The hangover from Apple’s ‘Let Loose’ event has brought us good and long-awaited news regarding the launch of the following iPhone, iPad and other device updates. In the case of those two, they will be iOS 17.5 and iPadOS 17.5, which were in beta from the beginning of April until this week when the ‘RC’ was released.
These are the acronym for Release Candidate, a reference to the fact that they are already the latest betas and strong candidates to be the same versions that are released to the public next week. Just because, It will be for sure next week when they are released because in addition the new iPad Air 6 and iPad Pro 2024 will already come with iPadOS 17.5 as standard.
What’s new in iOS 17.5 and iPadOS 17.5
This is far from being the biggest update to iOS 17. Even less so after a revolutionary iOS 17.4 for Europe and being on the verge of Apple presenting iOS 18 at WWDC 2024 on June 10. However, there are many new functions that this version provides and the most notable are these:
- Tracking alerts for locators that are not just AirTags. That is, if you carry a Samsung, Tile or other brand locator, Apple’s ‘Search’ network will be able to detect it and send you a notice to prevent you from being tracked maliciously.
- No disabling ‘Search’ when we repair the iPhonesomething that was usually requested even in authorized Apple centers and that will now not be necessary because a special repair mode can be activated that is different from deactivating it completely.
- New ‘Pride 2024’ wallpaperalready something traditional every year on the occasion of LGTBIQ+ Pride and which is once again paired with a new dial and strap that will arrive on the Apple Watch with watchOS 10.5.
- iPad Battery Healthsomething that was already seen in the code and that is still present, although it indicates that it will be an exclusive function of the new iPad Air and Pro that will be launched next week.
- New Apple Podcast widget that goes from a purple background according to the application logo to an adaptation to the color of the podcast itself that appears in playback.
- Ability to block all FaceTime participantsbeing a function aimed at avoiding spam that, in some countries, occurs through mass video calls on FaceTime.
- Downloads of apps via the web in the European Union, something that was announced a while ago that would be available soon and will be via the web. Until now, alternative stores can exist in the App Store and even via the web, as is the case with the AltStore, but not individual apps.
- New minigame in Apple News, the Californian company’s well-known news reading application that is only available in Australia, Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom. There, users who pay for the News+ subscription will find a kind of word game with which, through single syllables, they will be able to form words and earn points.
How to download the iOS 17.5 RC now and when it will arrive stably
If you already have a developer profile or are in the public beta tester program, the way to update is the same as always. You just have to go to ‘Settings’, enter ‘General’ and then ‘Software Updates’. In that panel you must make sure that you have the betas activated and then you will see iOS 17.5 ready for download.
Otherwise, you will still have to wait a few days. The new iPads, which we remember come with iPadOS 17.5 as standard, arrive on Wednesday the 15th. Therefore, it is expected that the updates will be released to the rest of the public on Tuesday the 14th at the latest.