The betas are finally over. After months of testing and reworks being done, the final version of iOS 10.2 has been released for all devices that run iOS 10. The last major update was in September, and like the last big update, it brings with it a host of changes to the OS.
Interestingly enough, the most obvious changes come via emoji support; these changes add new characters that were introduced in the 9.0 version of the Unicode spec, along with new Retina compatible designs for many of the pre-existing emojis.
The TV app also got a bit of tweaking in the form of managing all playback of movies and TV shows bought via the iTunes store. For the full list of changes, take a look at the release notes below.
TV
- Use Up Next to see the movies and shows you’re currently watching and pick up where you left off
- Get recommendations for new movies and TV shows in Watch Now
- Discover new apps and the latest iTunes releases in the Store
- Access the Library for your iTunes purchases and rentals
Emoji
- Beautifully redesigned emoji that reveal even more detail
- Over 100 new emoji including new faces, food, animals, sports, and professions
Photos
- Improves stabilization and delivers faster frame rate for Live Photos
- Improves accuracy of groupings of similar photos of the same person in the People album
- Fixes an issue where Memories might generate a memory from photos of screenshots, whiteboards or receipts
- Fixes an issue where the camera would stay zoomed in after switching back from the Camera Roll on iPhone 7 Plus
- Additional support for RAW digital cameras
Messages
- Adds new love and celebration full screen effects in Messages
- Fixes an issue that sometimes prevented the keyboard from displaying in Messages
Music
- Swipe up the Now Playing screen to more easily access Shuffle, Repeat, and Up Next
- Choose how to sort Playlists, Albums, and Songs in Library
News
- Stories you’ve saved for later now appear in the new Saved section
- The best paid stories from channels you subscribe to will now appear in a dedicated section in For You
- It’s now easier than ever to get to the next story, just swipe left or tap Next Story while reading
- Fixes an issue that caused the Move sheet to persist after filing a Mail message
- Addresses an issue with long press activating copy and paste in Mail
- Fixes an issue in which the wrong message would be selected after deleting a Mail conversation
Accessibility
- Adds BraillePen14 support to VoiceOver
- Fixes an issue where the braille table could switch unexpectedly with VoiceOver
- Fixes an issue where sometimes Siri-enhanced voices were unavailable to VoiceOver
- Fixes an issue where VoiceOver users could not re-order items in lists
- Fixes an issue where Switch Control was sometimes unable to delete Voicemails
Other improvements and fixes
- Adds notification support for HomeKit accessories, including window coverings, occupancy, motion, door/window, smoke, carbon monoxide, and water leak sensors
- Adds notification support for HomeKit accessories when software updates are available to HomeKit accessories
- Improves Bluetooth performance and connectivity with 3rd-party accessories
- Fixes an issue that could cause FaceTime participants to appear out of focus
- Fixes an issue that could cause FaceTime calls to appear with incorrect aspect ratio and orientation
- Fixes an issue that prevented some Visual Voicemail from completing playback
