GoKawiil
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Apple is preparing to release iOS 27.2 next week with updates to six built-in apps. Highlights include a revived 'Suggested Actions' feature in Messages, a new user-profile selector for the Apple TV app on iPhone and iPad, Group FaceTime support for Dual Capture's simultaneous front-and-rear camera feeds, and new smart-lock controls in the Home app including a 'Lock After Closing' option.
Apple released the iOS 27.2 release candidate on Oct. 19, over a month after iOS 27 launched. The build expands Siri AI beyond English into French, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese and Spanish, adds a FaceTime feature letting users run front and rear cameras simultaneously, and introduces a new Apple Music color scheme. Apple previously said the foldable iPhone Duo will launch Oct. 23 on iOS 27.1, with other devices able to update to 27.2 afterward.
Apple's upcoming iOS 27.2 and HomePod 27.2 software update introduces a 'Lock Controls' setting in the Home app that disables touch input on the device's top cap. The feature, spotted by leaker pdfu in a release candidate build, will work across all HomePod models, including the original 2018 version. Even with controls locked, Intercom, timers, alarms, Check In, and FaceTime calls will still respond to touch.
Apple has shipped the release candidate build of iOS 27.2, typically the final version before a wide public release. The beta cycle added Group FaceTime Dual Capture, additional Siri AI languages, Apple TV app profiles, reorganized Podcasts episodes, and a redesigned Apple Music icon with a new blue accent color.
A tech reviewer testing Apple Watch Series 12 alongside Apple's redesigned Health app says the software lacks a feature found on WHOOP: measuring a 'day' from sleep cycle to sleep cycle rather than the standard midnight-to-midnight clock. The new Health app, which includes features like Readiness and Health Age, briefly appeared in an iOS 27.2 beta before being pulled, with Apple saying it will return in a later beta ahead of a full release this year.
Apple's latest iOS 27.2 beta introduces three changes: granular settings to enable or disable specific Messages 'Suggestions' like calendar and reminder prompts, two new Home app options for smart locks covering auto-lock timing and door-left-open alerts, and a visual overhaul of the Music app that replaces its red branding with black-and-white icons and blue tab accents.
9to5Mac's daily podcast roundup for October 14, 2026 covered recent Apple news, including the Apple Home Collection and the release of the iOS 27.2 beta 4. The episode was sponsored by Backblaze and is distributed through Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, TuneIn, Google Play and an RSS feed.
Apple is testing a new Apple Music app icon in iOS 27.2 beta 4 that replaces the familiar red beamed-eighth-note logo with a black-and-white version, plus an inverted white-on-black variant for dark mode. The redesign also tilts the notes slightly, rounds their shape, adds a subtle drop shadow, and extends to removing red from home-screen widgets and switching the app's internal pink/red tint to blue. It follows an earlier shift to a bolder, lowercase wordmark introduced alongside Apple Music Hall in London.
Apple released developer and public firmware betas, build number 9B5043a, for several AirPods models including AirPods 5 and AirPods Pro 3. The rollout coincided with developer beta 4 of macOS 27.2, iOS 27.2, iPadOS 27.2, and other OS updates. Apple has not disclosed what changes or fixes the new firmware contains.
Apple released iOS 27.2 beta 4 to developers, introducing a redesigned Apple Music app icon that drops color in favor of a white icon with black logo (black with white logo in dark mode). The update also changes the Music app's tab bar to blue for the active tab, switches widgets to black backgrounds, and removes color from Library section listings like Playlists and Albums.
Apple's revamped Health app, which debuted in iOS 27.2 developer beta 1 and appeared in two public betas, has been removed in developer beta 4. The release reverts to the previous Health app layout, though Apple says beta-collected health data will be preserved and viewable in Settings, and still expects the new app to launch this year.
Apple has released the fourth developer beta of iOS 27.2, which follows the public iOS 27 release and bypasses iOS 27.1, a version reserved for the iPhone Duo foldable. The beta brings the redesigned Health app shown at the iPhone 18 Pro event, dual capture for Group FaceTime, expanded Siri language support, Apple TV profiles on iPhone, and Apple Podcasts interface tweaks.