quietly removed its stories from Apple News over the weekend and there is no longer a feed from the network to subscribe to in the app. This effectively ends its distribution agreement with Apple while the two sides negotiate new terms. Discussions are apparently ongoing and CNN's...
amazon black friday

Amazon Kicks Off Black Friday Sale With Major Discounts on Apple Accessories, TVs, and More

Sunday November 23, 2025 7:12 am PST by
Black Friday deals have begun, and Amazon is one of the best places you can find steep discounts on numerous products this week. We've already collected all of the best Apple-related deals you'll find at Amazon (and other retailers) in our Apple Black Friday Deals post, so below you'll find other discounts on devices like Anker accessories, Beats headphones, video games, TVs, and more. Note:...
Apple Shopping Event 2025

Apple Announces 2025 Black Friday Event, Here's What You Can Get

Thursday November 20, 2025 6:28 am PST by
Apple's annual four-day Black Friday through Cyber Monday shopping event is returning on Friday, November 28 through Monday, December 1 in many countries, including the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden, Thailand, and others. During the shopping event, customers can get an Apple gift card with...
Apple Foldable Thumb

Foldable iPhone to Debut These Three Breakthrough Features

Tuesday November 25, 2025 7:09 am PST by
Apple's first foldable iPhone is expected to launch alongside the iPhone 18 Pro models in fall 2026, and it's shaping up to include three standout features that could set it apart from the competition. The book-style foldable will reportedly feature an industry-first 24-megapixel under-display camera built into the inner display, according to a recent JP Morgan equity research report. That...

Top Rated Comments

DHagan4755 Avatar
133 months ago
Well thank god, we needed updated emojis.
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
vasili4 Avatar
133 months ago
606mb of burrito emojis
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
drewyboy Avatar
133 months ago
I'm beginning to sour on the public betas. I had an issue with my Mac Pro a few weeks ago, and Apple's Tech Support flatly refused to help me because I was running the beta. They told me to wait for the "legitimate" El Capitan release and then call them back.
Zero sympathy. You knew exactly what you're getting into. If you didn't, now you know. Your job is to report the bugs, not ask for them to be fixed by tech support on the spot.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
leventozler Avatar
133 months ago
is there a way to get out of public beta? Outside of formatting?
Preferences > App Store > change ".. receive pre-release .."
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Even Longer Avatar
133 months ago
Well thank god, we needed updated emojis.
Right. But the middle finger Emoji characterizes this update in the most meaningful way.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
alexgowers Avatar
133 months ago
Looks like everyone at Apple is obsessed with betas. Just keep releasing betas and fix no bugs even if someone reports. This Craig Federighi guy is a joker and he has made OS X a mess!
I think El Cap is very stable and the best OS X has ever been but hey we have different opinions.

Every bug i report is fixed. Public betas are betas, feedback is feedback, it's a great way to test the software and benefit everyone, preferring to keep it locked up and only release a GM with major bugs is not really an option now. The pace of development on OSX has never moved so fast, it's core functions hadn't changed much for 15 years and then in the last 3-4 we've got so many new things i can't even count them.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)