You can try iOS 14 and iPadOS 14 early, but don’t worry about the bugs

Apple will release major new software updates in the fall for iPhones and iPads, and now you can download preview versions of them for a test drive. New from Apple iOS 14 And the public beta versions of iPadOS 14 can be installed for free on any recent device, but be aware there are bugs.

Apple introduced its new software in June at its World Developers Conference, or WWDC, which was held entirely online this year due to the coronavirus pandemic. Even though Apple employees were forced to work remotely to prevent the virus from spreading, the company said they have prepared new features requested by users and available on competing phones with Google’s Android software. Those features include adding small widget programs on the home screen, the ability to change the default email and web browser and picture-in-picture video apps for iPhone while using other apps.

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“We are making it even more powerful and easier to use,” said Apple’s chief software officer Craig Federighi in announcing the new software. “This year, we spent time rethinking some of the most iconic elements of the iPhone experience.”

read more: How to download and install iOS 14 and iPadOS 14 public beta now

While the new features are fun to tryThese public beta versions are not for daily use. The company frequently reminds people who download software that may contain errors, may suddenly stop working, and may lose their data. Apple advises adventurous people who still want to use it to install beta software on a device that is not “business critical”.

Apple’s public versions for iOS 14 and iPadOS 14 aren’t the only software the company plans to make available before its fall releases. Apple also plans to offer its first public beta versions of the new WatchOS software for its Apple watches and MacOS Big Sur for your desktop and laptop computers later this month. The software can be downloaded from Apple’s dedicated beta website, and will run on iPhone 6S (2015) and higher, iPad Air 2 (2014), and Apple Watch Series 3 (2017) and higher.

Here are all the major changes for iOS and iPadOS so far.

iOS 14

Apple’s iOS 14 for its iPhone and iPod Touch (yes, they still exist) focused on adding features that people have been asking the company to add for years, as well as improvements to make it easier to use. In addition to widgets, the ability to change default apps, and picture-in-picture, Apple also added cycling and EV routing instructions to Apple Maps, and a live translation app that helps people speak 11 languages. The iPhone will also soon be usable as the car key for new vehicles, starting with this year’s BMW 5 series.

The company also made its existing applications easier to use. Your Siri voice assistant, for example, no longer fills the entire screen when you make a request. The company made it easy to navigate their Messages, offering people the option to “pin” the chats at the top of the app to find them more easily. And in group chats, Apple now lets people create threaded responses, just like other popular business chat apps like Slack and Microsoft teams.

Apple also said it wants to help small businesses create and market applications for their customers, with a new feature called App Clips. This new code allows companies to print an image similar to a QR code that people can scan with their phones, displaying a small interactive part of the company’s application on their phone. Apple also worked with Yelp to allow companies to create specialized applications for their businesses without much coding work. The feature is similar to Google’s existing Android “snapshots”.

The company will also include new privacy features, including a warning at the top of the screen every time an app is using the microphone or camera, and a list of apps that recently did.

But perhaps the most popular feature is how phone calls work. Now when someone calls an iPhone running iOS 14, the call will no longer fill the entire screen, taking you out of a game or a fun read. Instead, phone calls will be displayed as a notification at the top of the screen, which people can ignore.

iPadOS 14

Many of Apple’s iOS refinements are also coming to the iPad, including the improved mapping app, message changes, and less annoying calls.

However, Apple did announce some iPad-specific features, including new “scribble” technology that recognizes handwriting of notes taken with the Apple Pencil on the screen. People will now be able to cut, copy, and paste the text of their handwriting as written text in other applications.

The iPad’s search bar will also receive an update, making it less annoying and more similar to its cousin MacOS, which searches for apps, the web, and internal documents.

WatchOS 7 and MacOS Big Sur

Public versions of Apple for the newest software for Apple Watch and Mac won’t arrive until the end of this month, but when they do they will also include some new features.

WatchOS 7for example includes the ability to track dance workoutsWhich Apple said requires special programs that understand how the wrist device changes position during different types of movements. Apple Watch also includes a new sleep tracking feature, which uses its sensors in a different way to track how deeply or restlessly you sleep at night.

People can also share clock faces They have made each other, opening the door for companies to also offer specialized watches.

The company also included a new feature to help combat the coronavirus pandemic, helping people wash their hands with an on-screen countdown and wrist taps to help remind people of how long they should be scrubbing.

MacOS Big SurIn the meantime, you’re getting a lot of iOS 14-like features, including revamped maps, the translation app, and refined messaging features. The company is also making devices running MacOS more like iPhones and iPads, down to a similar appearance for the setup feature.

Apple plans to launch its new software in the fall, along with a new, expected iPhone with a different look and a 5G wireless network. Apple also said it will begin offering new computers powered by the chips it designed, one step away from manufacturing the giant Intel, whose microprocessors have powered Macs since 2006.

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