After several months of testing, Apple has released stable versions of iOS 15.5 and iPadOS 15.5. It was preceded by the Release Candidate build last week. This point release of iOS 15 does not contain any major new features or changes. However, minor improvements have been made under the hood.
You can download the iOS 15.5 or iPadOS 15.5 update on your iPhone/iPad by navigating to Settings > General > Software Update. Unlike developer beta updates which show up on your iPhone or iPad if the developer beta profile is installed, these should be available to everyone using devices that are compatible with iOS 15. You should get the update within the next 24 hours.
iOS 15.5 beta 1 included new “Request” and “Send” buttons for Apple Cash in the Wallet app, Wi-Fi signal bars for HomePod in the Home app, support for external payment links in Reader apps, and other minor changes. The second iOS 15.5 beta didn’t have many features to add to the list. The third beta build of iOS 15.5 included a list of “Sensitive Locations” that were blocked from Memories in the Photos app. The fourth and release candidate builds of iOS 15.5 didn’t add anything new to the list either. In these betas, most of the changes are made under the hood to polish the user experience.
Alongside the iOS 15.5 stable build, Apple also seeded the stable builds of watchOS 8.6, tvOS 15.5, HomePod Software 15.5, Studio Display Firmware 15.5, and macOS Monterey 12.4.
The latest Studio Display firmware update packs improvements for the product’s atrocious webcam quality while the accompanying macOS Monterey update also supports these changes. The macOS update also “includes a new setting to limit [Apple Podcasts] episodes stored on your Mac and automatically delete older ones.” Meanwhile, watchOS 8.6 finally brings ECG support and irregular heartbeat detection to users in Mexico.
Besides, the following improvements have been baked into this release of iOS 15.5 and iPadOS 15.5:
- Wallet now enables Apple Cash customers to send and request money from their Apple Cash card.
- Apple Podcasts includes a new setting to limit episodes stored on your iPhone and automatically delete older ones.
- Fixes an issue where home automations, triggered by people arriving or leaving, may fail.
Although there aren’t many feature improvements, we strongly suggest you upgrade to the latest version of iOS and macOS on your devices. According to a recently released support document, the company has patched over 30 security issues with iOS 15.5 while the macOS 12.4 update fixes over 50 flaws. You can check out the detailed changelog on Apple’s website.
Notice any other improvements in the iOS 15.5 build?
