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Apple Releases Fourth iOS 13.4 Public Beta for iPhone Today

Mar 3, 2020 09:00 PM

Mar 10, 2020 08:02 PM

With today's release of iOS 13.4 developer beta 4, it seems Apple is closer than ever to releasing the official build for its upcoming iOS update. If you've been following the beta closely, you know that means new Memoji stickers, CarKey API support, and Mail toolbar updates, in addition to general bug fixes. Public testers can now take that extra step, as Apple just released 13.4 public beta 4 today.

Apple seeded public testers the fourth iOS 13.4 beta today, Tuesday, March 3, just after 4 p.m. EST (1 p.m. PST). As stated above, the update comes hot on the heels of dev beta 4, which itself came out at 1 p.m. EST (10 a.m. PST). Apple doesn't deviate much from these release times, unless it opts to push the public beta release one day back, in which case the release is usually 1 p.m. EST.

Update: Apple Releases iOS 13.4 Public Beta 5 for iPhone

So, with three hours of exposure to beta 4, what's new? Well, not too much, unfortunately. Apple's release notes don't provide much in the way of new information, and our testing shows that things seem pretty identical to beta 3. That isn't bad news, however, as a "boring" beta update can indicate an official release is just around the corner.

iOS & iPadOS 13.4 Beta 4 Release Notes
Overview
The iOS & iPadOS 13.4 SDK provides support to develop apps for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch devices running iOS & iPadOS 13.4. The SDK comes bundled with Xcode 11.4, available from Beta Software Downloads. For information on the compatibility requirements for Xcode 11.4, see Xcode 11.4 Beta 3 Release Notes.
General - Known Issues
To install iOS 13.4 beta 4 using the Restore Image, first install Xcode 11.4 beta 2.
Keyboard - New Features
QuickType Keyboard now supports predictive input for Arabic.
QuickType Keyboard now supports Live Conversion for Japanese and Chinese (Zhuyin).
QuickType Keyboard now supports Swiss German layout for 12.9-inch iPad layout.
Keyboard - Resolved Issues
12.9-inch iPad layouts for several languages now match the hardware keyboard layouts.
Location Services - New Features
When an app requests Always authorization for the first time after having previously been authorized for While Using the App, the device immediately presents the location authorization prompt. (57106235)
Photos - New Features
New keyboard shortcuts are available in Photos on iPadOS, which create quick navigation between tabs, search, and create albums. While in full screen mode, you can also delete, duplicate, and enter Edit mode using a keyboard. (57195967)
RealityKit - Known Issues
After updating to iOS & iPadOS 13.4, you won't be able to synchronize scenes with peers using earlier versions of RealityKit due to a fundamental change in the physics system. If two peers running a MultipeerConnectivityService have incompatible versions, they will remain connected in the underlying MCSession but won't synchronize scenes. iOS & iPadOS 13.4 adds a new NetworkCompatibilityToken class so a host can avoid inviting incompatible clients to its MCSession. Please see the NetworkCompatibilityToken documentation for additional details. (59262764)
SwiftUI - New Features
When using a NavigationView with multiple columns, the navigation bar now shows a control to toggle the columns. (49074511)
The onDrag and onDrop modifiers are now available on iOS. (49661347)

To download and install iOS 13.4 public beta 4, sign up through Apple's beta site, download and install the configuration profile, then update over the air. If you already have the profile, go to Settings –> General –> Software Update to begin the installation of the latest beta build, or you can wait until it installs automatically if "Automatic Updates" is enabled.