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The second beta of iOS 17.1 is now available for developers, and it comes with a handful of new features and improvements.
It is a part of Apple’s continuous effort to test new features it is planning to introduce in iOS 17-compatible iPhones. In the first beta for developers and public testers, it delivered the flashlight icon indicator to all Dynamic Island-capable iPhones. It also activated the ability of AirDrop to allow data transfer over the internet.
Now, Apple is back with more features and improvements in iOS 17.1 Beta 2:
- Apple introduced a modem update in this release, which should translate to better overall connectivity of the units.
- You now have more display options for StandBy mode. In Settings > StandBy > Display, you get three options for how the display turns off: Automatically, After 20 Seconds, and Never. Choosing the first option will allow the display to automatically turn off when the unit is not in use, and the room is dark. For the last option, you can use your iPhone as an actual smart home display all night without the display turning off. Note, however, that the Never option is only available on iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro models.
- In Settings > Sounds & Haptics > Ringtones, you’ll notice that Apple has brought back the new ringtones it removed in the previous beta test. You can also now use custom tones.
- The Journal app is still not included in this release. Apple promised to bring it later this year.
- Charging Optimization is still unavailable to earlier phone models and is still limited to iPhone 15 models. On a positive note, the 80% Limit option issue in the iPhone 15 models seems to be working now. Users reported that the charging process exceeded the 80% limit in the previous test, even when the option was enabled. This is no longer the case in this release.
- The Reachability of the iPhone removes the wallpaper at the back. With this, you’ll see a black background when accessing the feature. The feature lowers the top half of the screen so it’s within easy reach of your thumb.
Have you noticed other improvements and features we’ve missed to cover in this article? Let us know in the comment section!
