Apple Releases Third Public Beta of macOS Ventura 13.1

Apple today seeded the third beta of macOS Ventura 13.1 to its public beta testing group, allowing non-developers to try out the new features ahead of the software's release. The public beta comes one week after Apple released the second public beta.

macos ventura roundup header
Public beta testers can download the macOS 13.1 Ventura update from the Software Update section of the System Preferences app after installing the proper profile from Apple's beta software website.

macOS Ventura 13.1 introduces the Freeform app, which Apple has designed for creative collaboration. The app can be used for brainstorming, planning out ideas, jotting down notes, and more. Users can insert drawings, sticky notes, shapes, text boxes, photos, videos, PDFs, links, and other documents, with Freeform serving as a blank canvas.

Freeform "boards" can be shared with other people and discussed over FaceTime, with updates from all participants synced to everyone in real-time.

The update also introduces support for an updated Home app architecture that improves performance for smart home devices.

Related Forum: macOS Ventura

Top Rated Comments

ItWasNotMe Avatar
19 months ago
Just put Freeform on the App Store. It's not part of the OS. I've enough bloatware as it is
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MauiPa Avatar
19 months ago

Just put Freeform on the App Store. It's not part of the OS. I've enough bloatware as it is
ummm, move to trash if you don't want it. Hard to find a complaint in this
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
CarAnalogy Avatar
19 months ago
Actually really looking forward to FreeForm, especially on Mac. Hopefully it becomes popular, it seems like it could be super useful.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
roncron Avatar
19 months ago

Is Freeform shared only through FaceTime? This might be useful for education if it could be done with 20+ people at the same time.
I teach at a small college and see a lot of potential in a tool like Freeform.

But it's only for Apple devices, right? Only about 4 in 10 of my students have Macs, 1 in 10 have iPads, most have Windows laptops and a few have non-Apple tablets.

So unless Freeform becomes available for non-Apple platforms, I won't be able to use it.

But there are already other products that work across platforms and provide similar functionality as Freeform.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Realityck Avatar
19 months ago

How many betas do these usually have? Wondering whether it will release next week (before Thanksgiving) or early December. I'm waiting for its release to upgrade from Monterey.
Monday Dec 12th its when it is expected to be publicly released. (last 2 years were Dec 13, Dec 14)
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Realityck Avatar
19 months ago
Been using beta 3 for a day, had no issues. Its macOS 13.1 beta 3 (22C5050e)
[SPOILER="macOS Ventura 13.1 Beta 3 Release Notes"]
[HEADING=2]Endpoint Security[/HEADING]
[HEADING=3]Known Issues[/HEADING]

* Third-party security products using the Endpoint Security API might lose Full Disk Access authorization and stop functioning, even though the product remains visible in System Settings. This issue doesn’t affect authorization granted via MDM. (100857507)
Workaround: Go to System Settings > Privacy & Security > Full Disk Access, select the security product, use the minus (-) button to remove, and then use the plus (+) button to re-add the affected security product. A system restart might be required to restore expected functionality.

[HEADING=2]Freeform[/HEADING]
[HEADING=3]Known Issues[/HEADING]

* Fixed: Can’t delete boards while offline, or if iCloud data is disabled for Freeform. (100294085)
* Fixed: Adding or removing collaborators can fail while attempting to change share settings. (101186059)
* Inserting a sticky or a file might result in an unexpected error. (100883621)
Workaround: Quit and relaunch Freeform.

[/SPOILER]
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

Delta Feature

Delta Game Emulator Now Available From App Store on iPhone

Wednesday April 17, 2024 9:58 am PDT by
Game emulator apps have come and gone since Apple announced App Store support for them on April 5, but now popular game emulator Delta from developer Riley Testut is available for download. Testut is known as the developer behind GBA4iOS, an open-source emulator that was available for a brief time more than a decade ago. GBA4iOS led to Delta, an emulator that has been available outside of...
iOS 18 Siri Integrated Feature

iOS 18 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Friday April 12, 2024 11:11 am PDT by
iOS 18 is expected to be the "biggest" update in the iPhone's history. Below, we recap rumored features and changes for the iPhone. iOS 18 is rumored to include new generative AI features for Siri and many apps, and Apple plans to add RCS support to the Messages app for an improved texting experience between iPhones and Android devices. The update is also expected to introduce a more...
iOS NES Emulator Bimmy Feature

NES Emulator for iPhone and iPad Now Available on App Store [Removed]

Tuesday April 16, 2024 11:33 am PDT by
The first approved Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) emulator for the iPhone and iPad was made available on the App Store today following Apple's rule change. The emulator is called Bimmy, and it was developed by Tom Salvo. On the App Store, Bimmy is described as a tool for testing and playing public domain/"homebrew" games created for the NES, but the app allows you to load ROMs for any...
iGBA Feature

Apple Removes Game Boy Emulator iGBA From App Store Due to Spam and Copyright Violations

Sunday April 14, 2024 9:22 pm PDT by
Apple today said it removed Game Boy emulator iGBA from the App Store for violating the company's App Review Guidelines related to spam (section 4.3) and copyright (section 5.2), but it did not provide any specific details. iGBA was a copycat version of developer Riley Testut's open-source GBA4iOS app. The emulator rose to the top of the App Store charts following its release this weekend,...
iPhone 15 Pro Action Button Translate

All iPhone 16 Models to Feature Action Button, But Usefulness Debated

Tuesday April 16, 2024 6:54 am PDT by
Last September, Apple's iPhone 15 Pro models debuted with a new customizable Action button, offering faster access to a handful of functions, as well as the ability to assign Shortcuts. Apple is poised to include the feature on all upcoming iPhone 16 models, so we asked iPhone 15 Pro users what their experience has been with the additional button so far. The Action button replaces the switch ...
iGBA Feature

Game Boy Emulator for iPhone Now Available in App Store Following Rule Change [Removed]

Sunday April 14, 2024 8:06 am PDT by
A week after Apple updated its App Review Guidelines to permit retro game console emulators, a Game Boy emulator for the iPhone called iGBA has appeared in the App Store worldwide. The emulator is already one of the top free apps on the App Store charts. It was not entirely clear if Apple would allow emulators to work with all and any games, but iGBA is able to load any Game Boy ROMs that...