Apple releases iOS 10.3 beta 1 update

Apple fans just celebrated the 10th anniversary of the launch of the first iPhone on January 9, and now they have a new reason to celebrate: Apple has just released iOS 10.3 beta 1, the first test version of the next important operating system.

iOS 11 is clearly Apple's most anticipated software release of the year. However, we still have five months until the company officially introduces the operating system update at WWDC 2017 in June. In the meantime, iOS 10.3 will likely be the last major iOS 10 update released, in terms of new features.

According to rumors that surfaced at the beginning of 2017, Apple has been nurturing an important update for iOS 10.3 - the new "theater mode" feature that every iPhone and iPad user has been waiting for since the first beta of iOS 10 was released in June 2016. Accessible through the Settings app or a shortcut icon in Control Center, theater mode is said to be a dark mode for the device, in which white and other bright colors on the iPhone's user interface will be switched to black, gray and other dark colors, making the screen more comfortable on the eyes in low light conditions.

Unfortunately, iOS 10.3 beta 1 doesn’t have theater mode yet. However, the beta does add a new feature called Find My AirPods. This is a utility that allows users to send sounds to lost headphones like beeps, thus helping them easily locate them. Users can also see the last location of the headphones before they lost connection to the phone, helping the owner narrow down the search area.

With iOS 10.3, developers will be able to request app ratings in a new way. With the help of the new SKStoreReviewController API, they can set up a separate dialog for users to rate their app without being sent to the App Store.

Some other changes in this OS update include an upgrade to Safari 10.1, a widget for the Podcasts app, support for payments and checking payment status in Siri with the new SiriKit.

Along with the iOS 10.3 beta 1 update, Apple also released macOS 10.12.4 beta 1 to developers.

According to VNN