Apple iOS 15.6 is now live.
David Phelan
Just because the public beta for iOS 16 is out, it doesn’t mean that Apple is done with the current general release software, iOS 15. Although, in fact, it’s almost done with it, and there’s a good chance that this will be the last iOS 15 update. Although you never know.
July 21st update below. This post was first published on July 20, 2022.
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This update has been in the works for a while – the first beta was released in May – but it’s finally here.
So, here’s what you need to know about iOS 15.6.
Make Forbes your destination for all things iOS. Read the full details of what’s in the release from me the moment it lands. Kate O’Flaherty looks at the security considerations of each new release. And then read Gordon Kelly’s analysis of whether you should install or wait.
July 21st update. More details about iOS 15.6 have now emerged, including more than three dozen security vulnerabilities. That’s a lot, but as mentioned above, the last iOS update was in May, so it’s not entirely surprising. Apple published a long list of these 39 fixes of varying degrees of severity. Don’t worry about the list, the point is that this update should fix them. Check out Gordon Kelly’s upcoming guide to iOS 15.6 to find out more about how well the update is doing.
But another item not mentioned in Apple’s changelog below has appeared. And it may not be the last. Good thing it’s fixed, even if a mention in the notes would be helpful.
The problem, spotted by 9to5Mac, is that the latest update, iOS 15.5, introduced a bug in Apple Books. After installing this update, users reported that Books repeatedly crashes when opening a book. Which obviously isn’t ideal. One user described it as “crazy bad”. It seemed likely that this update would fix the problem, as the beta versions of iOS 15.6 and iOS 16 worked as they should. However, for some users, this fix has been a long time coming (and they may have switched to reading on the Amazon Kindle app or opted for real books instead).
If more issues come up, resolved or not, we’ll cover them here on Forbes.
Which iPhones can run iOS 15.6?
If you have a device running iOS 14, you’re in luck. Impressively, Apple has ensured that every iOS 14-capable iPhone also runs iOS 15. This is a major achievement that extends across every device released in the past six years. In other words, every iPhone from the iPhone 6s onward, and that includes all three generations of the iPhone SE. By the way, this will not apply to iOS 16, which is for iPhones from iPhone 8 onwards.
For iPad, you’re good to run iPadOS 15.6 if you have an iPad Pro, any iPad Air from iPad Air 2, iPad mini 4 or later, and fifth-generation iPads or later.
How to get it
Updating is simple and easy: open your device’s Settings app and then select General, then Software Update. Once you click Download and Install, it will do everything for you. It will be ready in a few minutes – it’s not a big update.
What’s in the release
This late in the release cycle it would be surprising if there were any new features. Apple finally released all the features it had promised with iOS 15.
So here we are looking at bug fixes and tweaks. Some are pretty sweet, like how the TV app will now be able to navigate through a live sports game that’s already in progress, allowing you to restart the game and pause, rewind, and fast-forward. Please note that this does not change the result for the better.
Other updates are important even if they don’t change the game. There is an issue where the settings keep showing that the device’s memory is full even after it wasn’t. This has also been addressed.
An issue in Safari where a tab returned to a previous page is also said to be fixed.
And an issue that caused braille devices to slow down or stop responding when navigating text in an email has also been sorted, Apple says.
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Full Apple changelog
Here are Apple’s notes on what’s in iOS 15.6.
iOS 15.6 includes improvements, bug fixes, and security updates.
· TV app adds option to restart a live sports game already in progress and pause, rewind or fast forward
· Fixes an issue where settings may still show that the device’s memory is full even if there is free space
· Fixes an issue that could cause braille devices to slow or stop responding when navigating text in Mail
· Fixes an issue in Safari where a tab could snap back to a previous page
Some features may not be available in all regions or on all Apple devices. For information about the security content of Apple software updates, please visit this website:
support.apple.com/kb/HT201222
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