Apple's iOS 27 public beta arrives with Siri AI, faster app launches, and more

[Daniel Sims]

Looking ahead: Apple released the first public beta of iOS 27 this week. Set for full release this fall, iOS 27 aims to bring Siri closer to generative AI-based digital assistants such as Gemini and ChatGPT. The beta release also includes iPadOS 27, macOS 27, watchOS 27, and tvOS 27, introducing numerous other features for iPads, Macs, and other Apple devices.

Users can now preview this year's new Apple features, including AI enhancements for Siri, through the company's beta software program. However, due to RAM requirements, some AI features remain limited to the latest iPhone and iPad models.

To sign up, visit Apple's beta website and log in using an account tied to the devices on which the OS will be installed. After accepting the Beta Software Program Agreement, open the Settings app on the target devices and navigate to General > Software Update.

Apple recommends installing betas on non-critical devices after backing them up. The company also provides a Feedback Assistant app for reporting issues. To revert to the release OS, visit the company's unenroll page.

A new version of Siri, branded Siri AI, is the standout feature. Using Apple Intelligence, the assistant can describe what it sees on screen, draft documents, search the web to answer questions, and locate locally stored media based on user descriptions.

However, functions such as Expressive Voices and enhanced dictation require 12GB of RAM, limiting them to the iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max, iPhone Air, and iPad models with an M4 chip or later that carry at least 12GB of memory. The same 12GB threshold applies to Macs, and iCloud+ subscribers get higher daily usage limits on cloud-dependent AI features.

Aside from AI, improved performance is one of the primary new features. iOS 27 supports every device that runs iOS 26, and older iPhones, such as the iPhone 11, will see improved task prioritization via a new CPU scheduler.

Furthermore, on all supported models, apps will launch up to 30% faster, new photos will load up to 70% faster, and AirDrop transfers will be up to 80% faster.

iOS 27 also overhauls parental controls. Child accounts, required for anyone under 13 and available up to age 18, now come with tools like Ask to Browse, which requires kids to request approval before visiting a new website, alongside a redesigned interface for monitoring screen time and purchases.

Additionally, users who dislike the Liquid Glass design Apple introduced across its devices last year can now adjust its transparency with a new opacity slider to improve readability. Meanwhile, the macOS 27 beta, code-named Golden Gate, enhances ultrawide display support for resolutions up to 5K and refresh rates up to 120Hz.

The macOS 27 beta is the first version of macOS to support only Apple Silicon models. It's compatible with MacBook Air and MacBook Pro models from 2020 or later, the 2021 iMac and newer, the 2020 Mac mini and newer, the 2022 Mac Studio and newer, the 2023 Mac Pro, and the new MacBook Neo.

Supported iPadOS 27 beta models include the M4 iPad Pro and newer, the 12.9-inch iPad Pro (4th-gen and later), the 11-inch iPad Pro (2nd-gen and later), the 13-inch and 11-inch iPad Air models powered by M2 chips or newer, the iPad Air (4th-gen and later), the A16-powered iPad, the standard iPad (9th-gen and later), and the iPad mini (6th-gen and later), including the A17 Pro model. The beta program also includes watchOS 27, tvOS 27, HomePod Software 27, and this year's upcoming AirPods firmware.

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Apple's iOS 27 public beta arrives with Siri AI, faster app launches, and more

 

[Megalomaniac]

Apple AI isn't going to mean anything till they give us their version of smart glasses and integrate AI into that into practical ways. Automatic reading of foreign languages with dictation. Autotranslate. Auto currency conversion, etc.

I should be able to look at a woman and know her public profile. Whether she has kids, whether she has any STI, whether she is generally "Safe" to talk to, etc.

I should be able to see public threats like WANTED CRIMINALS or The FBI's most wanted highlighted.

Once they do that: they'll have the revolutionary product they've been starving for.

 

[Loadedaxe]

Apple AI isn't going to mean anything till they give us their version of smart glasses and integrate AI into that into practical ways. Automatic reading of foreign languages with dictation. Autotranslate. Auto currency conversion, etc.

I should be able to look at a woman and know her public profile. Whether she has kids, whether she has any STI, whether she is generally "Safe" to talk to, etc.

I should be able to see public threats like WANTED CRIMINALS or The FBI's most wanted highlighted.

Once they do that: they'll have the revolutionary product they've been starving for.

So your “revolutionary” Apple product is basically smart glasses that translate menus, convert currency… and let you scan random women for kids, STIs, and a “safe to approach” rating?

That’s not AI innovation. That’s a privacy lawsuit wearing an Apple logo.

Real time translation and navigation are useful. Turning every stranger into a searchable dating dossier is creepy, legally impossible, and exactly the kind of surveillance Apple would be roasted for enabling.

You don’t want smart glasses. You want Tinder, WebMD, facial recognition, and an FBI database strapped to your forehead.

 

[yukka]

12GB limit on phones for some of the AI features is imperfect isn’t it. I haven’t read what those features are in particular but when the base iPhone 17 doesn’t have enough ram to run it all, it’s not a great look for apple. Maybe the features don’t offer much value. I won’t be running the beta anyway.

 

[Loadedaxe]

12GB limit on phones for some of the AI features is imperfect isn’t it. I haven’t read what those features are in particular but when the base iPhone 17 doesn’t have enough ram to run it all, it’s not a great look for apple. Maybe the features don’t offer much value. I won’t be running the beta anyway.

I agree. Unless I’m mistaken, even the newest iPhone only has 8GB of RAM, so apparently the latest hardware may not be enough for Apple’s latest software ambitions.

Apple is slowly becoming the very thing it used to mock.....Windows.

I’m spending more time hunting for settings and features that used to be exactly where you expected them. Both iOS and macOS are becoming increasingly cluttered and bloated, especially the Settings apps. Apple used to be known for simplicity. Lately, it feels like they keep adding layers without improving usability.

My bigger concern is not that iOS 27 will “force AI” and cripple the phone. It is that Apple may increasingly design its apps and interface around AI features that many supported devices cannot access. That could leave owners with a current, expensive iPhone running the newest iOS while still getting a noticeably cut down experience.

 

[Valimere]

I agree. Unless I’m mistaken, even the newest iPhone only has 8GB of RAM, so apparently the latest hardware may not be enough for Apple’s latest software ambitions.

Apple is slowly becoming the very thing it used to mock.....Windows.

I’m spending more time hunting for settings and features that used to be exactly where you expected them. Both iOS and macOS are becoming increasingly cluttered and bloated, especially the Settings apps. Apple used to be known for simplicity. Lately, it feels like they keep adding layers without improving usability.

My bigger concern is not that iOS 27 will “force AI” and cripple the phone. It is that Apple may increasingly design its apps and interface around AI features that many supported devices cannot access. That could leave owners with a current, expensive iPhone running the newest iOS while still getting a noticeably cut down experience.

I hate how apple now hides the amount of ram. How does it makes sense when you are going to gate certain features behind a minimum RAM requirement but not show it on: https://www.apple.com/iphone/compare/?modelList=iphone-17-pro-max,iphone-17-pro,iphone-17
But I believe the Pro + Max have 12 GB

 

[yukka]

I hate how apple now hides the amount of ram. How does it makes sense when you are going to gate certain features behind a minimum RAM requirement but not show it on: https://www.apple.com/iphone/compare/?modelList=iphone-17-pro-max,iphone-17-pro,iphone-17
But I believe the Pro + Max have 12 GB

I’m wondering if they are referring to the probably newly announced phones for October. Would t be surprised if the base phone was still less than 12. But ram is expensive. Yikes right

 

[Porkous]

Maybe this is the best incentive to allow pagefile, virtual ram on these mentioned devices below spec of 12GB

 

[Anton Longshot]

I don't use Siri and dislike/refuse assistants in general.
Faster app launches would be great if my phone was 10+ years old.
I wonder if the update comes with anything I'll find useful or if it's all hot air, just like the previous update.
That said, I like the Apple ecosystem in spite of the imperfections. There are no valid alternatives for me and furthermore, perfect does not exist.