With Apple releasing iOS 27 beta and more to developers yesterday, everyone has been going hands on with the new beta.
YouTube channel Zollotech has once again provided a deep dive of iOS 27 beta 1, bringing a massive suite of updates that go well beyond what was initially highlighted during the WWDC keynote. While the update focuses heavily on stability, speed, and reliability, it also introduces significant new features and design refinements across the entire operating system.
Here’s a summary of some of the changes that Apple didn’t talk about at its WWDC keynote:
Visual and Design Updates
- Adjustable Liquid Glass allows users to customize the intensity of the effect in the settings.
- System icons, including Maps, App Store, and Freeform, have been updated for better depth and contrast.
- A new “clear” icon option provides better contrast and shadow effects.
- A new paintbrush icon in the upper-left corner of the home screen allows for easier access to customization settings.
- App menu bars, such as those in Music and Podcasts, have been consolidated and standardized across the OS for a more consistent experience.
- A subtle design change has been made to the battery icon.
- New extra-large widget options are now available for Weather, Smart Stacks, Calendar, Home, Music, News, Notes, Photos, Reminders, Shortcuts, Stocks, and TV.
- iPadOS now specifically includes new undo and redo buttons for icon management.
- Apple has expanded landscape view support for apps like Music, Podcasts, and Health.
Siri and Intelligence Features
- Siri has been redesigned to integrate with the Dynamic Island, replacing “Type to Siri” with a pull-down interaction.
- The camera app now features a built-in Siri option that allows users to ask questions about the objects they are looking at.
- Siri can now assist in creating custom shortcuts using natural language requests.
- The new Image Playground app allows for the generation of higher-resolution images, contact posters, and custom wallpapers.
- Apple Intelligence now provides automated proofreading, smart replies, intelligent file suggestions, on-screen awareness, and new insights for workouts.
System and Connectivity Improvements
- Users can now independently adjust the volume for alarms, timers, alerts, and system sounds.
- Connectivity Assist allows the iPhone to use cellular data in tandem with Wi-Fi for more reliable connections.
- The system now displays the specific Wi-Fi generation in settings.
- The Passwords app now features an automatic “Get Started” tool to help users identify and fix security-vulnerable passwords.
- The AirPod settings menu has been reorganized, and there is a new dedicated section for beta updates.
- Music’s “automix” feature has been refined for smoother song transitions.
- There is an anticipated option to add cellular plans to other devices to use the same eSIM/SIM simultaneously.
App-Specific Updates
- Photos now includes improved “Cleanup” and “Reframe” tools, along with new sort options.
- Safari can now automatically organize tabs into topics and includes a new “notify me” feature for website changes.
- Messages features a new “Drawing” tool and improved status indicators for sent messages.
- The Journal app now includes dynamic writing prompts and supports richer entries with edge-to-edge photos.
- The Weather app has been redesigned with new precipitation and wind highlights.
- Health now tracks perimenopause and menopause and supports landscape mode.
- Home supports 4K camera streams and smarter notification condensing for multiple security cameras.
- Find My has a new interface and offers flexible location sharing for custom durations.
- The App Store purchase dialogue has been visually updated.
- Wallet users can now create passes for tickets or memberships using visual intelligence or manual entry.
Accessibility and Safety
- VoiceOver and Magnifier have been updated with better on-screen recognition and natural language understanding.
- Subtitles can now be applied system-wide, including to home videos.
- Touch Accommodations allow users to customize screen response patterns.
- Sony Access controller support is now included, and new APIs allow for sign language interpretation within FaceTime calls.
- New parental controls provide simplified content management and scheduling.
What’s your favourite new feature coming in iOS 27?
The iOS 27 beta 1 build is currently available for developers on all devices supported by iOS 26. Apple recommends that users wait for the public beta release in July.
