Apple Releases Second Set of Developer Betas for iOS 15, watchOS 8, and More (Here’s What’s New)

It’s been a little over three weeks since Apple unveiled iOS 15 at WWDC 2021 and released the first beta to registered developers, and now the company has just pushed out the second set of developer betas for not only iOS 15, but also iPadOS 15, watchOS 8, and tvOS 15.

Although we still won’t likely see a public beta until sometime in July, this improves the odds that this iOS 15 could become more widely available in the top half of next month. Apple has traditionally released the first public beta around the same time as its third developer beta lands, which could be as soon as two weeks from now.

Meanwhile, however, the second developer beta of iOS 15 and its companions unlock several other promised features in Apple’s upcoming operating systems. While we still don’t recommend jumping in and installing any of these on your primary devices at this point, the second betas do appear to be speedier and more stable than the first ones.

SharePlay

The most significant change in this second beta is that Apple has turned the key on SharePlay, meaning that two users on the latest iOS 15 beta can now try out this feature together for the first time.

Of course, Apple announced SharePlay during its WWDC keynote, so we already know what the service entails, but it was basically missing in action in the first developer beta. Now, however, users will be able to fire up FaceTime and share their device’s screen as well as TV shows and movies from Apple’s TV app, and music from Apple Music.

More significantly, however, MacRumors notes that Apple has already opened the gates to allow SharePlay apps to be submitted to the App Store. This has a few developers already making preparations to start releasing betas of their apps through Apple’s TestFlight service.

This means that third party SharePlay compatible apps could conceivably be available by the time the first iOS 15 public beta gets here. In the very least, there should be some TestFlight versions that early adopters can try to get in on.

Apple has already promised that SharePlay support will be coming to popular apps like Disney+, Hulu, HBO Max, Paramount+, NBA, and more.

Other Notable Changes

Most of the other big iOS 15 features were already up and running in the first beta, except for those that we won’t see until at least iOS 15.1 anyway, like Digital Keys and some CarPlay features.

That said, there are a few smaller changes in the latest iOS 15 beta that are noteworthy:

1. Apple Maps now gets the new icon that was shown during the WWDC 2021 keynote, but wasn’t included in the first beta.
2. Driving directions are now animated in Apple Maps, drawing lines from your current location to your destination across all the offered routes.
3. iCloud Private Relay settings are now available.
4. “What’s New” Welcome screens are now appearing in more apps like Weather and Notes.
5. The “Lossless” option has now been removed from HomePod settings in the Home app. Since the HomePod will likely also require a software update to support Lossless Audio, this setting was likely meaningless at this point anyway.
6. New Memoji outfits and looks are now available.
7. The new Quick Notes feature on the iPad can also be triggered by swiping from the corner with your finger, rather than requiring an Apple Pencil.
8. According to 9to5Mac, it appears that users will now be able to update to an iOS 15 beta release when restoring an iPhone from a backup made from a beta version. Previously, beta users had to set up the iPhone as a new device, install the latest beta, and then reset the iPhone again to restore the backup.
   

It’s not just iOS 15 either. The second beta of watchOS 8 also adds support for the new Portraits Watch Face that Apple showed off at WWDC.