Beta

Apple seeds OS X 10.10.5 beta 2 to developers

Cody Lee ∙ July 30, 2015

Apple on Thursday seeded the second beta of OS X Yosemite 10.10.5 to developers. The software, labeled build 14F19a, is available to all registered Mac developers in the Updates section of the Mac App Store, or as a standalone download from Apple's dev portal.

Beta 2 of 10.10.5 comes two weeks after the first developer beta, and just a month after 10.10.4 was released to the public. It also comes on the same day as beta 2 of iOS 8.4.1, suggesting that Apple is looking to shore up its two OSes before their major fall updates.

Apple releases iOS 8.4.1 beta 2 to developers

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated June 7, 2024

A little over two weeks after the iOS 8.4.1 beta debuted, Apple has seeded the second iOS 8.4.1 beta to developers.

The previous iOS 8.4.1 beta contained no release notes, but many speculated that the update would contain the usual bug fixes, and perhaps even a fix for the exploits used in the iOS 8.4 jailbreak.

We'll be sure to update you if there are any findings with regard to what the release contains. At this point, it's still up in the air, but the minor release version indicates that it likely contains no new front-facing features.

Apple releases OS X El Capitan Public Beta 3

Cody Lee ∙ July 29, 2015

Apple on Wednesday seeded the third public beta of OS X El Capitan to testers. The release comes just two days after beta 5 of El Capitan was pushed out to developers and three weeks after the first public beta.

The new build is available to registered public testers who are already on beta 2 via the Updates section of the Mac App Store, or through the beta web portal as a standalone download. You can enroll in the program by clicking here.

Apple seeds OS X El Capitan beta 5 to developers

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 18, 2018

Apple on Monday released the fifth OS X El Capitan beta to developers. The new build is available to registered developers via the Updates section of the Mac App Store or through Apple’s Developer Center.

Today’s update comes less than a week after Apple pushed out the fourth beta of OS X El Capitan, and nearly two months after its initial release in early June during Apple’s World Wide Developer Conference.

New beta tweak helps clean up Cydia package descriptions

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated May 7, 2018

Well-known developer Majd Alfhaily just released a new beta tweak on his personal repo called Cyte. The tweak aims to clean up the descriptions for packages present in Cydia to make them look more consistent and appealing.

In my opinion, this is one of the biggest tweak opportunities present since Cydia opened up to Cydia Substrate extensions. A more consistent and cleaner looking Cydia when it comes to package depictions, would go a long way towards improving the experience.

Apple seeds public beta 2 of OS X El Capitan

Cody Lee ∙ July 22, 2015

In addition to iOS 9, Apple on Wednesday seeded the second public beta of OS X El Capitan to testers. The release comes just a day after beta 4 of El Capitan was pushed out to developers and two weeks after the first public beta.

The new build is available to registered public testers who are already on beta 1 via the Updates section of the Mac App Store, or through the beta web portal as a standalone download. You can enroll in the program by clicking here.

Apple releases iOS 9 beta 2 to the public

Cody Lee ∙ July 22, 2015

Apple on Wednesday released the second public beta of iOS 9 to testers. The seed comes just 24 hours after beta 4 of iOS 9 was pushed to developers, and roughly two weeks after Apple dropped the first public beta.

Beta 2 is available to anyone in Apple's public testing program, either via the web portal or as an over-the-air update for folks already on beta 1. If you're looking for help updating to iOS 9, we have a great tutorial here.

How to update the iOS 9 public beta to iOS 9 beta 4

Jeff Benjamin ∙ July 22, 2015

It's possible to update to the latest developer version of the iOS 9 beta directly from the iOS 9 public beta. If you want the latest and greatest updates offered by iOS 9 beta 4, but you're currently running the public beta, listen up—it's super-easy to upgrade to the latest developer version of the iOS 9 beta.

Apple stops users from leaving app reviews from iOS betas

Jeff Benjamin ∙ July 21, 2015

I think this can definitely warrant a finally. Apple has disabled the ability for users to leave app reviews in the App Store while running iOS betas.

The change seems to be retroactive, as I tested it from both the just-released iOS 9 beta 4 and the previous beta 3, and both throw up errors that the review feature isn't available while running a prerelease version of iOS.

Hands-on with iOS 9 beta 4

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated June 22, 2018

I've been playing with iOS 9 beta 4 on my iPod touch, iPhone and iPad for the last few hours, and I'd like to share my thoughts on the beta release.

First and foremost, this is the first beta firmware to work on the iPod touch 6th generation, and as expected, it runs like a champ. The iOS 9 beta on the old iPod touch 5th generation was barely usable due to the device's lack of power, but this new iPod touch handles things with no issues.

Another big feature is the return of Home Sharing. As promised by Apple executive Eddy Cue, Home Sharing is now back where it belongs in the Music section of the Settings app.

I've created a video walkthrough to showcase many of the new features found in iOS 9 beta 4. Have a look and let me know what you think about this latest beta release.

watchOS 2 beta 4 for Apple Watch seeded to developers, here’s your changelog

Christian Zibreg ∙ July 21, 2015

In addition to releasing iOS 9 beta 4 and OS X 10.11 El Capitan beta 4 to its developer army, a matching beta of the upcoming Apple Watch software update is now available to registered members of the Apple Developer Program.

The new watchOS 2 beta 4 (build 13S5305d) requires an iPhone running iOS 9 beta 4 and can be applied over-the-air by going to the General -> Software Update section of the Apple Watch companion app.

Apple seeds fourth OS X El Capitan beta to developers

Cody Lee ∙ July 21, 2015

Apple on Tuesday released the fourth OS X El Capitan beta to developers. The new build is available to registered developers via the Updates section of the Mac App Store or through Apple’s Developer Center.

Today’s update comes roughly two weeks after Apple pushed out the third beta of OS X El Capitan, and more than a month after its initial release in early June during Apple’s World Wide Developer Conference.