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Everything New in iOS 11.2.5: Siri Audio News, HomePod Support, New Control Center Music Interface and More
Apple this morning officially released the iOS 11.2.5 update to the public, introducing support for the upcoming HomePod smart speaker, which is set to be released on February 9.
In addition to adding support for HomePod, the update also introduces several HomePod-related features such as Siri podcast-based audio news reports and a new music interface, along with bug fixes and security improvements. Check the video and post below for everything that's new in iOS 11.2.5.
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Today's update introduces official support for podcast-based audio Siri news reports, a feature that first began rolling out on all devices last week.
When you ask Siri about the news of the day via Hey Siri or another hands-free method, the new feature allows the personal assistant to provide Podcast news from sources like NPR, Fox News, CNN, or The Washington Post.
While asking Siri about the news of the day will provide generic news updates from the aforementioned sources, you can also ask for more specific news about topics like sports, business, and music. Sports news provides podcasts from ESPN or NBC, business news offers podcasts from Bloomberg or CNBC, while music news offers Apple Music Beats 1 content.
Siri podcast news is available in the United States, Australia, and the UK, the three countries where the HomePod is launching in February. Siri news can be accessed on devices in other countries according to Apple's release notes for the iOS 11.2.5 update, but content will only be provided in English and the feature appears to be incomplete in unsupported countries.
The only significant outward-facing change introduced in iOS 11.2.5 brings a new layout for audio controls. When accessing the music widget on an iPhone or iPad, when you 3D Touch or press on the icon in the upper right hand side, all available audio playback sources are now listed as separate tiles.
Tapping on one of the audio sources, such as an Apple TV, allows audio to be played on the device and controlled separately from the iPhone. Using this feature, you can listen to music on one device, like the Apple TV, without interfering with audio playing on the iPhone.
Today's update introduces new functionality for the VoiceOver accessibility feature in iOS devices, allowing it to announce playback destinations and AirPod battery level.
Other, smaller improvements and bug fixes were also included in iOS 11.2.5, addressing issues in Mail, Messages, and CarPlay. From Apple's official release notes:
- Addresses an issue that could cause the Phone app to display incomplete information in the call list
- Fixes an issue that caused Mail notifications from some Exchange accounts to disappear from the Lock screen when unlocking iPhone X with Face ID
- Addresses an issue that could cause Messages conversations to temporarily be listed out of order
- Fixes an issue in CarPlay where Now Playing controls become unresponsive after multiple track changes
The iOS 11.2.5 update can be downloaded for free on all eligible devices over-the-air using the Settings app. To access the update, go to Settings --> General --> Software update.
In addition to adding support for HomePod, the update also introduces several HomePod-related features such as Siri podcast-based audio news reports and a new music interface, along with bug fixes and security improvements. Check the video and post below for everything that's new in iOS 11.2.5.
Today's update introduces official support for podcast-based audio Siri news reports, a feature that first began rolling out on all devices last week.
When you ask Siri about the news of the day via Hey Siri or another hands-free method, the new feature allows the personal assistant to provide Podcast news from sources like NPR, Fox News, CNN, or The Washington Post.
While asking Siri about the news of the day will provide generic news updates from the aforementioned sources, you can also ask for more specific news about topics like sports, business, and music. Sports news provides podcasts from ESPN or NBC, business news offers podcasts from Bloomberg or CNBC, while music news offers Apple Music Beats 1 content.
Siri podcast news is available in the United States, Australia, and the UK, the three countries where the HomePod is launching in February. Siri news can be accessed on devices in other countries according to Apple's release notes for the iOS 11.2.5 update, but content will only be provided in English and the feature appears to be incomplete in unsupported countries.
The only significant outward-facing change introduced in iOS 11.2.5 brings a new layout for audio controls. When accessing the music widget on an iPhone or iPad, when you 3D Touch or press on the icon in the upper right hand side, all available audio playback sources are now listed as separate tiles.
Tapping on one of the audio sources, such as an Apple TV, allows audio to be played on the device and controlled separately from the iPhone. Using this feature, you can listen to music on one device, like the Apple TV, without interfering with audio playing on the iPhone.
Today's update introduces new functionality for the VoiceOver accessibility feature in iOS devices, allowing it to announce playback destinations and AirPod battery level.
Other, smaller improvements and bug fixes were also included in iOS 11.2.5, addressing issues in Mail, Messages, and CarPlay. From Apple's official release notes:
- Addresses an issue that could cause the Phone app to display incomplete information in the call list
- Fixes an issue that caused Mail notifications from some Exchange accounts to disappear from the Lock screen when unlocking iPhone X with Face ID
- Addresses an issue that could cause Messages conversations to temporarily be listed out of order
- Fixes an issue in CarPlay where Now Playing controls become unresponsive after multiple track changes
The iOS 11.2.5 update can be downloaded for free on all eligible devices over-the-air using the Settings app. To access the update, go to Settings --> General --> Software update.
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Top Rated Comments
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14 months ago
6s here, runs beautifully with 11.2.5!
Can't be true! Every iPhone 6s is unusable and slow because every phone was impacted and has a defective battery.Oh wait, you live in reality...sorry.
14 months ago
That sounds really interesting. I hope this makes Airplay functionally closer to to how Chromecast works. Meaning that casting content doesn’t completely take over your phone.
When I get home I want to try casting a video to the TV and watching a different video on my phone.
When I get home I want to try casting a video to the TV and watching a different video on my phone.
14 months ago
The control panel is still way too busy looking. I still prefer my iOS 9.3.5 control panel. No, still not updating.
14 months ago
Anyone running iOS 11 on an SE?
I would like to update it, but I have been too scared to update my devices lately due to a some horrible issues I have experienced on multiple devices.
I have a SE. It's running fine!
14 months ago
[S]This update boosted Geekbench scores on 6: 800 -> 1292 (single core) multi 1363 -> 2293.[/S]
This happened at 93% charge and in the 70's it back to 800's and 1300's. :(
This happened at 93% charge and in the 70's it back to 800's and 1300's. :(
14 months ago
Weird...I have and even connected to my 4k ATV, and I don't see anything like this. The tiles and options to change output just don't show up for me. Tried playing audio from a few different apps on the phone and output to the ATV. It all works fine, I just don't get the extra options referenced in the article here.
Same thing for me. I have an Apple TV 4K and an Airport express hooked up to my stereo. No tiles. Just the same old (awkward) interface in the control center.
14 months ago
Ok. Someone needs to ask this: since the last iOS was 11.2.2. Why the next one is iOS 11.2.5??
What about iOS 11.2.3 and iOS 11.2.4?
What about iOS 11.2.3 and iOS 11.2.4?
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