iOS 16/macOS 13 4th Beta: Summary Of The Many Changes

The testing period for iOS 16 and macOS 13 Ventura has entered its fourth phase. Apple allowed quite a significant amount of time to pass – a pause of three weeks is rather unusual between beta versions. However, there are indeed some visible changes this go-around – after both previous betas offered up only a few minor adaptations. There's likely to be another test release in two weeks before Apple switches to the quick pre-release cycle. Once that happens, Cupertino has fully implemented all of the new operating systems' main features and is concentrated solely on bug fixes.

Live Activities – App Widgets Via Lock Screen
One of the new features announced at the WWDC is now available for developers to begin tampering with. The so-called "Live Activities" feature enables apps to display live-data on the device's lock screen. This information could, for example, include the delivery status of a package or an order. The new ActivityKit framework enables this feature by providing for communication between the relevant app and created widget. Despite the feature's recent appearance in the beta, it won't be released in September as previously expected, per current information. Instead, Apple has delayed the function's release until a later update.







"Undo Send" – iMessagess & E-Mails
In terms of functions, Apple has been pretty slow to adapt its Messages app. In the past, the majority of "new" features have simply included features very often present in other messenger apps for years. This is the same in the case of the new "Undo Send" function. For the first time in iOS history, iOS 16 will enable users to undo unintentionally sent messages. In the most recent beta, Apple added more to the feature – sinking the previous time limit for "undoing" a sent message from 15 minutes to 2 minutes. Additionally, there's a limit of 5 editing operations – each of which is documented for the receiver.

Scan For Naked Photos In Some European Countries
Although only for testers initially, come this fall parents will be able to set up their children's iPhones to automatically check incoming messages for content inappropriate for the youth. Should such a case occur, the content is heavily censored and only viewable when a further step is initiated – which will then notify the parents of the inappropriate content on their child's device.



Countless Other Updates
Over the last three weeks, Apple has also made countless other changes across the system. The following have been documented thus far:

• "Desk View" for usage of the iPhone as a webcam now has new settings and a tutorial
• New background photos for the Home app
• More exact settings for notifications on the lock screen
• New interface for adaptation of the lock screen
• The music widget on the lock screen has been enlarged
• Addition of widgets simplifies
• Health app now documents memory requirements for each measurement category