It’s a massive day for Apple’s early adopters, with the company releasing the first public betas for this year’s iPhone, iPad Apple TV, and Mac operating system updates.
As well as the iOS 14 public beta release, Apple is also opening up in-development versions of iPadOS 14, tvOS 14, macOS Big Sur – all of which can be downloaded right now.
The watchOS 7 public beta for Apple Watch is coming soon, with Apple not quite ready to give the public their first look at the wrist-based operating system. We’re not sure what the hold-up is.
In order to download any of today’s releases you’ll need to register your Apple ID at the Apple Beta Software Program website and then select iOS, iPadOS, macOS, tvOS or (soon) watchOS from the list.
Related: iPadOS 14 features
From here you’ll need to enrol your device into the program and download a software profile on to the device before installing the beta version. From that point you’ll get access to all of the public beta updates between now and the expected release date in September/October.
It should be pointed out that these are beta versions of the software and far from the finished article. Apple advises that they are installed on secondary devices, rather then your go-to iPad, Mac, Apple TV or Apple Watch device. Regardless, the company advises everyone to back up fully via iTunes before updating the device in question.
There’s a massive array of new features on offer this year, across the portfolio of devices. For example, iPadOS 14 delivering some exclusive features like compact UIs for Siri, Search, and calls, new handwriting features with Apple Pencil, and a new tabbed interface for stock apps like Photos, Calendar and Apple Music.
Have you downloaded and installed any of today’s beta releases yet? Or are you waiting until the consumer versions? Share your initial thoughts with us @trustedreviews on Twitter.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.