A month and a half after releasing iOS 16.1, Apple is continuing its update rollout schedule with iOS 16.2. The latest version dedicated to the iPhone, but also iPadOS 16.2 for tablets made in Cupertino bring some fixes and new features.
Fun and collaboration
Let’s start with the biggest slice of the pie: Freeform. This is a new app that was presented during the September keynote, without being associated with a release date. We thought we’d find it with the launch of the latest iPads at the end of October, but again: nothing to report. It will therefore have been necessary to wait until the beginning of December to see the new collaborative app from the Californian firm appear.
Freeform comes in the form of a large whiteboard on which anyone can add items. A digital version of the corporate meeting room board, basically. Write or draw, everything is possible from almost the entire Apple ecosystem. Freeform is indeed available on iPhone, iPad and Mac, everything being synchronized between the devices to never lose track of what the user or his colleagues have written.
A karaoke also makes its appearance. Announced last week, Apple Music Sing joins Apple Music and allows you to switch the app to karaoke mode, alone or with friends since the feature is also available on Apple TV 4K (latest generation) and a duo display is possible. Rather well designed, this karaoke allows you to lower the level of the performer to let your most beautiful voice be heard. Apple says the launch of Music Sing will come with 50 playlists in various styles.
Always-On screen which is a little less
Apple has finally engulfed itself in thealways-on with the iPhone 14 Pro. Unfortunately, this functionality did not turn out to be practical, the screen suffering from too much brightness. Unlike Android, which turns the screen black to keep only the essential information, Apple had chosen to let its wallpaper appear so that we could see everything.
A good idea overall, except for the brightness which could reach a maximum of 500 nits – hence less interest. With iOS 16.2, the company has corrected the situation by now allowing you to choose the display of a wallpaper or a panel that is content with incoming notifications, the time and widgets. Convenient, unless the user has chosen a black font for their lock screen… We would have liked that when switching to Always-On, this font automatically switches to white, but you can’t have everything…
The widgets are refined a bit with the appearance of inserts related to health and drug treatments. A widget dedicated to sleep monitoring also takes place. Live Activities, dedicated to real-time tracking of journeys or sports results, should also benefit from a breath of fresh air with more frequent updates.
Ever more secure data
The move to iOS/iPad 16.2 also brings end-to-end encryption of photos, notes and iCloud backups. At the beginning of 2023, physical encryption keys will be usable to strengthen the two-factor identification of the Apple and iCloud account, for example. Same case for iMessages which will be offered an ignition key verification function to be sure to communicate with the desired person. Deployment is expected to take place in 2023.
AirDrop also strengthens its security since a transfer option is emerging. It is now possible to activate the feature for everyone, but only for 10 min. Then, AirDrop will deactivate to avoid intrusive reception of files, frequent for example in public transport.