Apple releases iOS 12.3, macOS 10.14.5, watchOS 5.2.1 and tvOS 12.3



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A man walks past a giant video screen on stage.
Enlarge / Apple announced some of these features during its service and television event on March 25.

Today, Apple has begun rolling out new versions of its iOS, macOS, watchOS and tvOS operating systems for iPhone and iPad, Mac, Apple Watches and Apple TV, respectively.

The updates are largely focused on the video services announced by Apple at its March 25 event, including a reworked Apple TV app, Apple TV channels, and an AirPlay 2 extension to devices produced by its partners. Some bugfixes, performance optimizations, and other small adjustments are also included in the updates.

And no doubt deliberately synchronized with these updates, support for AirPlay 2 and Apple TV applications has finally been extended to support Samsung TVs as planned. Apple has announced that they would support smart TVs LG, VIZIO and Sony "later this year".

There is still no record of the Apple TV + subscription service and the original included programming unveiled at the aforementioned event, but this has not been planned yet. Apple will probably launch it this fall.

The new app and Apple TV channels

The centerpiece of two of these updates (iOS 12.3 and tvOS 12.3) is the revised Apple TV app. Now available in 100 countries, it has a revised interface, the new Channels feature, a children's tab and much more – all this was already described at the event organized by Apple on March 25 and detailed in an article blog post previously published by the company. aujourd & # 39; hui.

The "Channels" feature is a new, simpler way to subscribe to content from networks such as HBO, Showtime and Starz via the Apple TV app and Apple's billing system. In some cases you could do it before, but Channels is a brand new platform a little different on the back-end: the content is played in the TV application via the Apple system, rather than to ask you to download and open a third party file. application.

It's a little more convenient, but it also allows Apple to enforce strict standards for monitoring user viewing data – and this, of course, contributes to Apple's willingness to monetize and further control the services used on his devices.

The other big change is access to the iTunes library directly from the TV application. before, it really needed buy your TV episodes and your movies in the iTunes app, but watch them in the TV app, which can be confusing. Now you can buy directly in the application.

Users can share subscriptions with other members of their family via Family Sharing (up to six people). Apple has also added new custom recommendation features in the app.

iOS 12.3

Let's go into the updates themselves now. iOS 12.3 is arguably the largest of the four. It adds the new TV application and the Channels feature that have just been described, as well as support for AirPlay 2 to target Samsung smart TVs that now support it (as well as TVs and TVs). Other brands that will support it later). See the description above or the notes below for full details on the TV's features.

For smaller features, Apple's notes for this update indicate that you can now track a magazine from the navigation view in the Apple News + catalog, and Apple Music will offer recommendations. personalized more frequent. Apple also mentioned the editorial selection of the section reserved for children in the Apple TV application. Once again, we see the evidence of the great wave of recruitment of Apple's an army of editors to monitor, filter and select all the content that appears. in News, TV, Books, Music and on the App Store.

You can update iOS 12.3 from the Settings app on your iPhone or iPad. "Src =" https://cdn.arstechnica.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/iOS-12-3-update-640x419. jpg "width =" 640 "height =" 419 "srcset =" https://cdn.arstechnica.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/iOS-12-3-update.jpg 2x
Enlarge / You can update to iOS 12.3 from the Settings app on your iPhone or iPad.

Samuel Axon

Apple invests much more in this approach and puts a lot more emphasis than its competitors. As we have seen in recent events, Apple sees itself not only as a technology company, but also as a guide to culture.

The bug fixes include a fix for non-responsive Apple TV remotes, a solution for some Wi-Fi call interrupts and a fix for a problem "in which information about songs from a connected iPhone can do not appear on the screen of the car ".

Here are the release notes from Apple:

iOS 12.3 supports AirPlay 2 compatible TVs and offers a redesigned Apple TV app. This update also includes bug fixes and improvements.

AirPlay 2

  • AirPlay 2 now supports sharing videos, photos, music and more from your iPhone and iPad directly to your AirPlay 2 compatible TV.
  • One-click play automatically reads the TV show or movie of your choice on the last screen used, depending on the time and place.
    Smart suggestions are all made on the device so that your personal information remains confidential.

Apple TV application

  • The Apple TV app presents a brand new design showcasing carefully prepared collections and personalized recommendations.
  • Apple TV channels offer subscriptions to HBO, Showtime, Starz and others, available directly on the Apple TV app, online or offline.
  • Subscriptions to Apple TV channels can be shared with up to six family members without new applications, accounts, or passwords.
  • New movies are available for purchase or rental in the Apple TV app, including the complete catalog of over 100,000 movies and the largest selection of 4K HDR titles.
  • A new children's section helps you discover carefully selected shows and movies that are written in a safe way for children of all ages.
  • The Apple TV app can now cleverly suggest playing on Apple TVs or AirPlay 2 most likely to be nearby.

The update also includes bug fixes and improvements. This update:

  • Adds the ability to track a magazine from the navigation view in the Apple News + catalog
  • The For You tab of Apple Music is updated several times a day, suggesting music based on themes such as genres, artists, and moods that you like.
  • Fixes a problem that could prevent Apple TV Remote from interrupting video, controlling it, or changing volume on supported receivers
  • Resolves an issue that could cause calls dropped to be dropped using Wi-Fi calls.
  • Fix the following issue: Information on songs from a connected iPhone may not appear on the screen of the car

tvOS 12.3

tvOS 123 was also launched today, along with an Apple TV software update titled 7.3 for older Apple TV devices. The result is a new TV application experience for third and fourth generation Apple TVs as well as for the Apple TV 4K.

And here are the brief Apple release notes on Apple TV software update 7.3:

This update includes general improvements in performance and stability, and this feature:

  • Apple TV App: Now available on Apple TV (3rd generation), the Apple TV app gives you one place to watch all your favorite shows and movies on all your devices. Subscribe only to Apple TV channels of your choice. Browse thousands of titles from the iTunes Store that you can buy or rent. And get recommendations for shows and movies based on everything you watch.

macOS 10.14.5

MacOS Mojave 10.14.5 adds support for AirPlay 2 and focuses primarily on bug fixes and performance improvements. Apple says the update reduces the audio latency of the 2018 MacBook Pro and fixes a problem with OmniOutliner and OmniPlan. One-off versions like this do not usually offer a lot of new features.

Apple's notes for macOS 10.14.5 are as follows:

  • Adds AirPlay 2 support for sharing videos, photos, music and more from your Mac directly to your AirPlay 2 compatible TV.
  • Adds the ability to track a magazine from the navigation view in the Apple News + catalog.
  • Improves audio latency on MacBook Pro models introduced in 2018.
  • Fixes an issue that prevented some very large OmniOutliner and OmniPlan documents from displaying properly.
  • Disables accessories with unsecured Bluetooth connections.

Company Content:

  • Resolves an issue that prevented the reset of the user account password from the login window after using a personal recovery key (PRK) to unlock the FileVault volume.
  • Resolves an issue that prevented the InstalledApplicationList MDM command from recognizing that updates were available for applications installed via VPP.

Hold on if you are still waiting for a big feature. Apple will likely introduce important new features for the next major release of macOS at its World Developer Conference (WWDC) in early June.

Keep in mind that macOS software updates are now in the System Preferences panel, not in the Mojave App Store. "Src =" https://cdn.arstechnica.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/macOS-software-update-640x318.png "width =" 640 "height =" 318 "srcset =" https: / /cdn.arstechnica.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/macOS-software-update.png 2x
Enlarge / Keep in mind that macOS software updates are now in the System Preferences pane, not in the App Store in Mojave.

Samuel Axon

watchOS 5.2.1

watchOS 5.2.1 is the first update since the one that added Apple's second-generation AirPod support. The main bug fix "fixes a problem where the numbers on the face of the Explorer do not appear for some users". In addition, it brings ECG application and irregular heartbeat notifications to users in Croatia, the Czech Republic, Iceland, Poland and Slovakia.

This is not mentioned in the release notes, but the update also adds a new 2019 version of the LGBTQIA + Pride watch face. Users can select the 2018 or 2019 face, depending on their preference.

Here are the Apple release notes for watchOS 5.2.1:

  • The ECG application on Apple Watch Series 4 is now available in Croatia, the Czech Republic, Iceland, Poland and Slovakia
  • Irregular heartbeat notifications are now available in Croatia, the Czech Republic, Iceland, Poland and Slovakia
  • Fixes an issue where some numbers did not appear on the explorer

All of these software updates are deployed on devices as of today. If you do not see them yet, wait a bit and look again – they should soon be available to all users.

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