iOS 10.3 Beta 3 Officially Released to Developers – Here Are 5 New and Unique Changes

Apple seeded the third beta of its upcoming iOS 10.3 to developers on Monday, just two weeks after seeding iOS.3 beta 2. In addition to the major updates that iOS 10.3 brings — including Find My AirPods, a new Apple file system, and some App Store changes — there are also some unique and easily missed features included in the third developer beta.

1. Subtle Interface Changes

This is a subtle change, but still present. In Settings, when you tap on the Touch ID & Passcode section, the passcode field has been changed from dashes to circles.

2. White Splash Screen for Native Apple Apps

In previous beta versions of iOS 10.3, Apple’s native apps — like Settings, for example — would jarringly display a black splash screen when opened. This has reportedly been changed in iOS 10.3 beta 3, returning the splash screen to white like previous versions of Apple’s operating system. This might indicate that the black splash screen was either changed due to complaints, or was an unintended glitch or bug.

3. It’s Faster

According to user testing, iOS 10.3 beta 3 seems to make the operating system faster on a variety of iPhone models. From an iPhone 5s to an iPhone 7 Plus, general usage feels snappier and switching between apps is quicker. Since these are anecdotal reports, we’re not sure how much faster iOS 10.3 beta 3 is — but any boost in speed is welcome.

4. App Compatibility in Settings

In Settings, there’s now a new App Compatibility menu that analyzes the apps on your phone, and displays the ones that might not work with future versions of iOS. Tapping on one of the apps in this section opens up the App Store, which allows users to see when the app in question was last updated. Previously, iOS 10.3 beta 2 added a “Learn More” button to the 32-bit app warning notification.

5. Additional Settings for Individual Apps

iOS 10.3 beta 3 also reportedly allows users to tweak additional settings for individual apps. These new features are accessible in the Settings app. One of the more prominent additions is the ability for users to restrict which apps can access to cellular data directly, as well as the ability to clear cache.