There’s bad news for Apple Watch Series 4 users: the third beta of watchOS 5.1 is out and it still lacks an ECG application. The hardware to take an electrocardiogram is built into Apple’s latest wearable but the software is still MIA.
There’s also a new beta of tvOS 12.1 today, along with iOS 12.1 beta 3. The latest macOS 10.14.1 pre-release version came out yesterday.
Wither the Apple Watch ECG?
The ability to record the electrical activity of the wearer’s heart was a big deal when Apple Watch Series 4 was unveiled, but then Apple had to confess that the feature isn’t ready. The best the company has been able to say is the Apple Watch ECG will be available before the end of this year.
And at this point there’s no evidence that it will be in watchOS 5.1. There have been three betas released and there’s no sign of the necessary software.
Instead, the major change in the beta versions is support for Group FaceTime, a feature that was supposed to launch last month.
No beta for you
watchOS 5.1 beta 3 is available only to those who have enrolled in the Apple Developer Program and paid their $99 annual fee.
Apple Watch isn’t part of the public beta program, so pre-release versions are never released to anyone but developers.
