Apple's iOS 16.4 update: What's new coming for iPhone users?

Apple is getting ready to launch its iOS 16.4 update, which includes several new features and enhancements for the iPhone. The software update is currently in beta testing and will be available for the public in the spring, likely to be released in March or April.

Here are five exciting new features that will be available with iOS 16.4

New Emoji

The iOS 16.4 update will introduce a range of new emoji that were added with Unicode 15.0, including a shaking face, a heart in three new colour options, a donkey, a moose, a jellyfish, and many others. Apple recently provided a sneak peek of all the new emojis coming with the update, and users are eagerly anticipating their arrival.

Web Push Notifications

The iOS 16.4 update will support web-based push notifications through Safari on the iPhone. This feature allows users to receive notifications from websites directly on their phones, just like notifications sent from App Store apps. Only websites that a user saves as a web app on their Home Screen can request to send push notifications.

Beta Updates Menu

Apple has added a new "Beta Updates" menu in the Settings app under General → Software Update. This menu allows members of Apple's Developer Program to access developer betas of iOS without needing to install a configuration profile from the Apple Developer website, simplifying the beta installation process. Users can also easily enable public betas of iOS from the same menu.

Apple has indicated that in future iOS releases, this new menu will be the only way to enable developer betas, preventing configuration profiles from being used and shared online for free.

Podcasts App Improvements

iOS 16.4 will introduce several new features in Apple's Podcasts app on the iPhone and CarPlay. The new Channels menu in the Podcasts app provides a list of podcast channels all in one place on the iPhone.

CarPlay will also provide access to the Up Next and Recently Played queues from the Listen Now tab, along with podcast recommendations in the Browse tab.

New Home App Architecture

iOS 16.4 reintroduces Apple's revamped Home app architecture, which was initially rolled out with iOS 16.2 but was temporarily pulled due to bugs. After updating to iOS 16.4, an optional update is available in the Home app with the new underlying architecture. Apple has indicated that the new architecture will improve the app's performance, efficiency, and reliability for controlling smart home accessories. The new architecture follows the Home app gaining support for Matter accessories in iOS 16.1.

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