Apple today seeded the first beta of an upcoming iPadOS 16.1 update to developers for testing purposes, with the software available alongside the standard iOS 16 seventh beta that was provided today.
Registered developers can download the iPadOS 16 profile from the Apple Developer Center, and once installed, the beta will be available over the air.
Apple has decided to delay the launch of iPadOS 16 in order to continue working out bugs and other issues with the Stage Manager feature that is coming to M1 iPad models.
In a statement to TechCrunch, Apple said that there will be no iPadOS 16.0 version at launch, with the company instead planning to ship iPadOS 16.1 following the launch of iOS 16.
This is an especially big year for iPadOS. As its own platform with features specifically designed for iPad, we have the flexibility to deliver iPadOS on its own schedule. This Fall, iPadOS will ship after iOS, as version 16.1 in a free software update.
iPadOS 16.1 introduces new Stage Manager features, according to TechCrunch.
The big update this time out is the ability to resurface the Stage Manager side rail with a gesture while the feature is full screen. The other updates with 16.1 are the standard spate of beta bug updates
Apple rarely splits iOS and iPadOS launches apart, but it has opted to do so in this case because the latest version of iPadOS is still riddled with bugs and seeing a number of complaints about the multitasking Stage Manager option.
