Apple today seeded the release candidate versions of upcoming iOS 17.3 and iPadOS 17.3 updates to developers and public beta testers, with the updates available a week after the release of the third iOS 17.3 and iPadOS 17.3 betas.
Registered developers are able to opt into the betas by opening up the Settings app, going to the Software Update section, tapping on the "Beta Updates" option, and toggling on the iOS 17 or iPadOS 17 Developer Beta. An Apple ID associated with a developer account is required to download and install the beta.
iOS 17.3 introduces a Stolen Device Protection feature that limits access to your private information in case someone obtains both your iPhone and your passcode. When activated, it requires Face ID or Touch ID identity verification to do things like accessing passwords in iCloud Keychain, turning off Lost Mode, making purchases through Safari with saved payment credentials, and more.
There are also features that require verification and have a one-hour delay to access, such as changing an Apple ID passcode, an iPhone passcode, turning off Find My, and turning off Face ID. More details can be found in our article on Stolen Device Protection.
The update also adds collaborative Apple Music playlists, a feature that lets Apple Music subscribers share playlists with others to build shared song lists. Collaborative playlists are simple to use, can be shared with a link, and support emoji reactions.
Finally, the update adds a new Unity Bloom wallpaper for iPhone and iPad.
Release candidate builds of iOS 16.7.5, iPadOS 16.7.5, iOS 15.8.1, iPadOS 15.8.1 with security fixes for older devices are also available.
Apple today said that iOS 17.3 and iPadOS 17.3 will be released next week.
Full release notes for iOS 17.3 are below:
Stolen Device Protection
- Stolen Device Protection increases security of iPhone and Apple ID by requiring Face ID or Touch ID with no passcode fallback to perform certain actions
- Security Delay requires Face ID or Touch ID, an hour wait, and then an additional successful biometric authentication before sensitive operations like changing device passcode or Apple ID password can be performedLock Screen
- New Unity wallpaper honors Black history and culture in celebration of Black History MonthMusic
- Collaborate on playlists allows you to invite friends to join your playlist and everyone can add, reorder, and remove songs
- Emoji reactions can be added to any track in a collaborative playlistThis update also includes the following improvements:
- AirPlay hotel support lets you stream content directly to the TV in your room in select hotels
- AppleCare & Warranty in Settings shows your coverage for all devices signed in with your Apple ID
- Crash detection optimizations (all iPhone 14 and iPhone 15 models)
