iOS 17.2 Beta 1 has been released; Know what’s coming - Journal app, iMessage sticker reaction, more

iOS 17.2 Beta 1 has been released for developers and it debuts the much awaited Journal app. Alongside sticker reactions on iMessage and Translate Action are also seen. Check everything that’s new.

Know what’s new with the iOS 17.2 Beta 1. (AP)

Apple sure knows how to keep people hooked. Just hours after the global release of the iOS 17.1 update, it released the iOS 17.2 Beta 1 update for developers, teasing the world with cool features that will soon come to their iPhones. While iOS 17.1 update did not add any new standalone features, iOS 17.2 is going to be a lot different. Just in the first beta, Apple has added a wide range of new features including the highly anticipated Journal app. Alongside, Apple has also introduced sticker reactions on iMessage and a new Translate feature for the Action Button, and a lot more. Let us take a closer look.

iOS 17.2 Beta 1 is here

It should be noted that the iOS 17.2 Beta 1 is a developer's build and it is not out for public beta testers yet. It is expected to be released to them in a week or so. The iOS 17.2 update should be available to the public by the end of November or early December.

Journal app: Apple announced it during its WWDC (Worldwide Developers Conference) 2023, as a new app, similar to Evernote, where users can write journal entries, make notes, and use it in a bunch of other ways. To make a journal entry, just tap the "+" button in the Journal app. After that, you can either pick a suggested topic to kickstart your writing or go with "New Entry" to jot down whatever's on your mind. These entries can have photos, voice recordings as well and location tags. Entries get tagged with a date automatically to help you stay organized, but you also have the option to bookmark them.

Sticker reaction in iMessage: Another cool feature to make a debut in the iOS 17.2 Beta 1 developer build is sticker reactions. It comes as an alternative to tapback reactions, and now alongside emojis, you can also pick stickers to be added to the side of the message. Using it is pretty simple. Just long-press a message bubble and the option should pop up. Yes, you could already do this by dragging an emoji or a sticker in a conversation, however, this allows for sending much faster reactions.

Translate on Action Button: Those who own the iPhone 15 Pro and ‌iPhone 15 Pro‌ Max can now select a new Translate feature for the Action Button. Setting the Action Button to Translate will enable you to press and hold the button to trigger a Translate window on your iPhone. This window is designed to capture spoken text and can seamlessly translate it between languages you've configured in the Translate app.

Apple Music upgrades: Apple Music gets further upgrades. First, you now have playlists where multiple people can add songs to. It's called a collaborative playlist and you can find the option for this inside the playlist within the three-dotted menu. It generates a link to the playlist, and anyone with that link can add songs to the playlist. Additionally, you can also invite people through QR code, and retain more control by accepting who gets the right to add songs.

Next is the Favorite Playlist where all the songs that you have favorited will show up. You can find this in the library section. Finally, there's an option to turn off listening history so that when you let someone else play songs through your iPhone, it won't affect your recommendations.

iMessage Contact Key Verification: iMessage Contact Key Verification was first previewed in December 2022 as a feature designed for those who face "extraordinary digital threats," such as journalists, human rights activists, and government officials. Such users can enable Contact Verification Code to verify they're speaking to the right person during in-person meetings and FaceTime calls.

Messages in iCloud: In your Settings app in iCloud, the "Messages" section has been renamed to "Messages in ‌iCloud‌." When you go in there, you can see how much space your messages are using up, how many messages are in sync with ‌iCloud‌, and the time of the last sync. And if you're in a hurry to get things updated, there's a nifty "Sync Now" option to give things a little push.

Apple TV: In the Apple TV app on your ‌iPhone‌ and iPad, separate tabs for Movies and TV shows in the Store section are not there anymore. It appears to be due to a major redesign of the app.

Local awareness in Emergency Alerts: This feature is not applicable in India yet, but users can now turn on Local Awareness in Emergency Alerts under the Notifications menu in the Settings app. It will use your location data to give you timely and more accurate alerts.

Weather widget: Apple has also introduced new weather widgets. You will now see widgets for daily forecasts as well as for sunrise and sunset. Other than that there is a Detail widget that shows precipitation chance, UV index, wind speed, and air quality information.

Digital Clock widget: A new digital clock widget for Home Screen and Lock Screen has also been added.

Contact Poster: A rainbow-colored text has been added to Contact Poster for your name.

Book page turning animation: Fast fade animation for book page turning has been added to the Books app.

Additional upgrades and improvements have been added to AirPlay, Memoji, and News app.