Apple pushed out the Release Candidate for iOS 14.6 on Monday, May 17. The 18F71 build includes new features and bug fixes, including an option to unlock your iPhone with Voice Control. It comes just hours after Apple announced Spacial Audio and Lossless Audio playback for Apple Music, new features that will require iOS 14.6 to run.
Apple's new Voice Control unlock feature adds the ability to unlock your iPhone after a restart or after powering it down and turning it back on. It was possible before to use Voice Control to unlock your iPhone using your passcode when the passcode screen would show, such as when using Siri from the lock screen, after temporarily disabling Face ID or Touch ID, etc. But when the iPhone restarted, Voice Control would be disabled until you unlocked the device with your passcode manually. Now, you can use your voice for that too.
You can also still use Voice Control to unlock your iPhone at any time using custom voice commands, which may make things easier than saying your passcode out loud, one digit at a time.
Also, baked into tvOS 14.6 RC's code is a reference to an upcoming pair of "Beats Studio Buds". While not technically in the iOS 14.6 RC, this reference is exciting news for anyone looking for a more modern, stemless pair of Beats earbuds.
Apple released this new update just past 10 a.m. PDT, the company's standard release time for developers updates. Shortly after, the company released the public RC for public beta testers. Check out the bottom of this article for instructions on downloading each version of the RC.
What's New with 14.6 RC?
Apple Card Family
- Apple Card can be shared with up to five people, including anyone 13 years or older in your Family Sharing group
- Apple Card Family adds support for families to track expenses, manage spending with optional limits and controls, and build credit together
Podcasts
- Subscription support for channels and individual shows
AirTag and Find My
- Lost mode option to add an email address instead of a phone number for AirTag and Find My network accessories
- AirTag will show the partially masked phone number of the owner when tapped with an NFC-capable device
Accessibility
- Voice Control users can unlock their iPhone for the first time after a restart using only their voice
This release also fixes the following issues:
- Unlock with Apple Watch may not work after using Lock iPhone on Apple Watch
- Reminders may appear as blank lines
- Call blocking extensions may not appear in Settings
- Bluetooth devices could sometimes disconnect or send audio to a different device during an active call
- iPhone may experience reduced performance during startup
For information on the security content of Apple software updates, please visit this website: support.apple.com/kb/HT201222
Developer Notes
When it comes to developers, Apple issued the following report:
iOS & iPadOS 14.6 RC Release Notes
Overview
- The iOS & iPadOS 14.6 SDK provides support to develop apps for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch devices running iOS & iPadOS 14.6. The SDK comes bundled with Xcode 12.5, available from the Mac App Store. For information on the compatibility requirements for Xcode 12.5, see Xcode 12.5 Release Notes.
General: Resolved Issues
- Fixed an issue during startup where iPhone may experience reduced performance. (77540788)
SKAdNetwork: New Features
- Devices can now send install-validation postbacks to multiple ad networks that sign their ads using SKAdNetwork version 3.0. One ad network receives a postback with a did-win parameter value of true for the ad impression that wins the ad attribution. Up to five other ad networks receive a postback with a did-win value of false if their ad impressions qualified for, but didn't win, the attribution. (72917087)
Software Update: New Features
- You can now directly update your iOS or iPadOS device to the latest Release Candidate without removing the beta profile. After updating to the Release Candidate, you can choose to update to the next available beta or uninstall the profile to remove your device from the beta program. (66256273)
Xcode: Deprecations
- Don't use the iOS MinimumOSVersion information property list key to declare the minimum release of macOS in which your app runs. Use LSMinimumSystemVersion instead. (73890473)
- Future releases of macOS ignore the MinimumOSVersion key in Mac apps, including apps built with Mac Catalyst.
- Future releases of macOS use the LSMinimumSystemVersion key in iOS apps built with Xcode 12.5 or later. If an iOS app doesn't include an LSMinimumSystemVersion key, future releases of macOS compare the app's MinimumOSVersion with the version of its Mac Catalyst runtime to determine compatibility.
How to Install iOS 14.6 Developer RC
You'll need an Apple developer account to update your iPhone. You can get the restore image from your dev portal, then install it with iTunes or Finder. Otherwise, install the configuration profile, then update by going to Settings –> General –> Software Update. Finally, you can simply wait for it to auto-install if you have a dev profile and "Automatic Updates" is enabled.
How to Install iOS 14.6 Public RC
To update your iPhone to iOS 14.6 Public RC, 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, then tap "iOS 14.6" under "Also Available" to begin the installation of the latest beta build, or you can wait until it installs automatically if "Automatic Updates" is enabled.
Cover image by Karl Conrad/YouTube
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