iOS 12.2 inched closer to a public launch today with the release of the fifth beta of the software update to developers this morning. Coming just one week after iOS 12.2 beta 4 was released, the new beta build packs a ton of bug fixes and performance improvements for iPad and iPhone to go with some UI changes and new features Apple added in previous builds. Registered developers can download iOS 12.2 beta 5 directly from the Apple online developer portal. It can also be installed as an over-the-air update if you have the previous beta installed on your device. Apple also came out with new betas for watchOS 5.2, macOS 10.14.4 and tvOS 12.2. What’s inside iOS 12.2? Today’s beta build appears to mostly fix small bugs as Apple readies it for public release. Previous builds have brought a number of significant changes though, such as Apple News for Canada and new Animoji characters for giraffe, shark, owl and boar. There’s also a new display mirroring button in Control Center, plus tons of bug fixes and performance improvements. Support for AirPlay 2 with third-party TVs has also been added. References for Hey Siri support on new AirPods was discovered in previous betas, along with references to new iPads. Other betas added high and low heart rate notifications and irregular heart rhythm notifications as read-only category sample types. Apple made some UI tweaks to the Wallet app’s interface and changed some icons in Safari while adding some new features too. Now that we’re on the fifth beta build, a public launch could be just a few weeks away.<doc-sep>Apple has issued its fifth round of developer betas for its operating systems, providing participants in its testing program new builds of iOS 12.2, tvOS 12.2, watchOS 5.2, and macOS 10.14.4. Developers taking part in the test program can download the latest build via the Apple Developer Center, or as an over-the-air update on enrolled devices. Participants in the public Apple Beta Software Program can typically expect a similar beta update to be issued shortly after the developer version. The fifth beta of iOS 12.2 is build 16E5223a, replacing fourth build 16E5212f. Apple's fifth beta build for macOS 10.14.4, 18E215a, is up from 18E205e from the fourth beta. The newest fifth beta build of watchOS 5.2, 16T5222a, takes over from the fourth build 16T5212e. Lastly, tvOS 12.2's fifth build 16L5221a replaces 16L5212e, the fourth build. Relatively few major changes have been observed in macOS, though the betas have included changes such as the addition of Apple News in Canada and support for Safari Autofill on Macs with Touch ID. The bulk of the new additions and alterations belong to iOS. The first and second betas included four new Animoji characters, Control Center and lock screen changes, an updated Apple TV remote, changes to the Wallet App, and the addition of TV support in HomeKit. The third beta made more changes to the remote widget in Control Center, as well as more UI tweaks for News and Wallet. The fourth beta seems to have cleaned up issues that cropped up in earlier beta releases, but also has more adjustments made to the Apple News icon, more remote widget changes, and a new volume interface for the Apple TV when accessed via the AirPlay button. Both AppleInsider and Apple itself strongly recommend users don't install the betas on to "mission-critical" or primary devices, as there is the remote possibility of data loss or other issues. Instead, testers should install betas onto secondary or non-essential devices, and to make sure there are sufficient backups of important data before updating. Find any changes in the new betas? Reach out to us on Twitter at @AppleInsider or @Andrew_OSU, or send Andrew an email at [email protected].<doc-sep>Apple today seeded the fifth beta of an upcoming iOS 12.2 update to developers for testing purposes, one week after seeding the fourth beta of iOS 12.2 and more than a month after the release of iOS 12.1.4. Registered developers can download the new iOS 12.2 beta from Apple's Developer Center or over-the-air once the proper configuration profile has been installed from the Developer Center. iOS 12.2 expands Apple News to Canada for the first time, with Canadian iPhone and iPad users able to read news stories in English, French, or both. Apple says that during the beta, content will be more limited than it will be when the update is released. There are four new Animoji included the iOS 12.2 beta, including a boar, a shark, a giraffe, and an owl. Animoji can be used within the Messages and FaceTime apps. The software introduces support for AirPlay 2 and HomeKit on third-party TVs in light of recent AirPlay 2 announcements, with a new option for limiting TV access joining the speaker access option in the Home app. There's also a redesigned TV remote in Control Center, and when paired with tvOS 12.2, you can ask Siri to play specific TV shows, movies, and music on your ‌HomeKit‌ devices like the Apple TV. For some AT&T users, there's a new "5G E" icon for the cellular signal, replacing the standard LTE icon. This is a bit misleading of AT&T, because the ‌iPhone‌ does not support 5G, nor is the network AT&T calls 5G E actual 5G. Instead, it's an upgraded version of LTE, with more info available here. The Wallet app's interface has been streamlined and tweaked, there's a new interface for Apple Pay Cash, and the Downtime feature in Screen Time now allows you to customize by day. Apple has also made minor changes to some icons (including Apple News, ‌AirPlay‌, and Remote in Control Center) and has introduced new Safari features, with a full list of changes introduced throughout the beta testing period available in our iOS 12.2 tidbits post. Apple is improving Safari's privacy in iOS 12.2 through a new Motion & Orientation toggle located under Settings > Safari > Privacy >Security, which is disabled by default. The setting needs to be enabled on to allow websites to display content that relies on motion data from the accelerometer and gyroscope in the ‌iPhone‌ and ‌iPad‌. iOS 12.2 confirms that Apple is planning to release second-generation AirPods with "Hey ‌Siri‌" support, thanks to a hidden "Hey ‌Siri‌" AirPods setup screen in the beta. The inclusion of the ‌AirPods‌ setup option in the beta indicates that Apple could perhaps be planning to release new ‌AirPods‌ when iOS 12.2 is released. The update also features hints of an upcoming Apple News subscription service, which could see a Texture-like magazine service added to ‌Apple News‌. The ‌Apple News‌ subscription service is expected to be introduced at an upcoming March 25 event, and we could see iOS 12.2 released shortly afterwards. What's new in iOS 12.2 beta 5: In iOS 12.2, when setting up a new Apple Watch, Apple is using location to make sure the ECG feature is available in a particular region, suggesting the company may be planning to geofence ECG functionality and limit it to the United States. This would potentially prevent customers who purchased a U.S. Apple Watch but live in another country from using the ECG feature. Location is verified via SIM card and can't be bypassed during Apple Watch setup. 9to5Mac says there are also hints of upcoming changes to Wallet to support the integration of a new Goldman Sachs credit card and indications that work on AirPower is continuing.<doc-sep>
[Update: Fifth beta versions of iOS 12.2, watchOS 5.2, tvOS 12.2, and macOS 10.14.4 now available.] Apple is releasing iOS 12.2 beta 5 for iPhone and iPad today. The latest beta update should be released over-the-air at the top of the hour. Apple will also likely release the fifth beta versions of watchOS 5.2, tvOS 12.2, and macOS 10.14.4 today as well. We’ll update our coverage if any notable changes are discovered in the latest software updates. iOS 12.2 and the related software updates largely focus on supporting smart TVs that work with Apple’s Home app. Other changes include new Animoji characters includuing the new shark, owl, giraffe, and warthog options — plus a few more changes. iOS 12.2 beta 2 also includes changes to the AirPlay icon in Control Center plus AT&T ‘5G E’ in certain markets on certain iPhones and iPads. iOS 12.2 also introduces a variety of other changes and features as seen in the previous beta version: New Screen Mirroring icon in Control Center New full screen Apple TV Remote Control Center interface New “Speakers & TVS” in Home app settings More detailed Apple Wallet UI for Recent Transactions Updated details button in Wallet card UI Tap a transaction for more detail Card details feature bubbly inset rectangles rows Motion & Orientation Data is new Safari toggle in iOS Settings Air Quality Index reading in Maps Safari warns about websites not supporting HTTPS Fill in a search suggestion without submitting the search Apple News in Canada Keyboard color picker Inline Safari music playback Album name full song search results in Music app Battery charged bug on lock screen still present (for this build) Group FaceTime re-enabled Remote tile redesigned for HomeKit TVs and Apple TVs About screen in Settings now lists hardware model name Apple News header text changed from ‘APPLE NEWS’ to ‘News’ More detail in redesigned Wallet information screens New Apple News app icons (white backgrounds) on macOS and iOS, Stocks app corrected (follow 9to5Mac on Apple News here) Remote tile in Control Center now has a remote icon and not ‘tv’ to match expanded features Updated ‘Now Playing’ tile for video with new remote icon, volume controls 9to5Mac has also uncovered evidence of new AirPods that work with Hey Siri, Apple News Magazines, and more. We’ll update this post as software updates are released and new features are discovered. Check out our hands-on video with the first, third, and fourth iOS 12.2 developer betas below: We’ll update our coverage with any changes discovered in the latest beta version as soon as the release is out. iOS 12.2 will likely be released near the end of the month around Apple’s rumored March 25th event. Apple released the last developer and public beta versions of iOS 12.2 one week ago. What’s new? Redesigned About screen in Settings now stylizes iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max with small caps s News app icon unchanged since last beta version, but outline added in Settings app News ‘N’ icon used more heavily within app FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More. Check out 9to5Mac on YouTube for more Apple news: