We were expecting the official previews of iOS 17And iPadOS 17And macOS SonomaAnd watchOS 10 for months. And finally, after the WWDC23 keynote, we got to experience these operating systems for the first time. While public and stable releases are still about three months away, registered developers can now give beta releases a spin on their compatible devices.
iOS is Apple’s most popular operating system, powering millions of iPhones around the world. And with iOS 17, the Cupertino company aims to bring its users closer. Although the first developer beta does not make the right impression in terms of the stability and reliability of the final version, we have an idea of what this version will offer.
Communications improvements were a major topic during the conference. Even so, it’s clear that these upgrades will mostly affect you if your social circle depends on iOS. Other than that, iOS 17 is, in many ways, a minor hiccup that doesn’t bring much excitement to the table. After playing iOS 17 beta 1 for about a day, I’ve come to some conclusions, which I’ll highlight below.
The overall iOS 17 beta 1 experience
I’ve been running iOS developer beta on my daily program for many years, and I have to say, iOS 17 beta 1 is one of the hardest work I’ve ever had. Although this is known and expected when it comes to a first beta of a major release, previous releases have been more stable, in my opinion. So, if you’re considering the idea, you might want to hold back until a future beta stabilizes the experience.
For example, enabling the new Crossfade toggle in the Music settings crashes the Settings app. After the initial crash, whenever I went into the Music section of the Settings app, the app would crash again. There seems to be no way to fix this, and you won’t be able to change any settings related to the Music app until Apple fixes it.
There are also plenty of visual bugs and broken animations across the system, and the operating system feels choppy overall. It’s not very easy to navigate through, and the battery life seems shorter. Moreover, sometimes the system crashes in a specific situation. So, for example, tapping the HomePod toggle in Control Center will open the Overview page, which you can usually dismiss by swiping on it. In iOS 17 beta 1, you can’t dismiss it without locking and unlocking your iPhone. This is just one example, and there are plenty of other similar glitches that make iOS 17 beta 1 unpleasant to use. While none of them are deal-breakers for me yet, impatient folks may find themselves downgrading to the latest stable iOS 16 build.
Third party apps that I rely on seem to work fine, including banking apps. Not to mention, the basic functions I rely on work without any major issues. So you can make phone calls, text people, install new apps, and so on. It’s just that carrying out these tasks may not be as smooth as you used to. If this isn’t scary for you, you can install the iOS 17 beta and then revert to the stable build if you change your mind or regret the decision later on.
The main introductions in iOS 17 beta 1
bad
As mentioned earlier, iOS 17 beta 1 brings a lot of new additions. However, many users will not be able to use them if their friends rely on Android or non-Apple solutions. For example, while many of my friends use iOS, iMessage and FaceTime are not the apps we use to communicate. So while the new FaceTime voicemail and reaction features are handy, I likely won’t be able to actively use them in my daily life. Likewise, many of my friends are based on Android, so they won’t be able to see the contact sticker I set, since only other iOS 17 users will be able to see my profile.
This isn’t just about Phone, FaceTime, and Messages apps. Let’s take a look at the music. In iOS 17, users will be able to work on collaborative playlists and rely on SharePlay in CarPlay to control their queue. However, since my friends are Spotify subscribers, I won’t be able to take advantage of these features with them.
It really looks like iOS 17 is designed to get people to adopt more Apple devices
NameDrop to quickly share a contact card or number with someone? Also requires another iPhone or Apple Watch. AirDrop over the Internet after stepping away while the transfer is in progress? This requires that the person also have an Apple device. Not to mention the check-in feature that allows you to notify someone when a certain destination has been safely reached.
It really feels like iOS 17 was designer To get people to adopt more Apple devices and pressure their friends to do so too. This version amplifies the Blue/Green Bubble drama by keeping the excitement going and asking people to have iFriends. Even if you have all of the Apple devices, iOS 17 probably won’t be exciting to you if the people you communicate with don’t rely on the company’s devices and services.
The good
To be fair, though, iOS 17 beta 1 introduces some features and changes that you can enjoy without necessarily having friends who use Apple. One of my favorite additions is the new standby mode, which turns the iPhone into a smart display of sorts when it’s charging in landscape orientation. So at night, I place the device on my MagSafe charging stand, and it displays the time and date in a large, prominent typeface. Not to mention, it displays photos from your library, current weather, live activities, incoming notifications, and more. To me, it’s the most noticeable change in the iOS 17 beta. While the Journal app is arguably more exciting, it won’t be available to users until a future iOS 17.x update.
Another interesting addition is the upgraded sticker experience, which lets you easily create animated stickers from Live Photos and insert them into Messages, when using Markup, and in compatible third-party apps. In iOS 17 beta 1 though, the sticker menu is still pretty much broken, and using them in third-party apps was nigh on impossible for me. iPhone 14 Pro.
Apart from the major changes mentioned above, iOS 17 beta 1 brings a lot of great features, which we are going to list below.
Quality of life improvements in iOS 17 beta 1
While there aren’t a lot of significant additions in iOS 17, users will notice a lot of tweaks and smaller introductions across the system. For example, Beta 1 introduces the ability to share AirTags with other people, a feature I’ve been needing for a long time. In this way, a shared item can be tracked by more than one person, and the secondary owner will not be notified about the tracking.
Autocorrect has also become better, the system has become lower stubborn When trying to return the patch to its initial form. Not to mention, it can even suggest a few words to you beforehand as you type, thanks to the Neural Engine. However, as of beta 1, I still can’t get this to work on my device. And speaking of the neuromotor, I really appreciate that I can say now Siriinstead of Hey Siri, to run the helper. While it may seem like a small change, it actually made me more motivated to rely on Siri for various requests. You can now also issue back-to-back commands, saving you the need to say Siri All the time.
Aside from that, cross fade support is coming to Apple Music on iOS, but the switch is broken in beta 1. You can now also download cities for offline navigation on Apple Maps, which is long overdue. And in the Health app, you can now log your mood and enable critical notifications for specific medications to be reminded of even when focus mode is enabled.
There are also other welcome additions that I personally like, like interactive widgets, Keychain password sharing, and locked incognito tabs in Safari. Gone are the days of having to launch the Reminders app to select a specific task. You can now do this through the widget on the home screen.
One-time codes received via Messages and Mail now optionally delete themselves after being automatically filled in to clear your inbox. What’s more, the Photos app can now detect my pets’ faces and include them in the People & Pets album. Not to mention that iOS can now optionally blur received photos when it detects nudity.
While I don’t personally rely on a fitness app very often, I appreciate the redesigned Sharing tab that shows your friends’ data in a neater way. You can also create customized training programs, based on your goals and expectations.
iOS 17 beta 1: Conclusion
Source: Apple
As you can see, iOS 17 focuses on the features that connect you with other Apple users. So while there are some exciting introductions, many users will not be able to use it due to social restrictions. Other than that, the system packs a lot of the welcome tweaks that users have been asking for. This includes cross stitching in music, AirTag sharing, pet detection in photos, and more.
If you are thinking of installing iOS 17 beta 1 on your main iPhone, then I advise you not to. First, you likely won’t be able to take advantage of most of its new features due to the possibility that your friends are on iOS 16 or Android. Secondly, many of the new additions are broken, such as fade-in support. Not to mention that the entire operating system feels squeaky, and requires a lot of patience to deal with in its current state. iOS 17 beta 1 is one of the most boring builds I’ve tested in years, and it simply isn’t worth it.
[ad_2]
