iPhone users can now install iOS 15.7, which fixes almost a dozen security problems. Apple recommends the update to all users. That said, the update launched at the same time as iOS 16 – but there are good reason for the simultaneous updates.
Plus, macOS Monterey 12.6 is out with its own set of security-related bug fixes. And iPadOS 15.7 deals with the same sort of problems.
iOS 16 launches on September 12, but Apple nevertheless seeded the release candidate for iOS 15.7 on Wednesday. This is – obviously – likely to be the last significant update to the version first introduced in 2021.
Apple also seeded release candidates for macOS Monterey 12.6 and iPadOS 15.7, but their replacements aren’t expected for weeks.
iPhone users can update to iOS 15.6.1 starting Wednesday, and the same is true for Mac users and macOS Monterey 12.5.1. These are simply security patches with no new features, but still important.
iPadOS 15.6.1 is also out to take care of the same issues. Plus there’s watchOS 8.7.1 with security fixes.
Beta testing on iOS 15.6 and macOS Monterey 12.5 is over, and these updates are now available for anyone to install. They bring a number of small tweaks to iPhone and Mac.
Don’t confuse these with iOS 16 and macOS Ventura, which are major upgrades coming this fall.
Apple also released the full versions of iPadOS 15.6, watchOS 8.7 and tvOS 15.6 on Wednesday.
Remember iOS 15.6 and macOS Monterey 12.5? While these have been overshadowed by iOS 16 and macOS Ventura, Apple hasn’t forgotten about them. They are nearing the end of beta testing, with release candidates going out to developers on Tuesday.
That means iOS 15.6 and macOS Monterey 12.5 are likely to debut July 19 or before. They’ll be joined by iPadOS 15.6, watchOS 8.7 and tvOS 15.6.
Apple released software upgrades for all its computers Monday. After finishing weeks of beta testing, macOS Monterey 12.4, iOS 15.5, iPadOS 15.5, watchOS 8.6 and tvOS 15.5 are available for anyone to download.
Many of them include an update to the Podcasts application to keep it from taking up too much storage space. And the webcam in the recently released Apple Studio Display will work better after a firmware update.
Apple gave both developers and the public access to the release candidates of macOS Monterey 12.4 and iOS 15.5 on Thursday. The iPadOS 15.5 Release Candidate also went out, as did the watchOS 8.6 RC and tvOS 15.5 RC. That’s the final step before introducing them to the public.
Aside from long-overdue improvements to the Studio Display webcam in macOS, all these are really just minor tweaks. But that’s not surprising considering Apple is expected to unveil the next major upgrades for the OSs at WWDC22 in early June.
Apple built a fix for the webcam quality issues on its new Studio Display into macOS 12.4, which is in beta testing. This will fulfill Apple’s promise to improve the look of video conferencing done with the camera.
Early tests with the pre-release software show definite improvements.
After a three-week hiatus, Apple seeded to developers beta versions of all its operating systems on Tuesday. That includes macOS Monterey 12.4, iOS 15.5 and more. On Wednesday, the public was also given the option to test these.
These pre-release versions for iPhone, Mac, iPad, Apple Watch, etc. first came out on the same day Apple announced the date for its WWDC Developers Conference. Beta testing for the five just-released OS versions is expected to end around the same time as the conference.
It’s now been three weeks since any Apple operating system was in public beta testing. It seems work has stopped on significant updates to iOS 15, macOS Monterey and the other OSs.
And that’s a good thing. Here’s why.
