All the iOS 16 Features You Won't Get Until Later This Year
There are usually multiple features that Apple is not able to finish before the first official release of a major new version of iOS, and this year looks to be no different, with a total of nine iOS 16 features now confirmed to not be present in the first public version of the new OS.
Last year, SharePlay, Digital IDs in the Wallet app, and Universal Control were among a large number of features in iOS 15 and iPadOS 15 that were not available in their initial release, taking several months to trickle out to users.
Apple previewed each of the following features upon announcing iOS 16 at WWDC earlier this year, but they will not be present in iOS 16.0 when it releases to the public tomorrow:
- Live Activities: Follow activities happening in real-time like a sports match or a ride-share with just a glance at the Lock Screen. Third-party apps and App Clips can implement support thanks to the Live Activities API.
- Game Center SharePlay support: Games that use Game Center multiplayer support have SharePlay integration. You can start playing automatically with friends on a FaceTime call.
- Game Center Contacts integration: Contacts shows your friends' Game Center profiles. Tap through to see what they are playing and achieving in games.
- Support for Matter: The new smart home connectivity standard that enables compatible accessories to work together seamlessly and across platforms. Matter allows users to choose from even more compatible smart home accessories and control them with the Home app and Siri on Apple devices.
- Updated architecture for the Home app: Enhancements to the underlying architecture of the Home app to enable faster, more reliable performance and improved efficiency, especially for homes with lots of accessories and multiple controller devices.
- Freeform app: A new digital whiteboard app with a flexible canvas for diagramming projects, aggregating important assets, and brainstorming, with real-time collaboration features and rich multimedia support.
- iCloud Shared Photo Library: A new option in the Photos app to allow users to create a shared photos library and invite anyone with an Apple ID to view, contribute to, and edit it, including favoriting images and adding captions. There are no limitations, and all participants have the same permissions, making it ideal for families.
- Key sharing: The ability to securely share keys in Apple Wallet via messaging apps and Mail.
- Easy Shortcuts setup for iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and iPhone X: Siri can run shortcuts from installed apps without any setup process (to be available for newer devices immediately without delay).
iCloud Shared Photo Library became the latest feature to be delayed following Apple's "Far out" event earlier this week, but all of the other delays were known upon the initial preview of iOS 16 at WWDC.
Apple says that all of these features are coming in an update to iOS 16 later this year, but it has not yet offered a more specific timeframe for any of them. After months of beta testing, iOS 16.0 will become officially available for download on every compatible iPhone tomorrow. For a detailed breakdown of all of the new features in iOS 16, see our comprehensive roundup.
Popular Stories
Apple today updated its trade-in values for select iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch models. Trade-ins can be completed on Apple's website, or at an Apple Store.
The charts below provide an overview of Apple's current and previous trade-in values in the U.S., according to its website. Maximum values for most devices either decreased or saw no change, but the iPad Air received a slight bump.
...
Apple is promoting the new Liquid Glass design in iOS 26, showing off the ways that third-party developers are embracing the aesthetic in their apps. On its developer website, Apple is featuring a visual gallery that demonstrates how "teams of all sizes" are creating Liquid Glass experiences.
The gallery features examples of Liquid Glass in apps for iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, and Mac. Apple...
Apple's online store in the U.S. is suddenly offering a pack of four AirTags for just $29, which is the same price as a single AirTag.
This is likely a pricing error, and it is unclear if orders will be fulfilled. Apple has not discounted the AirTag four-pack in any other countries that we checked.
Delivery estimates are already pushing into late November to early December, suggesting...
We're officially in the month of 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 ...
Following more than a month of beta testing, Apple released iOS 26.1 on Monday, November 3. The update includes a handful of new features and changes, including the ability to adjust the look of Liquid Glass and more.
Below, we outline iOS 26.1's key new features.
Liquid Glass Toggle
iOS 26.1 lets you choose your preferred look for Liquid Glass.
In the Settings app, under Display...
IKEA today announced the upcoming launch of 21 new Matter-compatible smart home products that will be able to interface with HomeKit and the Apple Home app. There are sensors, lights, and control options, all of which will be reasonably priced. Some of the products are new, while some are updates to existing lines that IKEA previously offered.
There are a series of new smart bulbs that are...
The future of Apple Fitness+ is "under review" amid a reorganization of the service, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
In the latest edition of his "Power On" newsletter, Gurman said that Apple Fitness+ remains one of the company's "weakest digital offerings." The service apparently suffers from high churn and little revenue.
Nevertheless, Fitness+ has a small, loyal fanbase that...
Apple will conceal the front-facing camera under the screen of its 2027 iPhone, a Chinese leaker said today, corroborating reports that Apple's 20th anniversary iPhone will have no visible cutouts in the display.
Weibo-based account Digital Chat Station said Apple's development of under-screen camera technology was progressing as planned for adoption in 2027, one year after it will...
HTX Studio this week shared the results from a six-month battery test that compared how fast charging and slow charging can affect battery life over time.
Using six iPhone 12 models, the channel set up a system to drain the batteries from five percent and charge them to 100 percent over and over again. Three were fast charged, and three were slow charged.
Another set of iPhones underwent...
