What’s New in iOS 10.2 Beta 1: Unicode 9 Emoji, Preserve Settings for Camera, Videos Widget, Wallpapers and More
Apple seeded the first beta of iOS 10.2 to developers this afternoon, marking the second major update to the iOS 10 operating system. While iOS 10.2 doesn’t include a single main feature like the Portrait mode that was introduced in iOS 10.1, it does include several smaller features.
There are a bunch of new emoji that were first introduced in Unicode 9, plus there’s a new video widget and handy new settings for preserving your camera preferences when taking a photo. For a full overview of the new features, make sure to check out our video.
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Emoji – Unicode 9 emoji are included in iOS 10.2. Some of the new emoji include clown face, drooling face, selfie, fox face, owl, shark, butterfly, avocado, pancakes, croissant, and more. There are more than a hundred new emoji, including several profession emoji available in both male and female genders, such as firefighter, mechanic, lawyer, doctor, scientist, and more. Many existing emoji have also seen significant redesigns.
Wallpapers – There are new wallpapers in iOS 10.2, which use the same graphics that were shown off in iPhone 7 marketing materials.
Screen Effects – There’s a new “Celebrate” Screen Effect available, accessible when adding an effect to a message.
Camera settings – There’s a new option for saving your last known camera settings. This will let you preserve the last Camera Mode, Photo Filter, or Live Photo setting. “Preserve Settings” is available in the Settings App under “Photos & Camera.”
Videos widget – There’s a new widget available for the Videos app, accessible on the widgets panel by swiping to the right on the Home screen of an iPhone or iPad. The Videos widget displays movies and TV shows in the Videos app, and a tap will cause content to play automatically.
Emergency contacts – There’s a new feature that will automatically notify your emergency contacts when you use the Emergency SOS feature on iPhone or Apple Watch. A popup notification shows up when you open the Health app after installing iOS 10.2.
Apple Music – There’s a new option to sort playlists in Apple Music by type, title, and recently added. There are also new options for sorting songs and albums by title or artist.
iOS 10.2 is currently only available for registered developers, but Apple will likely make a beta available for public beta testers in the near future.
Related Roundup: iOS 10
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Apple Seeds First Beta of iOS 10.2 to Developers
Apple today seeded the first beta of an upcoming iOS 10 update to developers, one week after releasing the iOS 10.1 update and more than a month after launching the iOS 10 operating system. As a major 10.x update, iOS 10.2 will likely bring bug fixes, performance improvements, and perhaps a few new features to iOS 10.
Registered developers can download the new iOS 10.2 beta from the Apple Developer Center or over-the-air with the proper configuration profile installed.
We don’t yet know what features are included in iOS 10.2, but the prior update, iOS 10.1, introduced a new Portrait photography mode for the iPhone 7 Plus’ dual-lens camera system. Should new features be discovered in today’s update, we’ll update this post.
Apple has called iOS 10 its “biggest release ever” for iOS users, with a revamped lock screen, a Siri SDK for developers, an overhauled Messages app, a dedicated “Home” app for HomeKit users, new facial and object recognition capabilities in Photos, and redesigned Maps and Apple Music apps.
What’s new in iOS 10.2:
Emoji – Unicode 9 emoji are included in iOS 10.2. Some of the new emoji include clown face, drooling face, selfie, fox face, owl, shark, butterfly, avocado, pancakes, croissant, and more.
Wallpapers – There are new wallpapers in iOS 10.2, which use the same graphics that were shown off in iPhone 7 marketing materials.
Camera settings – There’s a new option for saving your last known camera settings. This will let you preserve the last Camera Mode, Photo Filter, or Live Photo setting. “Preserve Settings” is available in the Settings App under “Photos & Camera.”
Videos widget – There’s a new widget available for the Videos app, accessible on the widgets panel by swiping to the right on the Home screen of an iPhone or iPad. The Videos widget displays movies and TV shows in the Videos app, and a tap will cause content to play automatically.
Emergency contacts – There’s a new feature that will automatically notify your emergency contacts when you use the Emergency SOS feature on iPhone or Apple Watch. A popup notification shows up when you open the Health app after installing iOS 10.2.
Apple Music – There’s a new option to sort playlists in Apple Music by type, title, and recently added.
Related Roundup: iOS 10
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Apple Releases iOS 10.1.1 to Address Bugs Related to Missing Health Data
Apple today released iOS 10.1.1, the third official update to the iOS 10 operating system, one week after releasing iOS 10.1 with Portrait Mode and just over six weeks after providing the new iOS 10 operating system to the public.
Today’s update fixes bugs including an issue where Health data could not be viewed for some users. iOS 10.1.1 can be downloaded as a free over-the-air update on all iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch models compatible with iOS 10.
iOS 10 is a major update that includes features like a redesigned Lock screen experience, a revamped Messages app with a full App Store, a Siri SDK for developers, new looks and features for Maps and Apple Music, and tons more. Make sure to check out our iOS 10 roundup for details.
Related Roundup: iOS 10
Tag: iOS 10.1.1
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Apple Announces Universal TV App for ‘Unified TV Experience’
Apple announced a new universal Apple TV app called ‘TV’ at its “Hello again” event today.
The TV app is a “unified TV experience” works across Apple TV and iOS devices, and provides an easy-to-use hub for TV shows and movies that “will change how we watch television”, says Apple.
The app features category tabs across its main screen. The first, Watch Now, lists TV episodes and movies you are currently watching, as well as any you’ve queued up to watch next. It includes series you might be binging on, as well as new episodes of series you follow.
There’s also a “What to Watch” Store category with curated content lists across TV series and movies available in iTunes, while subscribing to third-party apps like Starz also feeds in channel-specific information.
Searching content is supported by Siri. The TV app will be a free software update for all devices by the end of the year.
Related Roundups: Apple TV, tvOS 10, iOS 10
Tag: October 2016 event
Buyer’s Guide: Apple TV (Caution)
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Apple Pay Now Live in Japan
Following the release of iOS 10.1 this morning, Apple has activated Apple Pay in Japan, making it available for use at all locations that accept the Suica prepaid money card, QuicPay, or iD.
Apple Pay in Japan is unique because rather than exclusively using NFC, it also supports the FeliCa payments standard that’s been widely adopted in the country. iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus models sold in Japan include a FeliCa chip, as do Apple Watch Series 2 models.
iPhone 7 and 7 Plus users in Japan can now use their iPhones to make purchases in cafes, purchase transit tickets, make purchases in apps and on websites, replace a Suica card, and more.
To use a Suica card with Apple Pay, customers in Japan will need to add their Suica card or Suica commuter card to the Wallet app. Once added, the iPhone 7 or 7 Plus can be used in place of a standard card.
Apple Pay in Japan works with credit and debit cards issued by American Express, JCB, Mastercard, Aeon Financial, Orico, Credit Saison, SoftBank, d Card, View Card, MUFG Card, and more.
An iPhone 7, 7 Plus, or Apple Watch Series 2 is required to make purchases in stores and at transportation facilities in Japan. The iPhone 6, 6s, 6 Plus, 6s Plus, and SE, along with iPad Pro models, the iPad Air 2, and the iPad mini 3 and later, can be used to make payments within apps and on the web.
Apple Pay is now available in 12 countries, including the U.S., UK, China, Australia, Canada, Switzerland, France, Hong Kong, Russia, Singapore, New Zealand, and Japan.
Related Roundups: Apple Pay, iPhone 7, iOS 10
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Apple Releases iOS 10.1 With New Portrait Mode for iPhone 7 Plus
Apple today released iOS 10.1 to the public, marking the first major update to the iOS 10 operating system that launched on September 13. In testing since September 21, iOS 10.1 saw Apple release five betas to developers and public beta testers before its public debut.
Today’s iOS 10.1 update is available as a free over-the-air update for all iOS 10 users. It is the third update to iOS 10, following iOS 10.0.3, a minor bug fix update.
iOS 10.1 introduces a new “Portrait” mode, designed to take advantage of the two cameras included in the iPhone 7 Plus, released in September. Portrait mode uses the wide-angle and telephoto lenses in the iPhone 7 Plus to create shallow depth of field portrait photos with blurred backgrounds.
To achieve the blurred look, the image signal processor in the device uses the wide-angle camera to create a depth map while the telephoto captures an image, dissecting the different layers of the photo to decide what to blur with an artful “bokeh” effect. It works on people, pets, and objects, but it does require good lighting to achieve the proper results.
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The update also offers a long list of bug fixes and other under-the-hood improvements to address many problems that have been uncovered since iOS 10 was released, and it also brings Transit directions to Japan for the first time.
There have been some tweaks to the Messages app. It’s now possible to play Bubble and Screen effects in Messages with Reduce Motion enabled, something that wasn’t previously possible. There’s also a new option to replay Bubble and Screen effects. A full list of changes is available below:
Camera and Photos
– Introduces Portrait Camera for iPhone 7 Plus that creates a depth effect that keeps your subject sharp while creating a beautifully blurred background (beta)
– People names in the Photos app are saved in iCloud backups
– Improved the display of wide color gamut photos in the grid views of the Photos app
– Fixes an issue where opening the Camera app would show a blurred or flashing screen for some users
– Fixes an issue that caused Photos to quit for some users when turning on iCloud Photo LibraryMaps
– Transit support for every major train, subway, ferry, and national bus line, as well as local bus systems for Tokyo, Osaka, and Nagoya
– Sign-based transit navigation including layouts of all underground structures and walkways that connect large transit stations
– Transit fare comparison when viewing alternative transit routesMessages
– New option to replay bubble and full screen effects
– Messages effects can play with Reduce Motion enabled
– Fixes an issue that could lead to contact names appearing incorrectly in Messages
– Addresses an issue where Messages could open to a white screen
– Addresses an issue that could prevent the report junk option from displaying with unknown senders
– Fixes an issue where videos captured and sent in the Messages app could be missing audioApple Watch
– Adds distance and average pace to workout summaries in the Activity app for outdoor wheelchair run pace and outdoor wheelchair walk pace
– Fixes issues that may have prevented Music playlists from syncing to Apple Watch
– Addresses an issue that was preventing invitations and data to appear in Activity Sharing
– Fixes an issue that was allowing Activity Sharing to update over cellular when manually disabled
– Resolves an issue that was causing some third-party apps to crash when inputting textOther improvements and fixes
– Improves Bluetooth connectivity with 3rd party accessories
– Improves AirPlay Mirroring performance when waking a device from sleep
– Fixes an issue where playback would not work for iTunes purchased content when the “Show iTunes Purchases” setting is turned off
– Fixes an issue where certain selfie apps and face filters used with the FaceTime HD camera on iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus did not display a live preview
– Fixes an issue in Health where individual strokes are converted to separate characters when using the Chinese handwriting keyboard
– Improves performance of sharing websites from Safari to Messages
– Fixes an issue in Safari that caused web previews in tab view to not display correctly
– Fixes an issue that caused certain Mail messages to be reformatted with very small text
– Fixes an issue that caused some HTML email to be formatted incorrectly
– Fixes an issue that in some cases caused the search field to disappear in Mail
– Fixes an issue that could prevent Today View Widgets from updating when launched
– Fixes an issue where Weather widget sometimes failed to load data
– Fixes an issue on iPhone 7 where Home Button click settings would not appear in search results
– Fixes an issue that prevented spam alert extensions from blocking calls
– Resolves an issue that could prevent alarm sounds from going off
– Fixes an issue where audio playback via Bluetooth would cause the Taptic engine to stop providing feedback for some users
– Resolves an issue preventing some users from restoring from iCloud Backup
iOS 10 has been described by Apple as the “biggest release ever” for iOS users, with features that include a redesigned Lock screen, a Siri SDK to allow third-party apps to integrate with Siri, and a completely overhauled Messages app with stickers, a full App Store, Digital Touch, Bubble Effects, and more.
Related Roundup: iOS 10
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China ‘Shatters’ Records and Overtakes U.S. in App Store Revenue by 15% Margin
China has “shattered” records with the highest iOS revenue quarter reported to date, for any country that has been tracked by app intelligence firm App Annie. In total, the country is now the number one largest market in the world for App Store revenue on Apple’s iPhone and iPad devices, with its record-breaking number sitting at $1.7 billion for Q3 2016.
China is now 15 percent ahead of the U.S. in terms of iOS App Store revenue, with the U.S. sitting just below $1.5 billion on the charts. The U.S. had been the number one market in iOS revenue since 2010.
App Annie’s report notes that Chinese iOS users spent five times more in applications on iPhone and iPad than they did just two years prior. Much of China’s growth is estimated to be on the back of the Games category, a section it also bested the U.S. in during Q2 2016. Much of that is attributed to the worldwide success of Pokémon Go, which is described in the report as achieving “unprecedented global revenue.”
Besides gaming, popular categories in the iOS App Store in China are Entertainment, Social Networking, Books, and Photo and Video apps. Each category has seen impressive growth from the year-ago quarter, with Entertainment apps increasing 3.5 times from its Q3 2015 revenue and all of the top categories more than tripling in revenue year over year.
App Annie predicts that iOS revenue for China will continue to grow, and the country will eventually “drive the largest absolute revenue growth for any country by 2020.” Elsewhere in Apple’s presence in China, the company recently announced plans to build a new R&D center in Shenzhen, with a focus on “strengthening relationships” with local partners and universities across the country.
Related Roundup: iOS 10
Tags: App Store, China
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One-Handed Keyboard Discovered Within iOS Simulator Code
Developer Steve Troughton-Smith has uncovered a one-handed keyboard code by hacking the iOS Simulator, also discovering that the code for the feature has “been there since at least iOS 8.” The one-handed keyboard mode works by letting users left-swipe or right-swipe from the edges of the iOS keyboard to pull the keys towards their dominant hand, making it easier to type with just one hand.
Taking up the extra space on the side of the keyboard are designated cut, copy, and paste controls, with the rest of the keyboard’s buttons gaining a smaller width to accommodate the one-handed mode. Discovered to be dormant since iOS 8, without an official beta or public launch, the feature’s original code ties into the launch of Apple’s size-bumped 4.7-inch iPhone 6 and 5.5-inch iPhone 6 Plus.
Today’s fun hack (been there since at least iOS 8); the iOS keyboard has an unused left/right one-handed mode. Activated by edge-swipe pic.twitter.com/zIk7x7CVmu
— Steve T-S (@stroughtonsmith) October 19, 2016
It appears that the company was working on ways to help users type on the new, bigger iPhones, but it remains unclear why the one-handed keyboard never made it to an official release on iOS. In lieu of the mode, Apple introduced “Reachability” for iPhone 6 Plus users, which lets them double-tap on the Home button (without impressing it) to pull down the entire screen and reach pieces of the UI otherwise out of the reach of their thumb.
Troughton-Smith noted in a few tweets that the keyboard could potentially be hacked on an actual iPhone like he did with the iOS Simulator, but the device would need to be jailbroken to do so. The developer gave some context regarding the code of such a jailbreak tweak, as well as a video of the one-handed keyboard in action.
Reachability is an answer to vertical problems when using the Plus-sized iPhones with one hand, but it leaves horizontal, one-handed typing issues unsolved in iOS keyboards. Apple could debut the one-handed keyboard in a future version of iOS, potentially next year’s iOS 11, but since the code for the feature has remained dormant for so long already, it’s impossible to tell.
Related Roundup: iOS 10
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Apple Releases iOS 10.0.3 for iPhone 7 With Cellular Connectivity Bug Fix
Apple today released the second official update to the iOS 10 operating system, nearly one month after releasing iOS 10.0.2 and a month and a half after providing the new iOS 10 operating system to the public. iOS 10.0.3 comes ahead of iOS 10.1, a more significant update that brings a Portrait mode depth-of-field effect to the iPhone 7 Plus.
iOS 10.0.3 can be downloaded as an over-the-air update on all iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus devices.
Today’s update includes a fix for a bug that could cause issues with cellular connectivity, a problem that only affected the new iPhone 7 and the iPhone 7 Plus. Shortly after the iPhone 7 was released, a number of Verizon users began experiencing a serious issue that caused them to regularly lose LTE connectivity on their new device. It was later discovered that the issue affected iPhone 7 and 7 devices associated with other carriers as well, and it should now be fixed for all users.
iOS 10 is a major update that includes features like a redesigned Lock screen experience, a revamped Messages app with a full App Store, a Siri SDK for developers, new looks and features for Maps and Apple Music, and tons more. Make sure to check out our iOS 10 roundup for details.
Related Roundup: iOS 10
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‘Limit Ad Tracking’ Popular in U.S. After iOS 10, Global Awareness ‘Stagnant’
Approximately 18 million iOS users in the United States have turned on Apple’s “Limit Ad Tracking” feature in settings, effectively preventing advertisements within apps from being targeted directly at them and their browsing habits. Based on a recent report from Adjust (via Advertising Age), that’s now 20 percent of total iOS users in the United States who have LAT turned on.
Although it’s been available for users since iOS 6 in 2012, a tweak to the feature in iOS 10 lets users completely avoid what’s referred to as an “Identifier for Advertising,” which pinpoints devices with a unique ID number to serve up targeted advertisements. With LAT turned on, users now become ghosts to IDFA requests from ad networks, making tracking the behavior of an iOS user “significantly more complicated.”
Despite Apple’s bolstering of the feature in iOS 10, Adjust’s report noted that “on a global level, there’s no evidence of an upward trend” of users becoming aware of LAT, which is somewhat hidden in the Privacy sub-menu of Settings.
“If people were more interested in reducing the number of retargeted ads, and if they were aware of the effects of the Limit Ad Tracking settings, we would expect a steadily rising trend throughout the last month as adoption of iOS 10 rises and people become aware of the changes. So far, on a global level, there’s no evidence of an upward trend – the global rates are stagnant, at around 18%.
In spite of global stagnation, Adjust mentioned that in certain places — particularly the United States — LAT is beginning to become more well-known among consumers. Specifically, following the launch of iOS 10 in September, 2 million people activated LAT for the first time in the U.S.
Among other countries, Germany follows the U.S. in total iOS users with LAT activated (19.3 percent), followed by territories including the United Kingdom (16.5 percent), and Canada (14.4 percent). Places like the Netherlands, with 22 percent, beat out the United States. Countries where privacy concerns are raised see a higher percentage of users opting out of targeted advertising, but as Adjust said, “it’s not evenly distributed across countries, and it’s additionally not evenly distributed among target audiences.”
With the growth of public knowledge surrounding such ad-blocking features, co-founder of Adjust Paul Muller noted that, “this is trending in a direction where it’s not just the tech-savvy, ad-allergic crowd any more. Marketers will face a large, distributed and worst of all ‘unknown’ segment of users, especially in places like Germany and the U.S.”
Related Roundup: iOS 10
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