Apple wasted no time, releasing the first beta version of iOS 16.2 and iPadOS 16.2 to developers, just days after the public launch of iOS 16.1 And the iPad OS 16.1.
Look at the official release notes (Opens in a new tab)We see that the beta version will finally allow people to get their hands on the Freeform app for iPad, which was first revealed in June 2022 during the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC). It is a digital board that allows users to collaborate on projects along with other people. Stage Manager is seeing the return of external display support but only for the iPad M1 and M2 as Apple continues to figure out what to do with its desktop management app.
What’s coming to iOS 16.2 is still technically unknown, but people online are dropping the beans. One addition is A new accidental report notification for an emergency SOS feature detected by a Twitter user (Opens in a new tab), which may come in handy when someone accidentally activates the Emergency Support Tool. If you turn on Emergency SOS, your iPhone will ask if you did it on purpose. It looks like Apple is trying to collect some data about the gadget for a possible update.
iPadOS 16.2 Changes
When it comes to Freeform, it’s not known how much the app is fully fleshed out, but Consider online reports (Opens in a new tab)It seems very close to completion. All features shown in Initial June Announcement (Opens in a new tab) It appears to be there, including the ability to add sticky notes for layout, Apple Pencil support, and various drawing tools. But it’s not ready for release, as there are still some loopholes that need to be ironed out.
Apple states that it has found that Freeform panels cannot be deleted if the device is offline and sometimes iCloud data is randomly disabled for the app. It’s a fix for this, but in the meantime, the company recommends as a temporary solution to go into the iPad settings and add the iCloud permission for Freeform.
Stage Manager can now display up to eight different applications on an external screen thanks to the previously mentioned display support. This feature has had a hard time since its launch on iPadOS 16 I got stuck due to bugs and somewhat confusing UI (Opens in a new tab). While addressing the issues, Apple added another one to the list. The release notes mention an issue in Stage Manager where “dragging a second window into the workspace” hides the recent apps list, dumping everything on the far right of the screen.
Coming to iOS 16
iOS 16.2 will see the “architecture” of the Home app revamped to deliver better performance for smart home devices, according to reports.
SwiftUI for devices with ProMotion displays (such as the iPhone 14 line) will be modified to support a 120Hz refresh rate on “animated layout changes.” ds in the code, Discover 9to5Mac a new version of Live Activities (Opens in a new tab) which will “provide more frequent updates”, but is not active at the moment.
We’ve reached out to Apple to inquire about the beta, i.e. the Home app, and asked if the Home app’s performance boost is in any way related to the Material standard launched in early October. We also asked when version 16.2 will be available to the public. At the moment, the beta version is part of Apple Developer Program (Opens in a new tab) Which you must register in if you want access. This story will be updated if we hear back.
If you’re interested in learning more about Apple’s latest offering, be sure to check out Our guide to the 5 features worth checking out on iPadOS 16.1.