iOS 16 first public beta may not arrive until sometime in July alongside dev beta 3

We know that Apple is going to announce the next major version of its mobile operating system, iOS, on day one of this year’s Worldwide Developers Conference on June 6, 2022. Before that, though, the rumor mill isn’t quite done giving us some hints of the things that might take place in the near future. Like when the first public beta seed of iOS 16 may arrive.

This iOS 16 concept depicts multiple iPhone device screenshots in portrait and landscape orientation showcasing imagined features
Image credit: apple lab / Behance

While nothing is official just yet, a recent tweet from Mark Gurman suggests folks may need to wait a bit longer than usual before they will be able to get to try the first public beta of Apple’s next major software update for iOS. When things are going smoothly, the first public beta of iOS’s next major update typically arrives alongside the second developer beta. But that may not the case this time around.

Gurman says that “current internal seeds are a bit buggy,” but also notes that things “could shift” as the situation remains “fluid.” If this lines up, though, the public beta may be running a bit behind. That doesn’t necessarily mean we’ll see a delay to the software update itself, though.

Here’s the tweet:

Giving Apple engineers more time to make preparations just makes sense. There’s no reason to rush anything, even iOS 16. Of course, it’s a beta and the software will be a little rough around the edges by default, especially with beta one. But with so many people potentially downloading the prerelease software, ironing out the kinks is the right move.

But, we’ll have to wait and see how this pans out. Either way, we know we’ll be getting a look at iOS 16 in the very near future. And developers (and intrepid individuals who aren’t developers) will get to try out the next big update in early June.

What are you hoping to see in iOS 16?