Examples of Apple Intelligence at work.
Apple has moved on to issuing RC builds of iOS 18.5, iPadOS 18.5, macOS 15.5, tvOS 18.5, watchOS 11.5, and visionOS 2.5, as the updates get closer to release.
An RC or Release Candidate is a version of a piece of software that is practically ready for public release, but is being tested one last time before that moment.
The RC round of developer betas for iOS 18.5, iPadOS 18.5, macOS 15.5, tvOS 18.5, watchOS 11.5, and visionOS 2.5 surface after the fourth, which Apple issued on April 28. The third was on April 21, the second was provided on April 14, while the first round for the generation was handed out on March 17.
The RC iOS 18.5 and iPadOS 18.5 developer betas share build number 22F75, taking over from the previous build, 22F5068a. The RC macOS Sequoia 15.5 build uses number 24F74, replacing 24F5068b.
The RC tvOS 18.5 build is 22L572, going from 22L5566a. The RC watchOS 11.5 build is 22T572, moving from 22T5567a, and the RC visionOS 2.5 build is 22O473, from the fourth 22O5467a build.
For the first developer beta round, iOS featured a change to Mail to enable and hide contact photos, among other small changes. Aside from that alteration, there haven’t really been many other updates to the operating system, which could mean it is a performance, bug, and compatibility update this time around.
At the same time, Apple also introduced a release candidate build for an earlier iPadOS version. The RC build of iOS 17.7.7 is build number 21H433.
AppleInsider and Apple strongly advise that users avoid installing beta operating systems or other software onto any hardware they deem to be “mission critical” or as a primary device. Due to the nature of beta software, there’s always the chance of a bug that causes problems, with the most catastrophic being data loss.
As always, testers should use secondary or non-essential devices and ensure they have sufficient backups of any critical data.
Find any changes in the new builds? Reach out to us on Twitter at @AppleInsider or @Andrew_OSU, or send Andrew an email at andrew@AppleInsider.com.
