iOS 18.4 release date: Here’s when to expect new features

Apple’s last big software update, iOS 18.3, arrived in late January. Although we’re still waiting for the first iOS 18.4 beta to drop, Apple has already provided a very narrow window for when the public iOS 18.4 version will launch. Here’s what to expect.

iOS 18.4 coming ‘in early April’ per Apple

It’s unusual for Apple to share timelines for software release dates far in advance, but iOS 18.4 is one of the rare exceptions.

All the way back in October, when the first Apple Intelligence features launched, the company mentioned that an April software update would bring additional AI languages.

Based on previous years’ software patterns and Mark Gurman’s reporting, it became clear that iOS 18.4 would be that April software update.

But now, Apple has gotten even more specific.

Based on updates made to its website, Apple has now pinpointed “early April” as the exact timing for iOS 18.4’s launch (via MacRumors).

Here’s copy from the official iOS 18 page:

Apple Intelligence is available in beta…Additional features and…language support available in early April

The “early” qualifier still offers Apple some flexibility, but I would assume this means iOS 18.4 will launch before mid-month.

The week of April 7 seems most likely, but Apple could potentially target a Monday, April 14 launch and technically still consider that “early April.” In any case, iOS 18.4’s release will be here before long.

New features expected in iOS 18.4

For a while now, Mark Gurman has been reporting that some major Siri improvements are in store for iOS 18.4. Currently we’re still waiting on three major Apple Intelligence upgrades for Siri, including:

• New app actions: Apple says Siri will be able to perform hundreds of new actions in Apple apps, without the need to ever open those apps. App Intents will bring the same capability to supported third-party apps, too.
• Personal context knowledge: Like a real-life assistant, you’ll be able to reference texts you received, past calendar events, and more personal data to get truly intelligent assistance from Siri.
• Onscreen awareness: Siri will know what’s on your display, so you can easily ask it to take action on whatever you’re looking at.

Though Gurman has been consistent on the expected inclusion of these features in iOS 18.4, very recently he cast doubt on their inclusion.

Last week he wrote:

Apple is considering delaying or limiting at least some of the [Siri] overhaul until iOS 18.5, which will be released as early as May, the people said. […]

Inside Apple, many employees testing the new Siri have found that these features don’t yet work consistently. And it’s nearing crunch time for the software to be ready.

So it’s unclear whether iOS 18.4 will still include some Siri improvements or not. I wouldn’t be surprised if we get some new features, while certain capabilities get pushed to iOS 18.5.

Beyond that, iOS 18.4 is expected to include several other AI improvements such as a priority notification feature, a new style for the Image Playground app, and more.

Are you excited for iOS 18.4’s release soon? Let us know in the comments.

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