The first Beta of iOS 17 arrived on our iPhone on June 5, just after the WWDC follow-up that we religiously carry out every year. Despite the above, and as we usually say: Not the whole mountain is oregano. It is clear that iOS 17 has its lights and its shadows, which have come to light over the weeks of testing.
We tell you about our experience after more than 45 days squeezing the iOS 17 Betas, what are its most common failures and the risk to your iPhone, but above all... is it worth it? We help you clarify all your doubts.
The risks of installing a Beta
It is very easy to install a Beta, although Apple in the past wanted to restrict the way in which users accessed Betas, especially those focused on developers, it did not take long to realize that it was something like put gates to the field. It is because of that with the arrival of iOS 17 he decided to relax and give free rein to the curiosity of the users, making it easier for those of us who only want to share knowledge with others in a disinterested way, that we can do it on an equal footing with those who publish with Apple, their chosen ones.
It is so since the arrival of iOS 17 the day 5 June of 2023, We have ventured into testing each and every one of its features to tell you about it, without censorship, without consideration. However, this is not without risk, especially on this occasion that the iPhone X has been left out of the update band, and an iPhone X was precisely what a server used to carry out the tests in the development phase.
I had no choice but to install iOS 17 on my usual device, an iPhone 12 Pro that aspires to be replaced by the rumored iPhone 15 Pro in crimson red. Those of you who have been following us for a long time will know that this will cost me a lot of fun throughout the weekly Podcast that we do, but I am willing to plunge it.
Using an iOS Beta on a device for daily and personal use, where you also have sensitive information, is something that we do not recommend at all. As We also do not recommend installing without first performing a full backup via your PC or Mac, avoiding simple iCloud backups.
Everything for you, so on June 5, as soon as WWDC was over, it was time to install the iOS 17 Beta, and use it for 45 days. Its use in a natural environment has allowed me to discover if its functionalities are really worth it, and above all, to see what the development versions lack. of iOS, and that's what we're going to talk about.
The worst of the iOS 17 Beta
Performance has been annoying on a few occasions, but nothing especially sorry. However, there are two points that have completely changed the way I use the iPhone: A considerable decrease in autonomy and a notable excess of operating temperature.
The autonomy thing is the daily bread, but it has been notably accused with the continued use of iOS 17 in its different Betas. I would dare to say that The battery lasts me on average 15% or 20% less than before. If I go on a trip, something that I usually do for work, it is rare that I catch the return flight even with battery power, and this usually happens between 15:00 p.m. and 18:00 p.m. So now that the iOS 17 Public Beta has arrived, you should take into account if you are willing to give up a large part of the autonomy of your iPhone, especially considering that summer is the worst season for your mobile device, since charges and performance are affected by the high temperatures that Spain suffers at this time of year (35ºC at the time of writing this text).
The next thing to mention, of course, is the average use temperature of the iPhone, and this is a problem that the iPhone 12 Pro and other devices prior to the iPhone 13 drag. As you well know, problems in the temperature sensors and dissipation, they cause the iPhone to show a noticeably lower maximum brightness capacity on the screen than the theoretical one. A killer cocktail that prevents you from using the iPhone normally on the beach, or at the worst hours of the day. It does not help at all that the iPhone when you install iOS 17 tends to get excessively hot with certain functions, especially if we are using the camera, the Photos application or third-party applications such as Instagram.
Therefore, I could say that the iPhone gets hot on a regular basis, creating discomfort when using it, but above all, problems for performance and autonomy. However, these are the most serious problems, but not the only ones, I leave you some small bugs that we are finding on a regular basis:
- The keyboard opens, but the text box is not displayed.
- Problems in the quick controls (Control Center) of the HomeKit application, changing the color or intensity of the lighting in an unwanted way.
- Some apps quit unexpectedly.
- On some occasions the telephone and WiFi signal indicator has disappeared.
Are you convinced? Install iOS 17
If despite the above, you are still convinced, the arrival of the iOS 17 Public Beta is a good time to proceed with its installation. As always, we recommend that you back up your device via iCloud or your computer to ensure that if something happens during the process, you don't lose any data.
In addition, I recommend you do it with our computer (PC or Mac) in case something happens or we want to make a downgrade towards iOS 16, so we will not lose any information. Once this is done, follow the steps below:
- You have to sign up for the public beta program (link). Clicking on the 'Sign up' button.
- When we finish, our Apple ID will be registered and we will be able to access the new public betas launched by Apple from any device.
- If you have a device with iOS 16.4 or iPadOS 16.4 You just have to access Settings> General> Software updates and a new tab will have appeared: Beta updates.
- Click on that section and all the beta versions to which we have access will appear. Click on the one that interests us "iOS 17 Public Beta", and click on Download and Install.
- The rest of the update is like a normal update.
