The Cupertino tech giant recently released iOS 17.3 Beta 1 to developers and beta testers. The latest developer beta update was rolled out a day after the release of iOS 17.2 to the public.
Apple also released the first developer beta of iPadOS 17.3, watchOS 10.3, macOS 14.3, tvOS 17.3, and HomePodOS 17.3, along with macOS 13.6.4 Beta 1 and macOS 12.7.3 Beta 1 for older devices and VisionOS 1.0 Beta 7.
Here are the new features discovered in the latest developer beta so far. We will continue to update this post as additional changes are found.
iOS 17.3 Beta 1: New features, bugs and performance
Tech Specs:
- Size: 6.39 GB
- Build number: iOS 17.3 (21D5026f)
- Modem Firmware: 1.40. 00
Stolen Device Protection
An important security feature is introduced in the iOS 17.3 beta called ‘Stolen Device Protection‘. Working as an additional layer of protection against loss or theft, the feature requires users to enable Face ID or Touch ID to prevent unauthorized access to their saved passwords, erase the iPhone to reset their Apple ID or passcode, online payment credentials, and more.
When enabled, the Stolen Device Protection feature makes it difficult to access users’ personal and confidential information with just the iPhone’s passcode.
Apple Music Collaborative Playlist
Apple has reintroduced the Collaborative Playlist in the iOS 17.3 beta. The feature lets users choose any Apple Music subscriber in their contacts to create and edit a personalized playlist. Collaborative Playlist was part of iOS 17.2 from beta 1 till beta 3, but removed in beta 4 and the final version.
Journal app settings
In the Settings app, there are new settings for the Jounral app to access FaceID, Media & Apple Music, Notifications, Camera, and Cellular Data. Previously, the app only had Siri & Search, FaceID, Background App Refresh options in the access section.
Resolved and unresolved bugs in iOS 17.3 Beta 1
According to the beta update’s release notes, Apple did not list any new known issues and listed the resolved StoreKit issue:
Resolved an issue where APIs which provide Transaction values would unexpectedly fail when the purchase price of the transaction is a very large number. (118883880)
Performance and Battery life in iOS 17.3 Beta 1
It has been a day since the release of iOS 17.3 beta 1 and so far, any battery drain and performance issue has not been reported with switching and launching apps, scrolling behavior, and lag. Its initial Geekbench scores are:
- 2927 single-core
- 7026 multi-core
Should you download iOS 17.3 Beta 1?
If you are a registered Apple Developer program member and are running iOS 17.2, it is not recommended that you install iOS 17.3 beta 1 because final versions are more stable than developer beta versions.
The free public beta version of the update is also available.
Expected release date of iOS 17.3 to public
Apple is expected to roll out iOS 17.3 to everyone by Jan 10, 2024.
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