Technologies

iOS 16.5 Beta 2: What Your iPhone Could Be Getting Soon

Beta testers and developers can try the latest features now.

Less than a week after Apple released an important security update with iOS 16.4.1, the company rolled out the second beta version of iOS 16.5, on Wednesday. Bug fixes, security updates and new features, like new emoji and Voice Isolation in calls, were released with iOS 16.4.

New iOS features can be fun, but we recommend downloading a beta only on something other than your primary phone, just in case the new software causes issues. Apple also provides beta testers with an app called Feedback, which they can use to notify the company about any issues in the new software. That way, problems can be addressed before general release.

Here are the new features beta testers can try now with iOS 16.5 beta 2.

Apple News gets a Sports tab

The Apple News app launched in 2015, and the first iOS 16.5 beta brought a Sports tab to the app for the first time. The tab can be found in the toolbar across the bottom of your screen when you open the app. Before, the toolbar displayed tabs for Today, News Plus, Audio, Following and Search. The iOS 16.5 beta 1 got rid of the Search tab to make room for the Sports tab.

Ask Siri to start a screen recording

With iOS 16.5 beta 1, you could ask Siri to start a screen recording for you. Prior to that beta, you had to go to add the screen recording tool to your Control Center, then turn on the tool manually. Now asking Siri could save you time, since you won’t have to edit out the beginning and end of your videos where you turn the recording on and off.

There’s no word on when iOS 16.5 will be released to the general public. There’s also no guarantee these beta features will be released with iOS 16.5, or that these will be the only features to come out with the update.

For more, check out the important security fixes in iOS 16.4.1, what you may have missed with iOS 16.4 and how to become an Apple beta tester so you can try out new iOS features before others.

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Apple’s New Smart Home Display Delayed Until Fall Over Siri Issues

It has been nearly a year and a half since the company announced the AI-powered product.

Your home could get smarter with Apple’s Siri, but it will have to wait a few more months. Bloomberg reported the iPad-shaped AI home hub won’t be ready until September, several months after the company was hoping to launch it this spring. Apple engineers first need to complete work on a new and improved Siri assistant for the home device, code-named J490, according to Bloomberg.

Apple was hoping to release J490 this month, along with a slew of other new devices, including the iPhone 17e, MacBook Neo, MacBook Air M5, new Pro models, and iPad Air M4. Apple first teased the smart home display in November 2024.

A representative for Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Siri is Apple’s virtual assistant that uses voice recognition and AI to fulfill a variety of tasks and commands, along with intriguing uses. You might use Siri to find your iPhone — «Hey Siri, where are you?» — or to hear the weather forecast — «Siri, what will the weather be today?» Siri is available on iPhones, MacBooks and iPads. It was launched in 2011 as a feature of the iPhone 4S.

As CNET reported last month, Apple engineers have struggled to push the upgraded Siri assistant out the door. It isn’t fast enough, gets confused by complex commands and doesn’t interact well with other Apple AI models. The company is also wrestling with how much personal data to access to inform the AI, and the new Siri is not yet able to complete in-app tasks, such as finding a photo and posting it to socials, all with one command.

It has been nearly two years since Apple announced that it would give Siri a major upgrade. In the meantime, competitors like Alexa Plus and Gemini for Home have entered the marketplace.

Tech tester Jon Rettinger, whose YouTube channel has 1.66 million subscribers, says the repeated delays in upgrading Siri can «erode» confidence in Apple’s ability to keep up in the AI race.

«Apple as a whole is still one of the strongest companies on the planet. But their AI play is clearly the weakest link in an otherwise very strong chain,» Rettinger told CNET.

Rettinger said he has had issues getting Siri to complete basic commands, such as setting two alarms at the same time, and that it’s a bit of «a mess» right now.

«Having said that, the iPhone has such massive market penetration that I’m not sure it will actually matter in the end. Which is kind of wild when you think about it,» Rettinger said.

Facial recognition for residents

The hardware for the forthcoming smart home display has already been finished. It resembles an iPad and can be either attached to a wall or rest on a half-domed-shaped base, the Bloomberg report said.

The device will be equipped with facial recognition, so when residents walk up to it, they will be shown personalized data such as music preferences, news headlines, appointments, reminders, tasks and so on.

The screen interface will include a bunch of circular app icons, similar to the display on an Apple Watch. The Bloomberg report said the smart home display will be the first of several home devices by Apple. Future products include a tabletop robotic limb with a 9-inch screen, a smart security camera and a Face ID-enabled smart doorbell.