New Betas of iOS 16.1, iPadOS 16.1, macOS Ventura Released for Testing
Apple has released new beta versions of their primary system software to users participating in the beta testing programs.
iOS 16.1 beta 5 for iPhone, iPadOS 16.1 beta 6 for iPad, and macOS Ventura beta 11 for Mac are now available to eligible users for testing purposes.
iOS 16.1 Beta 5 & iPadOS 16.1 Beta 6
iPhone and iPad users who are active in the beta testing programs can find the downloads for iOS 16.1 beta 5 and iPadOS 16.1 beta 6 from Settings app > General > Software Update.
iOS 16.1 betas for iPhone include some small changes and new features, including support for the battery percentage indicator on additional iPhone models, support for Live Activities on the lock screen, and presumably continued work on various iOS 16 bugs and issues that impact some users.
iPadOS 16.1 betas expand support for Stage Manager multitasking interface to additional iPad Pro models from the 2018 and 2020 model years. iPadOS 16.1 otherwise is mostly like iOS 16 for iPhone, minus the ability to customize the iPad lock screen.
MacOS Ventura Beta 11
Mac users in the beta programs can find the download for macOS Ventura beta 11 via Apple menu > System Settings > Software Update.
MacOS Ventura includes a handful of new changes and features, including the Stage Manager multitasking interface, the ability to use an iPhone as a webcam with Continuity Camera, Handoff support for FaceTime calls, email scheduling and unsending capabilities, Messages editing and unsending functionality, Safari Tab Groups feature, the addition of the Weather app, the inclusion of the Clock app, a puzzling redesigned and renamed System Preferences now called System Settings which looks like it was pasted over from an iPhone, and many other smaller features and changes.
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Apple goes through several beta versions of system software before issuing final versions to the general public, making it reasonable to speculate the final versions of these system software versions will be released later in the month. A recent report from Bloomberg indicated that Apple may be releasing iPadOS 16.1 to the public later in October.
The most recent stable builds of system software are iOS 16.0.3 for iPhone, iPadOS 15.7 for iPad, and macOS Monterey 12.6 for Mac.
