iOS 7.1 Launching in March Following Lengthy Testing Period?
Apple has seeded a new build of iOS 7.1 to its "testing partners" or carriers, reports BGR, with a public release of the software set to come in March. A March launch of iOS 7.1 would mark more than four months of testing, as the first iOS 7.1 beta was seeded to developers in mid-November. iOS 7.1 beta 2, the version currently available to developers, was released in mid-December.
Lengthy development periods are not unheard of – before Mavericks, OS X 10.8.5 Mountain Lion was tested over a period of three months, from June to September.
The current version of iOS, iOS 7.0.4, was released on November 14. If an iOS 7.1 release is not planned until March, it is likely that Apple will release iOS 7.0.5 in the interim, though MacRumors has seen no sign of the software in recent logs. iOS updates frequently, though not always, show up in our site analytics.
As the first major update to iOS 7 since its launch, iOS 7.1 is expected to include multiple bug fixes along with new accessibility options in the form of "Button Shapes" and potential support for iOS in the Car. Given the minor updates bundled into iOS 7.1, it is unclear why such a lengthy testing period is necessary. Last year, Apple released its iOS 6.1 update in January, though its iOS 5.1 update also came in March in 2012.
Apple has begun seeding a new build of iOS 7.1 to testing partners, we have learned from a trusted source. iOS 7.1 beta 3 is said to bring several important bug fixes in addition to some new features, though our source was uncomfortable detailing these for us at this time.
While BGR has made accurate predictions on iOS 7 launch dates ahead of the software's final release, the site also made a few erroneous predictions.
Popular Stories
Apple One allows you to subscribe to up to six Apple services for one discounted monthly price. There are three Apple One tiers: Individual, Family, and Premier.
Over the last month, the highest-end Apple One Premier plan has gained two additional perks.
Here is what Apple One Premier already included, for $37.95 per month:Apple Music
Apple TV+
Apple Arcade
Apple News+
Apple Fitness+...
Apple's all-new ultra-thin iPhone 17 Air shares the same dimensions as the iPhone 17 Pro Max, with the only difference being in the thickness of the devices, according to the leaker Ice Universe.
Posting to their Weibo account, the Chinese leaker today claimed that the iPhone 17 Air and iPhone 17 Pro Max have identical body length, width, screen size, and bezels. "The only difference is the...
Apple announced the infamous 12-inch Retina MacBook a decade ago today, an experimental new Mac that was as controversial as it was revolutionary.
Apple unveiled the 12-inch MacBook on March 9, 2015, at the "Spring Forward" event in San Francisco, California. The event was primarily focused on the Apple Watch, which was being fully detailed ahead of its launch the following month, so the...
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices.
iPhone 17 Pro's alleged design via Front Page Tech
Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of March 2025:
Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone...
Apple is planning for a major design overhaul of the iPhone, iPad, and Mac interfaces with the introduction of iOS 19, iPadOS 19, and macOS 16 later this year, reports Bloomberg. The update will "fundamentally change" the look of Apple's operating system, introducing a more consistent cross-platform experience.
Apple plans to update the style of icons, menus, apps, windows, and system...
YouTuber iDeviceHelp on Friday posted a video that shows off mockups of Apple's forthcoming iPhone 17 models that are purportedly based on "internal documents." We're sharing the video here since it was made in collaboration with leaker Majin Bu, who last month published similar iPhone 17 renders that were widely corroborated by separate leakers with links to Apple's Chinese supply chain....
Apple has increased the thickness of the upcoming iPhone 17 Pro Max compared to the current generation iPhone 16 Pro Max, claims the Chinese leaker known as Ice Universe.
Apple is said to have increased the depth of the iPhone 17 Pro Max to 8.725mm, up from 8.25mm on the iPhone 16 Pro Max, which would be a 0.475mm difference in thickness. The increase "surely means a larger battery,"...
In a move that probably won't make headlines but should delight detail-oriented Mac users everywhere, Apple has quietly corrected a 26-year-old design inconsistency on its keyboards.
The Mute key, a staple on Mac keyboards since the PowerBook G3 'Lombard' debuted in 1999, has finally received a logical redesign on the new MacBook Air with M4 chip. As spotted by iCulture, the key now displays ...
Apple is delaying some of the Apple Intelligence Siri features that it expected to release in iOS 18, an Apple spokesperson said in a statement to Daring Fireball.
Apple says that it is going to take longer than expected to roll out the more personalized Siri experience, and that these features will be rolled out "in the coming year.""Siri helps our users find what they need and get things...