Many iPhone users are still coming to grips with the recent release of iOS 27, but that doesn’t mean Apple is taking a break. It’s just released iOS 27.2 beta, which comes with a bunch more changes and upgrades for beta testers to try out.
Some of you may be wondering what happened to the iOS 27.1 beta, and that’s a fair question. Apparently, Apple skipped that bit of software, and it is speculated that the iPhone Duo is the reason. The foldable apparently comes with iOS 27.1 out of the box, complete with all the extra software needed to run a foldable phone. Whether other devices will receive iOS 27.1, or whether they will jump directly to iOS 27.2, is not clear.
In the meantime, here are all the latest features and changes coming as part of the iOS 27.2 beta release.
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Renovated health app
Back during its September iPhone launch event, Apple confirmed that it would be revamping the Health app — and iOS 27.2 beta is our first chance to see it in action. This new version of the app is laid out with three tabs: Insight, Longevity and Browse.
Insights includes general health information, such as vitals, sleep score, heart rate and your activity rings. Longevity takes this information and applies it over time, providing a Health Age Score calculated from various health metrics – including VO2 Max, sleep time and activity levels. Browsing is the same as it always has been, offering health-based resources to help you with your fitness, or general healthy living goals.
Call context
iOS 27.2 beta will now bring up relevant information during phone calls, specifically alerting you about birthdays or anniversaries. The caveat is that you must enter this information into the Contacts app first. You also have to call these people to get the recall, which means you have to actively call them for a completely different reason.
It might be worth making sure your calendar reminders are set up correctly instead. But this could be the start of even more contextual information and calls, some of which might not be so hard to forget.
CarPlay Ultra
Apple’s advanced version of CarPlay is not as widespread, but if you have a compatible car, the iOS 27.2 beta lets you choose new options for the wallpaper, the gauge style and the overall color of your interfaces. Code references also suggest that ambient light may be supported in select vehicles, fitting the overall theme.
Apple TV
The Apple TV app now includes extended profiles in iOS 27.2 beta, which allows users to create specific profiles for different users. All they need is a name, profile rating and whether the user is a child. Child accounts are limited to PG-rated content by default, but in line with Apple’s new parental controls, these settings can be adjusted based on your preferences.
Sign language interpretation is also available and can be turned on in the Apple TV app settings.
Siri
Siri AI is also now available in French, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese and Spanish, so these speakers can use AI without having to revert to English. Meanwhile, the Siri app has renamed “App Access” to “Excluded Apps,” and when you tap it, you can exclude multiple apps from Siri features at once—rather than one at a time.
Other iOS 27.2 beta upgrades
The Clock app now has AM and PM readings that are slightly smaller than the actual time of your alarms. The Music app has also removed some of the red accents, with shuffle and play buttons in the library now appearing in black. Podcasts also replaced the “Up Next” feature for a “New Episodes” option, and added a “Continue Playing” option.
Apple’s release notes also include an expanded app tracking transparency prompt for EU users, specifically those in France, Germany, Poland, Italy, and Romania. This must be re-accepted every year.
Hidden functions for the future
Deep dives into the iOS 27.2 beta code also revealed some details about possible future features that Apple is working on but not yet ready to roll out. The first is a new release countdown timer coming to Apple Music, showing you how long you have to wait before the next big album is available to listen to.
It was also discovered that the Shortcuts app could be opened up to third-party developers, allowing you to create your own shortcuts for apps and services not made by Apple. Plus, references to an “AutoLock” feature have been revealed, suggesting that Apple is indeed working on a feature to automatically detect when an iPhone has been cracked, and lock the phone in response.
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