Two weeks later, Apple pushed the iOS 18 developer beta 2 update to iPhone users, adding several new features. What content has been optimized and what new features have been added? Let's continue reading:
iOS 18 beta 2: New features and changes
iPhone Mirroring
The iPhone Mirroring that Apple demoed at WWDC 2024 is now available in iOS 18 beta 2 and needs to be paired with Macs running macOS Sequoia beta 2. Just click the new iPhone Mirroring icon on your Mac and follow the instructions to enable iPhone Mirroring, which allows you to operate your iPhone on your Mac while your iPhone is locked.
The first time you use the iPhone Mirroring, you need to enter the password on your iPhone to authorize it, and then you can connect and use it. The connection speed and smoothness are great.
After testing, the current version of iPhone Mirroring supports cross-screen pasting and sending files, but you need to use the mouse, and keyboard shortcuts can not operate. Meanwhile, when the iPhone is locked, the Mac can also receive notifications from the iPhone apps.
The iOS 18 beta 2 version of iPhone Mirroring is obviously not perfect, including typing lag, no support for keyboard shortcuts, and can not resize the interface, cross-screen pasting or transfer files is not convenient enough. We look forward to optimization in subsequent versions.
Home Screen
Apple introduced the feature of customizing icon colors for users to adjust icon colors in light and dark modes in the previous iOS 18 beta 1 version. However, when switching to dark mode, you may find that some built-in app icons, such as the APP Store, do not change color as expected.
Now the good news is that in the latest iOS 18 beta 2 version, Apple has solved the problem of icon colors not following in dark mode, making the overall visual effect more unified. But it should be noted that this optimization is currently only applicable to built-in applications, and the color changes of third-party application icons still need to wait for third-party apps to update.
SharePlay
iOS 18 beta 2 also adds the SharePlay screen sharing. This feature is based on FaceTime and allows users to share screen content during FaceTime calls. Whether it is watching movies, presenting a powerpoint presentation or teaching remotely, SharePlay can make communication more efficient and intuitive.
Besides, SharePlay provides more interesting ways of interaction. You can draw on other's screen, guide the other to operate, or even request remote control of the other party's iPhone and iPad for the convenience of remote operation and interaction.
Wallet Widget
In iOS 18 beta 2, Apple also brings users a new Wallet widget. Users can add frequently used payment cards, coupons, etc. to the Wallet widget for easy viewing and use at any time.
Music Haptics
The new "Music Haptics" accessibility feature has been launched, allowing the iPhone to vibrate to the beat of the music, but it's currently only supported by Apple Music.
- Go to Settings > Accessibility to turn on Music Haptics.
- When you start playing music, the music hapticswill automatically synchronized with the music.
- Once enabled, you can quickly start or stop Music Hapticsin the Control Center.
- You can also temporarily mute or unmute Music Hapticsin the playback control during the song playing.
Phone App
After upgrading to iOS 18 beta 2, when you launch the Phone app for the first time, you will see a pop-up window showing the permissions required for the Phone, with a new permission for voice call recording added at the bottom. However, call recording is still not available in beta 2, which may still be in the preparation stage.
Control Center
iOS 18 beta 2 continues to optimize and tweak the Control Center. In Beta 1, a new power button icon was added to the top right corner of Control Center, which can be tapped to shutdown your iPhone. But in Beta 2, Apple tweaked the usage logic from tapping to long pressing to avoid users from accidentally touching it.
RCS Toggle
The RCS messaging protocol has an option button in the settings for Messages, and as a converged communication, it can help iPhone users better communicate with Android users, and provide rich media message support such as pictures, text, audio, video, and files. However, RCS is currently limited to the United States and is not yet officially available.
Siri
The new version of Siri for iOS 18 is still not available, but in the Siri answer settings, there are three new ways for Siri to respond when connected to car Bluetooth (broadcast, media source, and phone speaker).
Passwords App
When you open Passwords app and enter the homepage, there is a "+" symbol at the bottom, you can create a new password record by clicking on it, which is more convenient than the previous version, where you had to click "All" to create a new password record.
Overall, there are not many changes in iOS 18 beta 2. Important changes, such as Siri, may have to wait a while longer for the beta. Users who are currently using the iOS 18 beta can either update directly, or wait for the public beta in July or the official version in September before considering upgrading.
