New in iOS 11 beta 4: notification swiping, revamped Touch ID UI & app icons, more

A fourth beta of iOS 11 was issued yesterday to Apple’s registered developers, bringing a ton of bug fixes along with several feature changes and subtle visual refinements.

A third public beta of iOS 11, which will contain the same features as the developer-only beta 4 build, is expected to drop later today.

We’re still a few betas away from a Golden Master candidate which precedes the stable version of iOS 11 scheduled to release for public consumption this fall.

In our hands-on video walkthrough, our video guy Andrew O’Hara details the changes in iOS 11 beta 4. Watch the video embedded below, then meet us in comments to discuss the latest beta.

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And here’s a laundry list of changes in iOS 11 beta 4:

Notifications & Lock screen

  • Lock screen notifications can be swiped right to Open
  • Lock screen notifications can be swiped left to View or Clear
  • Full swipe to the left clears the notification
  • Tapping a Lock screen notification brings up a new Touch ID interface

App switcher

  • App switcher automatically closes when all apps have been cleared
  • App switcher won’t open if there are no recent apps

Visual tweaks

  • Slightly redesigned app icons for the Contacts, Reminders, Notes and Safari apps
  • New splash screens in the Photos and Notes apps
  • Updated Timer icon in Control Center
  • Revamped Contacts icon in the Settings app
  • Thicker Wi-Fi bars in the iOS status bar
  • Cleaner icon for cellular data in the iOS status bar
  • Icons for Web, App Store and Maps search options in Spotlight
  • “Broadcasting” for Screen Recording in Control Center renamed to “Start Recording”
  • Subtle Maps design changes on iPad
  • Tweaked photo drawer in the Messages app
  • New gray bar to scroll through photos in the Messages app

Animations

  • New animation for Low Power Mode toggle in Control Center
  • New Mute animation on Control Center on iPad
  • Faster animations on Plus iPhone models
  • Screen Recording in Control Center has 3-second countdown animation

Miscellaneous

  • New Capacity section in Settings → General → About shows total amount of storage
  • Pull-to-refresh for the Updates tab on App Store
  • Airdrop settings are now under Settings → General
  • 32-bit apps (unsupported by iOS 11) are now greyed out in App Store
  • Fewer crashes and unexpected quits
  • Icons can be moved around the Home screen more easily
  • Vertically oriented key icon in Settings → Accounts & Passwords
  • Message sync settings now appear in iCloud preferences
  • Bluetooth toggle in Control Center now stops devices from connecting
  • Siri settings moved from the General section to its own section within Settings
  • New male/female Siri voices for Brazilian Portuguese, Canadian French, Dutch and Swedish
  • New female Siri voices for English and Mexican Spanish
  • Upgraded Siri voice for both genders of Japanese and Chinese
  • “On my iPhone/iPad” location has been removed from the Files app
  • Updated settings in the Camera app on iPad
  • New Arabic keyboard for the Najdi dialect

What’s your favorite new feature or enhancements in iOS 11 beta 4?

Don’t be shy, tell us in comments!

iOS 11 will release this fall for the supported iPhone, iPad and iPod touch models.