Apple releases fourth beta of iOS 7 to developers with tweaked lock screen
Apple on Monday supplied its developers with the fourth pre-release beta of iOS 7 for testing, as it prepares to launch the software to the public this fall.
iOS 7 beta 4 arrives three weeks after the previously beta seeded to registered developers. It is now available for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch.
According to Apple, the latest beta of iOS 7 includes bug fixes and improvements. The company has again warned that it should only be installed on devices dedicated to iOS 7 beta software development.
People familiar with the beta said the lock screen has been tweaked to add an arrow pointing right, located to the left of the "slide to unlock" text. The quick launch and notification center graphics at the bottom and top of the screen, respectively, have also been changed to straight lines rather than arrows, though they revert to arrows once the menus have been invoked.
iOS 7 beta 4 also reportedly fixes issues with syncing calendars through iCloud, and addressed an issue where high-resolution images for a contact may not sync. Font line heights are also said to have changed from previous builds.
A handful of known issues remain with the pre-release software, including a glitch that prevents voice memos from being restored via iCloud backup. Developers are advised to sync voice memos off of a device before restoring from iCloud.
Apple had previously been releasing new iOS 7 betas every two weeks, but that schedule may have been thrown off by a hack that forced the company to take down its developer portal. The Dev Center returned last Friday after 8 days of being offline.
A new rumor from Boy Genius Report on Monday claims that Apple is planning to release two more betas of iOS 7 to developers. After releasing six betas, it's expected that the company will issue the golden master, or intended final build, of iOS 7.0 at some point in September.
iOS 7 beta 4 arrives three weeks after the previously beta seeded to registered developers. It is now available for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch.
According to Apple, the latest beta of iOS 7 includes bug fixes and improvements. The company has again warned that it should only be installed on devices dedicated to iOS 7 beta software development.
People familiar with the beta said the lock screen has been tweaked to add an arrow pointing right, located to the left of the "slide to unlock" text. The quick launch and notification center graphics at the bottom and top of the screen, respectively, have also been changed to straight lines rather than arrows, though they revert to arrows once the menus have been invoked.
iOS 7 beta 4 also reportedly fixes issues with syncing calendars through iCloud, and addressed an issue where high-resolution images for a contact may not sync. Font line heights are also said to have changed from previous builds.
A handful of known issues remain with the pre-release software, including a glitch that prevents voice memos from being restored via iCloud backup. Developers are advised to sync voice memos off of a device before restoring from iCloud.
Apple had previously been releasing new iOS 7 betas every two weeks, but that schedule may have been thrown off by a hack that forced the company to take down its developer portal. The Dev Center returned last Friday after 8 days of being offline.
A new rumor from Boy Genius Report on Monday claims that Apple is planning to release two more betas of iOS 7 to developers. After releasing six betas, it's expected that the company will issue the golden master, or intended final build, of iOS 7.0 at some point in September.
Comments
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dick Applebaum
Downloading now for iP5 iP4S iPad4 iPad3 iPad2
Let us know other important information too, like what you had for dinner last night and how the weather is.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dick Applebaum
Downloading now for iP5 iP4S iPad4 iPad3 iPad2
Is every single one of your iDevices disposable? Do you not actively use a single one of those for anything important? I don't get downloading beta software on every single device you own.
No Major changes noticed.
Is every single one of your iDevices disposable? Do you not actively use a single one of those for anything important? I don't get downloading beta software on every single device you own.
Uhh.. he's probably a developer...Now with 40% more unicorn!
Glad to see the tweaks on homescreen. Definitely should make things less confusing.
Also strange to see that upper pull down icon overlapping the WiFi icon.
But make those lines at top/bottom be something else, like "grab strips" (2 or 3 parallel lines) or else people won't know what the heck they are--in which case they may as well be removed! (Which could be just fine.)
Also they should move the top one down out of the way of the status bar. The overlap that sometimes happens is ugly and not useful.
For what it's worth, which is nothing, I've used that same David Aja Hawkeye cover as a wallpaper on my iPhone and iPad.
You can download and update separately!
The iPad 4 and iP5 are my current "production" iDevices -- others are older "test" devices.
I normally install first, on an older "test" device -- check it out and, if OK, install on the "production" devices.
However, both OSX Mavericks and iOS 7 have proven to be very reliable software -- minor glitches, but no show-stoppers.
Everyone in our household (2 adults and 3 teenagers) has an iP4 or newer and an iPad 2 or newer -- so there are other iOS 6 devices available.
This may seem excessive, but as an AAPL investor since 2003, the stock appreciation from $17 before 2:1 split paid for some of the Apple Toys. Now the dividends do the job.
Not sure I'd call the lock screen changes an 'improvement'.
Screenshots of UI tweaks are being updated here: (9to5mac)
http://************/2013/07/29/ios-7-beta-4-seeded-to-developers/
All positive changes IMO, but really this should have been the baseline from the beginning. And i guess hope is dwingling that any icon is going to be redesigned. Honestly if they get rid of the million notches on the safari icon that would be a start. I feel like I'm going blind everytime I look at it. Those 1px lines do nothing but make you want to squint. Other icons suffer from the same issue.
So far no problems with anything I've tried -- no app crashes or hangs in areas that had problems in prior release. Haven't tried the New Xcode yet, though!
Dinner last night: pork medallions in a red wine reduction, mushrooms and potatoes. Fresh nectarine-blueberry cobbler ala-mode.
is there solve this problem??
Quote:
Originally Posted by Slurpy
Glad to see the tweaks on homescreen. Definitely should make things less confusing.
Yup the Lock Screen looks good to me.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Brendan L
Not sure I'd call the lock screen changes an 'improvement'.
It definitely looks less confusing, so that would make it an improvement in usability at least.
Quote:
Originally Posted by jetlaw
Voice Memos app seems to have gone missing once again.
I see the Voice Memo app, its there on beta 4.
How 'bout this from the wayback machine?