Today, Apple released the latest iOS 16.5 Beta 3 developer preview update in the early morning. The internal version number is 20F5050f. This update is 14 days apart from the previous Beta 2 test version released on April 12.
What's new in iOS 16.5 Beta 3?
In the previous two beta versions of iOS 16.5, Apple mainly brought changes to the new system version, including the ability to control screen recording through Siri, the introduction of the Sports tag in Apple News, optimization of Home, bug fixes, and performance improvements.
In the latest iOS 16.5 Beta 3, it seems that no new features have been introduced. The update log provided by Apple is the same as the previous version. The software update page shows that the installation package required for OTA update from the previous Beta 2 version is generally less than 600 MB. If it is a cross-version upgrade, the complete system installation package needs to be downloaded, which is generally around 5GB in size, with some variations depending on the device model.
From the upgrade experience, there are no visible new contents in iOS 16.5 Beta 3. It is expected that bug fixes and performance improvements are the main focus of this update, which can be considered as a minor version update.
However, based on some feedback from users, there are some subtle changes in iOS 16.5 beta 3. For example, after upgrading the iPhone to iOS 16.5 beta 3, there is no longer a need for a watchOS profile to update the Apple Watch system. Users can directly update their Apple Watch devices to the latest watchOS 9 beta 3 test version system on their iPhones.
In addition, some users who previously experienced significant deterioration in battery life on iOS 16.4 and iOS 16.4.1 have found relief after upgrading to iOS 16.5 beta 3. For users who like to try new things, it is also worth considering upgrading to experience it.
Overall, there are not many changes in iOS 16.5 Beta 3, most likely because Apple's development team has already shifted its focus to the iOS 17 system. The iOS 16 development branch is also coming to an end, so there are unlikely to be any new features.
Apple's WWDC 2023 developer conference will be held from June 5th to 9th at Apple Park headquarters. The new iOS 17 operating system will be officially released at this conference, and iPhone users will be able to experience it by installing the profile.
The latest news shows that Apple seems to have quietly hidden a new feature in the previous iOS 16.2 system.
As early as December last year, it was reported that due to pressure from the European Union, Apple plans to allow sideloading on iOS, which means allowing the installation of third-party apps through methods other than the official App Store.
However, according to the latest news from Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, although Apple plans to implement this feature in iOS 17, it will only be available in EU countries/regions. Apple will easily and accurately determine whether a device is used in EU countries/regions through the new "countryd" system to determine whether sideloading is allowed. Currently, the new system "countryd" has been quietly added to iOS 16.2, but it has not been actively used yet.
In addition, if other countries/regions also require Apple to allow sideloading, a simple update to the system can enable this feature in other regions.
How to upgrade to iOS 16.5 Beta 3?
Starting from the previous Beta 2 version, some iPhone users have reported that the Beta profile is no longer valid and only allows users with developer accounts to upgrade. In the latest iOS 16.5 Beta 3, some users still reported that they had previously installed the iOS 16 beta profile but could not detect the iOS 16.5 Beta 3 update.
However, based on the experience of Zhima Sister, the profile is still valid without a developer account, and you can still detect the Beta 3 update in "Settings" -> "General" -> "Software Update" on the iPhone. Just click "Download and Install" according to the prompts to complete the upgrade, as shown in the picture.
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