Everything You Need to Know About iOS 18.4 Beta 1
Just like every time, the real deal is that, Apple has once again broken boundaries of innovation and showcased new advancements with the release of iOS 18.4 Beta 1. Although for this beta Apple Intelligence features are still missing, price worthy improvements are added to the user experience. I still haven’t installed the point release yet, but in any case below we’re seeing what changes were greatest in this point release.
Priority Notifications: A Smarter Lock Screen
A prominent feature of Apple Intelligence used in iOS 18.4 Beta 1 is Priority Notifications, which offers to show the most important notifications on the lock screen first. To do that, users can actually enable this feature in Settings and focus on important things without unnecessary distractions.
Image Playground Expands Customization Options
Image Playground capability has expanded to include a new Sketch mode, which was introduced by Apple. However, that adds to the Animation and Illustration modes, making this a bit more creative on how you can digital art. Previously, Sketch mode was already a feature of Image Wand, but since it’s been brought to Image Playground, it is a bit easier. Also, Apple changes from Winter Holidays theme to a new one Spring theme and Seasonally updates user interface.
Language Support Expansion for Global Users
iOS 18.4 Beta 1 also includes support for the new languages it is adding to make things more accessible like French, German, Italian, Portuguese (Brazil), Spanish, Japanese, Korean, and Chinese. English dialects for India and Singapore are also supported now, so users feel supported wherever they are in the world.
Apple News+ Introduces a Food Section
The dedicated Food section is available only for Apple News+ subscribers as of iOS 18.4 Beta 1. The contents of this feature are recipes, restaurant stories, healthy eating tips, etc. And users gain access to premium content from global publisher Allrecipes, Bon Appétit, and Serious Eats. Additionally, a new Cook Mode provides step by step guidance for cooking.
Ambient Music for Different Moods
For music enthusiasts, introducing Ambient Music in iOS 18.4 Beta 1 might be appreciated. Specifically, this feature categorizes background sounds as Sleep, Relaxation, Productivity and Wellbeing. These categories can be added to Control Center for easy access but they do not allow the selecting of tracks manually. You can control audio playback with Dynamic Island or Now Playing widget.
Enhanced Mail App for iPadOS 18.4
Categorized inbox feature comes to iPadOS 18.4 and continues to be refined in the Mail app by Apple. The feature mainly sorts emails into groups like Essential Messages, Requests, Offers and Newsletters, and first appeared in iOS 18.2.
Improved Privacy Indicators
Still, privacy is a priority in iOS 18.4 Beta 1. It has moved the privacy indicators for the camera and microphone from the right of the screen to the left. Additionally, these indentifiers are also black, having a black background that makes them more visible and noticeable to the users.
Updates to Apple Maps and Podcasts
Apple has improved Apple Maps, whereby the end user can select the language of choice within the chart settings. Amongst that, Podcasts app gets new tools such that users can view their library or followed shows directly from the home screen for improved accessibility.
Japan’s My Number card is adding support for Wallet App.
The Japanese My Number Card digital ID has now been enabled by Apple on the first iteration of its Wallet app. More convenience for Japanese users is expected as this feature will be fully integrated by spring 2025.
CarPlay and Shortcuts Improvements
Users of CarPlay can get a new third row of icons on the home screen to simplify navigation as well as to ease of use. In addition, Apple has created a new Shortcuts action which enables users to open a specific conversation right of Messages.
More Default App Options
In making sure that Apple complies with regulations within the European Union, users are now able to choose an original default translation app and the default navigation app. It lines up with Apple's wider efforts to offer more choice to users.
Expected Official Release
The official release of the iOS 18.4 is scheduled for April 2025 by Apple. Although this beta version of Apple Intelligence falls short of what’s expected in certain areas, the upgrades and additions have improved the product, and resulting experience, for users globally.
Final Thoughts
Smart notifications are important upcoming focus that Apple is adding in the iOS 18.4 Beta 1 Beta ready to provide better UX. In addition to that, Apple is adding privacy indicators, locations, and emoji hints that will greatly improve user experience. Until the official release, certain features available above are only explored by developers and early adopters as they find ways to optimize the way they work withApple devices and applications. With Apple always modifying their experience, future updates could introduce even more refinements for iPhone users and iPad users as well.
