iOS 15.3 is now available for beta testers
Apple started seeding the release candidate (RC) for the iOS 15.3 system update. So far, only beta testers are receiving the over-the-air (OTA) update on their iPhones, but since it is already marked as RC, the main public release should be just a few days away. The new version is also available for iPadOS devices, and in both cases only includes bug fixes and security updates.
TL;DR
- iOS 15.3 release candidate is available for the beta testers.
- The version's release notes don't mention new features.
- The public release should happen in a week.
With no signs of features like Universal Control or digital IDs in the Wallet app for some US states - both announced in the previous WWDC event - the release notes, or lack thereof, are pretty short this time, especially when compared to iOS 15.2. Apple also seeded new development builds for its other operating systems, iPadOS, watchOS, tvOS, and macOS.
According to the system notification, the update includes the usual "bug fixes and security updates".
iOS 14 stops being updated
On a related note, 9to5Mac published that Apple stopped offering security updates for devices running iOS/iPadOS 14. Phones and tablets on the older version could be set to delay the iOS 15 update and keep receiving fixes, like the 14.8.1 patch released back in October.
Now, users running iOS 14.8 are only offered the current stable version - 15.2 at the time of writing. But since iOS 15 supports all the devices that ran iOS 14, in the end, the decision only really affects users with apps that for one reason or another are incompatible with the new version or cannot upgrade to iOS 15.
Do you think that strategy was taken due to the lower adoption rate for iOS 15? Did you expect new features from the 15.3 release? Share your views in the comments below!
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