Apple Starts iOS 17 Public Beta

Apple has now released the first public beta versions for iOS 17 and iPadOS 17 – the new operating system is now being tested by anyone interested. This was preceded by several releases for developers.

At the WWDC in early June, Apple announced that it would start the public beta program for iOS in a timely manner, as in previous years – we were talking about July. Today the time has come, the first public beta version is available now. This means that end users can now download the iOS beta and try out the first new functions.

The build is based on the developer preview we previously reported on. The new version is now also available for registered users as an over-the-air update.

How you can join the beta program

Participation in the beta program is free and requires a one-time registration into the program at beta.apple.com from the applicable device. Then you can find all the updates in the Settings app on your iPhone.

Incidentally, this applies to all beta versions that Apple is testing, i.e. iPhone, iPad, Watch, Mac, and TV. To do this, users must enter their Apple ID and then receive the update automatically via the update function. New versions are then automatically downloaded to the device.

Testing Beta

With the first preliminary versions that Apple is now releasing as part of the public test program for iOS 17, which will be officially launched in autumn, there is of course always a risk that the version will cause chaos on the user system. If you want to be on the safe side, you should hold off until the next public beta is available and wait and see which errors and problems appear in the first few days after publication.

Testing the beta is always at your own risk and should not run on the “production system”.

Availability and Launch

The finished iOS 17 will be released in autumn – but it could be that not all the functions announced at WWDC will be included. It will be a free update for all supported iPhones, i.e. iPhone SE/XS and XR onwards. Some features require newer devices. An overview can be found on Apple’s preview page.