Apple Seeds First Public Betas of iOS 16 and iPadOS 16

Apple today seeded the first betas of iOS 16 and iPadOS 16 to public beta testers, opening up the iOS 16 beta testing process to the general public for the first time since the Worldwide Developers Conference. Developers have already had three betas, and the first public beta coincides with the third developer beta.

ios 16 lock screen feature2
Public beta testers who have signed up for Apple's beta testing program can download the iOS and iPadOS 15 updates over the air after installing the proper certificate from the Public Beta website.

iOS 16 brings an overhauled Lock Screen with customizable wallpapers, time, and widgets, plus notifications have been updated to roll in from the bottom of the display. Multiple Lock Screens are supported and can be linked with Focus modes.

The Messages app supports editing and deleting messages as well as marking messages unread. SharePlay is no longer limited to FaceTime, so Messages can be used for communication between people sharing content with one another. ‌FaceTime‌ calls can be handed off from one device to another, and the Health app gains a new Medications feature for tracking the vitamins and medicine that you take.

Apple is replacing passwords with Passkeys, and Safari now supports Shared Tab Groups for collaborating. In the Mail app, you can schedule emails, cancel sending, and receive follow-up reminders, and the Maps app supports multi-stop routing.

iCloud Shared Photo Library offers a convenient way to share a photos with family members, and Apple Pay Later will let users pay for ‌Apple Pay‌ purchases in fee-free installments. For the iPad, iPadOS 16 brings a Weather app and a new multi-tasking system called Stage Manager, but it's only for iPads with Apple silicon chips.

There are tons more features in iOS 16 and iPadOS 16, with a full rundown available in our dedicated roundups.

Related Forum: iOS 16

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Top Rated Comments

DinkThifferent Avatar
38 months ago

Imagine paying a premium for an iPhone with stable software to beta test buggy software for free...
it's not like Apple is forcing all 1,2 billion active devices to do a beta test for them.
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)
olives9 Avatar
38 months ago

Imagine paying a premium for an iPhone with stable software to beta test buggy software for free...
Imagine paying a premium for an Android phone, only to find out you really want to go back to iOS? Even if it's Beta, still is more stable than Android.
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Silverstring Avatar
38 months ago

Imagine paying a premium for an iPhone with stable software to beta test buggy software for free...
Imagine paying a premium for an iPhone only to not be able to beta test buggy software if that's what you want to do.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
rkdiddy Avatar
38 months ago
I see nothing...
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
srbNYC Avatar
38 months ago
I'm going to tell you all when I'm downloading because I know you care.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MuGeN PoWeR Avatar
38 months ago

Imagine paying a premium for an iPhone with stable software to beta test buggy software for free...
no software in the world is stable and bug free! so if you paid *premium* for an iPhone with a stable software then you are already dreaming!
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)