Apple launches first-ever public iOS beta for iOS 8.3

For the first time, Apple has allowed you, us, and every other regular iOS user in the world to test an upcoming software update.

The company has launched a new sign-up page for people to register and get iOS 8.3 before it's rolled out to all consumers later this year.


We already tried signing up, but were unable to, so it's unclear if the beta is limited to random users or maybe a select amount of people were able to join first.

When and if you're able to join, check out the sign-up page's FAQ section.


Those of you who are new to beta testing can read it to learn more about the in-development software.


You should probably back up your iOS device with iTunes, for instance, just in case some apps and services don't work as expected.


Apple also recommended installing the software on a secondary device just to be extra safe.

Although this is the first public beta of iOS, Apple recently launched the first public beta of OS X.


It included Photos for OS X. Apple first announced last year that it was reimagining how people manage their photo libraries across their devices.


Part of that plan included discontinuing iPhoto and Aperture and replacing them with Photos. Apart from Photos, OS X 10.10.3 also included diversified emoji.

The iOS 8.3 public beta, which doesn't yet have a consumer release date, also includes the new emoji, as well as wireless CarPlay, streamlined logins for Google users, and more, while the current version of iOS, called 8.2, released earlier this week with support for Apple Watch.

Last modified on Friday, 13 March 2015 05:03