Everything new in iOS 15.5 for iPhone

Posted:
in General Discussion
With iOS 15.5 officially released, we walk you through all of the changes found in this new update for iPhone including improvements to Wallet, Home, and Podcasts.

iOS 15.5
iOS 15.5


After the typical rolling waves of betas, Apple has released iOS 15.5 to the masses. Often referred to as "point" updates, they can contain minor new features and help solidify the user experience.

Significant changes will come this summer with the announcement of iOS 16, but until then, here is what Apple has refined.



New changes in iOS 15.5

Despite the near announcement of iOS 16, Apple still isn't done with iOS 15. Some notable changes include the expansion of Communication Safety in Messages to the UK, New Zealand, Canada, and Australia plus the patching of dozens of security vulnerabilities.

Some apps seem to have gotten more love than others. Home, Wallet, and Podcasts got the largest number of enhancements.

Home app

For HomeKit users, Apple tweaked a couple of things in the Home app. Now, the Home app will prompt users for critical alert permissions.

HomePod Wi-Fi signal
HomePod Wi-Fi signal


Critical alerts are notifications that will sound, even when your phone is in do not disturb mode or on vibrate. They'll be used for urgent events, such as a smoke detector getting triggered. Without critical alerts, you may miss these notifications.

HomePods will now also show their signal strength in the Home app. When you go into a HomePod's settings, tapping the Wi-Fi network will show how strong the Wi-Fi signal is.

Wallet

Apple has now updated all references to the physical Apple Card within the Wallet app to be the titanium Apple Card. The iTunes Pass appears to have been updated as well, now being referred to the Apple Account Balance.

Send and receive Apple Cash
Send and receive Apple Cash


Users can request or send money directly from the Apple Cash Card in Wallet, rather than first navigating to Messages. In Messages though, Apple has renamed the Apple Pay Messages app to the Apple Cash Messages app.

Finally, Vaccinations records in the EU Digital COVID certificate format can now be added.

Podcasts

Ahead of the iOS 15.5 release, Apple announced new improvements for podcast producers. It would streamline the distribution method so that producers could share their paid and free podcasts on multiple platforms without having to upload to multiple locations.

This will be coming later this year for producers, but the iOS 15.5 update brought a user-facing feature. Now you can control how many recent episodes download to prevent too much space from being taken up.

Podcast settings in iOS 15.5
Podcast settings in iOS 15.5


In Settings, you can choose exactly how many episodes download and the Podcasts app will auto-delete older episodes.

Other small changes

With iOS 15.5, iPhone supports new DualSense adaptive trigger firmware features. Photos will no longer suggest memories taken in sensitive locations, such as Holocaust-related locations.

After being removed in iOS 15.4, a third-party API to control music playback speed has been added back. We've also heard rumors of a dedicated app for classical music, though it wasn't included in 15.5.

Reader apps now have the option to link to external websites. Finally, Universal Control now requires both your iPad to be on iPadOS 15.5 and Mac to be on macOS 12.4.

Get downloading

The iOS 15.5 update is available now as a free download. You can download it manually from the Settings app.

Read on AppleInsider

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 16
    jose8964jose8964 Posts: 17member
    Also in Podcasts app settings, there is now an option to turn off Automatic Download as default. This option also turn off Automatic Download for all the shows you already follow. Previously, if you are opening Podcasts app for the first time after activation, app reinstallation, you would have to manually turn off Automatic Download one by one.
    Alex1NJaphey
  • Reply 2 of 16
    dutchlorddutchlord Posts: 206member
    I will not accept scanning of content by Apple through the Communication Safety feature. No update to iOS 15.5. on my devices. This must stop.
    Beatselijahgwilliamlondon
  • Reply 3 of 16
    dutchlord said:
    I will not accept scanning of content by Apple through the Communication Safety feature. No update to iOS 15.5. on my devices. This must stop.
    Or, you could just learn to read.
    michelb76mike1sphericwilliamlondonauxioCluntBaby92
  • Reply 4 of 16
    JapheyJaphey Posts: 1,767member
    How exactly do we add the Apple Account Balance to the Wallet? Everywhere I’ve read about this update lists that as one of the new features, but nobody has shown how to add it or what it looks like. 
    williamlondon
  • Reply 5 of 16
    BeatsBeats Posts: 3,073member
    Why does Apple need a separate classical music app? Too much fragmentation already with the horrendous Podcast app. 
  • Reply 6 of 16
    crowleycrowley Posts: 10,453member
    dutchlord said:
    I will not accept scanning of content by Apple through the Communication Safety feature. No update to iOS 15.5. on my devices. This must stop.
    Are you a child?  If not, it won't affect you.

    If you are a child, are your parents using Screen Time and parental controls?  If not, it won't affect you.

    If they are, is communication safety turned on?  If not, it won't affect you.


    What exactly is it that must stop?
    SpitbathauxioCluntBaby92
  • Reply 7 of 16
    RockwellJacobsRockwellJacobs Posts: 6unconfirmed, member
    Still no patch for “AirTag Not Reachable” bug. 
    williamlondon
  • Reply 8 of 16
    sphericspheric Posts: 2,544member
    Beats said:
    Why does Apple need a separate classical music app? Too much fragmentation already with the horrendous Podcast app. 
    Because Classical music needs separate fields for composers, performers, soloists, conducters, orchestra, as well as being able to recognise separate movements as part of one work, even if perhaps several works from different composers are on a single album. 

    All of these things are vital to any real cataloguing of a classical library, and they are impossible in Apple Music in any meaningful way (i.e. that goes beyond "Best of Mozart"). 
    Spitbathbeowulfschmidt
  • Reply 9 of 16
    sphericspheric Posts: 2,544member

    Wallet

    Finally, Vaccinations records in the EU Digital COVID certificate format can now be added.
    This has been possible since 15.4 in March. 
  • Reply 10 of 16
    Gapless playback is fixed. Nice.
    appleinsideruser
  • Reply 11 of 16
    Gapless playback is fixed. Nice.
    Nice to know. It’s been like going back 16 years with annoying pauses in albums…
  • Reply 12 of 16
    AppleZuluAppleZulu Posts: 1,989member
    spheric said:
    Beats said:
    Why does Apple need a separate classical music app? Too much fragmentation already with the horrendous Podcast app. 
    Because Classical music needs separate fields for composers, performers, soloists, conducters, orchestra, as well as being able to recognise separate movements as part of one work, even if perhaps several works from different composers are on a single album. 

    All of these things are vital to any real cataloguing of a classical library, and they are impossible in Apple Music in any meaningful way (i.e. that goes beyond "Best of Mozart"). 
    This is correct. 

    If you don’t know classical music, imagine if popular music playlists split up your favorite songs and only played part of them. Imagine if you wanted to hear music by your favorite band but kept randomly getting no-name cover artists instead. 

    That’s what music systems designed for pop music do to classical music. If you want to hear William Kapell with Leonard Bernstein playing Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No. 2, you want the one with Bernstein conducting the Orchestra and Kapell on piano, and you want all three movements (parts). Apple Music and any other music player designed for pop songs and pop albums don’t keep track of all those things very well, and so classical music listeners get parts and pieces split up and randomized, which isn’t very satisfying. A separate classical music app makes a lot of sense. 
    appleinsideruserbeowulfschmidt
  • Reply 13 of 16
    CheeseFreezeCheeseFreeze Posts: 1,247member
    spheric said:
    Beats said:
    Why does Apple need a separate classical music app? Too much fragmentation already with the horrendous Podcast app. 
    Because Classical music needs separate fields for composers, performers, soloists, conducters, orchestra, as well as being able to recognise separate movements as part of one work, even if perhaps several works from different composers are on a single album. 

    All of these things are vital to any real cataloguing of a classical library, and they are impossible in Apple Music in any meaningful way (i.e. that goes beyond "Best of Mozart"). 
    It’ll be really useful, also in which key the music is performed. 
    However I hope all this will be a section in Music rather than a separate app. I don’t think splitting it in two apps will do any good for user experience.
  • Reply 14 of 16
    hexclockhexclock Posts: 1,243member
    FTA: “Photos will no longer suggest memories taken in sensitive locations, such as Holocaust-related locations.”

    Isnt the point of taking pictures so you can remember things, especially impactful things?

    This should be a toggle, even if it defaults to on. 
    appleinsideruserbeowulfschmidt
  • Reply 15 of 16
    matt_smatt_s Posts: 300member
    Does 15.5 fix this yet?


  • Reply 16 of 16
    dutchlorddutchlord Posts: 206member
    dutchlord said:
    I will not accept scanning of content by Apple through the Communication Safety feature. No update to iOS 15.5. on my devices. This must stop.
    Or, you could just learn to read.
    Clear? "Some notable changes include the expansion of Communication Safety in Messages to the UK, New Zealand, Canada, and Australia". Need glasses?
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