iOS 16 Public Beta Could Be Weeks Late This Year

Public beta testing of iOS 16 could begin weeks later than usual this year, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.

Gurman believes that public beta testers will be able to try out ‌iOS 16‌ for the first time in July alongside the release of the third developer beta. In previous years, Apple has released public beta versions of next-generation iOS updates alongside the second developer beta. Gurman speculates that the public beta could be running behind since internal seeds are currently a "bit buggy."

Last year, the second developer beta of iOS 15 was released on June 24, followed by the third developer beta on July 14 – almost three weeks later. Under a similar timeline, members of the public could have to wait over five weeks to try ‌iOS 16‌ after the new operating system is unveiled at the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) on Monday, June 6. That being said, Gurman cautioned that "things are still fluid and could shift."

Apple is expected to preview ‌iOS 16‌, alongside other major software updates for the Apple Watch, Mac, and Apple TV, during Apple's keynote event on June 6. As in previous years, developers will likely have the opportunity to download early versions of the updates immediately after the keynote event.

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Initial betas are often riddled with bugs that need to be fixed, which is why Apple goes through a months-long beta testing period before the updates are officially released to all device owners in September. Apple often recommends beta testers run the new software on a secondary device due to these issues.

Little is currently known about ‌iOS 16‌, but improvements to notifications, the Health app, and Apple Fitness+ are rumored to be on the cards, as well as car crash detection, new ways of system interaction, and "fresh Apple apps."