PSA: Resist the urge to install iOS 13, iPadOS betas for now

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iPadOS gets a new home screen design.
They’re just not ready for everyone.
Photo: Apple

Apple just dropped its first public beta builds of iOS 13 and iPadOS, making it easy for anyone to try them out months ahead of their official launch. But you should really resist the urge to install them right now.

Don’t assume these betas are ready for everyone just because they’re available to the public now. If you upgrade your primary iPhone and iPad early, you’re almost certainly going to run into frustrating problems.

I’ve suffered all kinds of issues since upgrading — and I’m not the only one.

We know it’s hard to fight the temptation of updating your iOS devices early. iOS 13 and iPadOS are packed full of big improvements and new features that none of us can wait to get our hands on.

But if you want your first taste of those changes to be a good experience, you should wait.

iOS 13 and iPadOS aren’t ready for everyone

Apple previewed iOS 13 and iPadOS just three weeks ago, so the betas available right now are incredibly early builds. They need to go through a lot of polish before they’re ready to replace iOS 12.

Apple’s focus this early on is to implement the biggest changes and improvements. It needs to get everything out of the door so that iOS developers can get their hands on it and start building.

Almost all of the new features previewed at WWDC are present in these releases, then. But ironing out the kinks that so many major changes have caused hasn’t happened yet.

Prepare for problems

That means iOS 13 and iPadOS are incredibly unstable in their current form. They’ll crash. They’ll stutter. They won’t play nicely with your apps. And they come with all kinds of annoying issues you can’t fix yourself.

I’ve been running iPadOS on my 2018 iPad Pro since the first developer beta rolled out after WWDC. I upgraded partly because my job is to write about the changes it brings — but also because, like most people, I couldn’t wait.

I’m starting to regret that decision now. Battery life on my iPad isn’t as good as it should be. I experience constant restarts if I do too much too fast. Shortcuts are broken. And so many of my apps aren’t working properly.

I’ve suffered similar problems since installing the iOS 13 public beta on my iPhone XS on Monday.

I’m not the only one

I’m not just unlucky. These problems are common right now, and almost everyone who has upgraded early is experiencing them. You only have to search for “iOS 13” or “iPadOS” on Twitter for proof of that.

https://twitter.com/LYH_BL/status/1143333440323854336

Other users have reported problems using AirPods, broken Camera and Photos apps, autocorrect issues, and terrible battery life.

You don’t have to wait until September

I’m certainly not complaining about the problems in iOS 13 and iPadOS. I’ve been testing Apple’s betas for long enough to know that they’re not going to be stable this early, and I prepared myself for that before updating.

What I am trying to do is highlight just how unstable they are as things stand. I’m hoping to dissuade you from upgrading your primary devices too early and enduring a horrible experience.

I’m not saying you should wait until September to upgrade, either. With every beta release, Apple will roll out bug fixes and performance improvements that will make iOS 13 and iPadOS more stable. But they need more time to bake.

If you have spare devices lying around, then by all means update those and try out what’s new. But if you have only one iPhone and one iPad — and you rely on them every day — wait for future, more stable betas.

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