Here’s What’s Coming In iOS 12.2

Michael Grothaus 25/01/2019 – 2:33pm

Apple’s made a TON of improvements in the upcoming iOS release.

Last night Apple dropped a ton of software updates into developers’ laps, including new macOS, tvOS, and watchOS betas. But the biggest beta release was iOS 12.2. Though it's got a ton of bug fixes, the beta also has several new features and improvements throughout the software. While it’s developer-only for now, you can expect Apple to push it out to all iOS 12 users sometime next month most likely. So just what's new under the hood in iOS 12.2? Here’s everything you need to know:

iOS 12.2: Apple News for Canada

Without a doubt, the biggest feature of iOS 12.2 is that Apple’s News app is expanding to Canadian users. Currently, the News app is only available to US, UK, and Australian users. With iOS 12.2, users in Canada will be able to access the app. Best of all, Apple news will be available in both English and French in Canada.

iOS 12.2: Air Quality in Maps

Maps also gets a slight update in iOS 12.2. Now users can choose to display the current air quality index of an area in addition to the weather there. To toggle on the air quality index in maps, just enable the setting in the Settings app.

iOS 12.2: Home Controls for Smart TVs

Earlier this year Apple announced that its iTunes Movies and TV apps would be coming to third-party smart TVs. Now with iOS 12.2, Apple is adding HomeKit support so users can control their third-party smart TVs through the Home app on their iPhone or iPad.

iOS 12.2: Redesigned Apple TV Remote In Control Center

Another TV improvement is that the Apple TV remote app found in Control Center gets a redesign in iOS 12.2. The Control Center TV app now has a more streamlined look and it now takes advantage of the entire device display instead of just showing up in about 75% of it.

iOS 12.2: New Screen Mirroring Icon

While not a major feature, Apple is updating its Screen Mirroring icon in iOS 12.2. Previously the icon showed a rectangular box representing a TV or display with a triangle below it. Now the new icon shows two rectangular boxes representing a two TVs or displays. We think the new icon is a better representation of what the feature does.

iOS 12.2: Apple Pay Cash "Add Money” Option

Now on the Apple Pay Cash card in your Wallet app you’ll see a new "Add Money" option right on the screen below the card. This makes it much easier and faster to add funds to your Apple Pay Cash card.

iOS 12.2: Safari Search Arrows

This is a really cool addition. Previously when using Safari and performing a search in its address bar, the user would see recommended search suggestions below the address bar based on what they were typing. Tapping any one of those suggestions would immediately launch a search for the tapped suggestion.

That still works the same in iOS 12.2. However, now you’ll also see a little blue arrow next to search suggestions. If you tap the arrow instead of the search suggestion directly, the text from the search suggestion will auto-populate in Safari’s address/search bar. The user can then continue to add text to that auto-populated search term.

iOS 12.2: Safari Unsecure Websites Warning

Finally, in Safari any site that does not send data over HTTPS is now marked as “Not Secure” in Safari. This warning alerts a user that any information they send to the site or interactions they perform on it are not encrypted. It’s a cool feature which will allow people to see what sites leave them vulnerable online.