Skip to Content

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

Apple Event Logo

Apple Released Seven New Products Today

Wednesday March 11, 2026 7:05 am PDT by
Starting today, the seven new Apple products that were announced last week are available at Apple Stores and beginning to arrive to customers. The colorful MacBook Neo and all of the other new products are on display at most Apple Store locations around the world starting today. Apple Stores have inventory of the new products for both walk-in customers and Apple Store pickup, but...
ios 26 4 yellow

Everything New in iOS 26.4 Beta 4

Monday March 9, 2026 3:50 pm PDT by
Apple is continuing to test the iOS 26.4 beta, and the latest update is now available for developers and public beta testers. As testing goes on, there are fewer new features in each beta, but today’s release adds new emoji characters and a few other changes. New Emoji Apple added new emoji characters, including trombone, treasure chest, distorted face, hairy creature, fight cloud, orca,...
Apple 50 Years of Thinking Different

Apple Announces 50th Anniversary Plans

Thursday March 12, 2026 6:10 am PDT by
Apple today announced that it will celebrate the company's 50th anniversary over the coming weeks, but it has yet to reveal any specific plans. Apple was founded on April 1, 1976, so the company will turn 50 on April 1, 2026. "While Apple is known for looking forward, this milestone offers a special moment to reflect on the journey that has brought the company here, to celebrate the...

Top Rated Comments

DHagan4755 Avatar
137 months ago
Well thank god, we needed updated emojis.
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
137 months ago
606mb of burrito emojis
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
137 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)
137 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
137 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)
137 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)