Apple Releases First Public Beta of iOS 17.6

Apple today seeded the first betas of upcoming iOS 17.6 and iPadOS 17.6 updates to public beta testers, with the betas coming a few days after the initial iOS and iPadOS 17.6 developer betas.

iOS 17
Public beta testers can get the beta by opening up the Settings app, going to the Software Update section, tapping on the "Beta Updates" option, and toggling on the iOS 17 or iPadOS 17 Public Beta. Signing up on Apple's beta testing website is required.

The new additions Apple promised for iOS 17 have all been implemented at this point, so it is not clear what will be included in iOS 17.6, and no features were discovered in the developer beta.

With Apple now shifting its focus to iOS 18, it is likely that iOS 17.6 will include bug fixes and other under-the-hood improvements.

Apple has also seeded the first public betas of upcoming watchOS 10.6 and tvOS 17.6 updates.

Related Forums: iOS 17, iPadOS 17

Popular Stories

iOS 26

15 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 26.2

Friday December 5, 2025 9:40 am PST by
Apple is about to release iOS 26.2, the second major point update for iPhones since iOS 26 was rolled out in September, and there are at least 15 notable changes and improvements worth checking out. We've rounded them up below. Apple is expected to roll out iOS 26.2 to compatible devices sometime between December 8 and December 16. When the update drops, you can check Apple's servers for the ...
Intel Inside iPhone Feature

Apple's Return to Intel Rumored to Extend to iPhone

Friday December 5, 2025 10:08 am PST by
Intel is expected to begin supplying some Mac and iPad chips in a few years, and the latest rumor claims the partnership might extend to the iPhone. In a research note with investment firm GF Securities this week, obtained by MacRumors, analyst Jeff Pu said he and his colleagues "now expect" Intel to reach a supply deal with Apple for at least some non-pro iPhone chips starting in 2028....
ive and altman

Jony Ive's OpenAI Device Barred From Using 'io' Name

Friday December 5, 2025 6:22 am PST by
A U.S. appeals court has upheld a temporary restraining order that prevents OpenAI and Jony Ive's new hardware venture from using the name "io" for products similar to those planned by AI audio startup iyO, Bloomberg Law reports. iyO sued OpenAI earlier this year after the latter announced its partnership with Ive's new firm, arguing that OpenAI's planned "io" branding was too close to its...
iPhone 17 Pro Cosmic Orange

10 Reasons to Wait for Next Year's iPhone 18 Pro

Monday December 1, 2025 2:40 am PST by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models at the same time, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 18 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. One thing worth...
Photos App Icon Liquid Glass

John Gruber Shares Scathing Commentary About Apple's Departing Software Design Chief

Thursday December 4, 2025 9:30 am PST by
In a statement shared with Bloomberg on Wednesday, Apple confirmed that its software design chief Alan Dye will be leaving. Apple said Dye will be succeeded by Stephen Lemay, who has been a software designer at the company since 1999. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced that Dye will lead a new creative studio within the company's AR/VR division Reality Labs. On his blog Daring Fireball,...
maxresdefault

iPhone Fold: Launch, Pricing, and What to Expect From Apple's Foldable

Monday December 1, 2025 3:00 am PST by
Apple is expected to launch a new foldable iPhone next year, based on multiple rumors and credible sources. The long-awaited device has been rumored for years now, but signs increasingly suggest that 2026 could indeed be the year that Apple releases its first foldable device. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Below, we've collated an updated set of key details that ...
Apple John Ternus 2019

Will John Ternus Really Be Apple's Next CEO?

Friday December 5, 2025 9:01 am PST by
There is uncertainty about Apple's head of hardware engineering John Ternus succeeding Tim Cook as CEO, The Information reports. Some former Apple executives apparently hope that a new "dark-horse" candidate will emerge. Ternus is considered to be the most likely candidate to succeed Cook as CEO. The report notes that he is more likely to become CEO than software head chief Craig Federighi, ...
ios 18 to ios 26 upgrade

Apple Pushes iPhone Users Still on iOS 18 to Upgrade to iOS 26

Tuesday December 2, 2025 11:09 am PST by
Apple is encouraging iPhone users who are still running iOS 18 to upgrade to iOS 26 by making the iOS 26 software upgrade option more prominent. Since iOS 26 launched in September, it has been displayed as an optional upgrade at the bottom of the Software Update interface in the Settings app. iOS 18 has been the default operating system option, and users running iOS 18 have seen iOS 18...
iOS 26

Apple Seeds iOS 26.2 and iPadOS 26.2 Release Candidates to Developers and Public Beta Testers

Wednesday December 3, 2025 10:33 am PST by
Apple today seeded the release candidate versions of upcoming iOS 26.2 and iPadOS 26.2 updates to developers and public beta testers, with the software coming two weeks after Apple seeded the third betas. The release candidates represent the final versions of iOS 26.2 and iPadOS 26.2 that will be provided to the public if no further bugs are found during this final week of testing....

Top Rated Comments

Böhme417 Avatar
19 months ago

iOS 17.6 and succeeding updates could just be security fixes and under the hood improvements... Very little chance of new features since majority of focus is on iOS 18...
Good. I need them to iron out all the weird little issues I started getting in 17.5.1. I never would have thought an X.X.X release would cause so many new problems.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Reeneman Avatar
19 months ago

Yeah I'm hoping these can fix the bugs I have all over the place in iOS17. It still feels like this is a .0 or .1 release with how many issues still exist. Usually they (generally) had them ironed out this late.
What kind of bugs? Not going to protect Apple here but also annoyed by people who claiming for huge „bugs“ the whole time. An OS will never be 100% perfect.
You will neither find this with iOS 18, 19.2, 20.4 or whatever.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Reeneman Avatar
19 months ago
Why did you guys wait for so long?
iOS 17 haven’t been that terrible to wait for 10 months.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Danilamak Avatar
19 months ago

I'm using my Logitech mouse a lot. Left mouse button just stops working until I completely restart my iPad.
Shortcuts simply stop working, until I restart the ipad.
Wierd vague system behaviour when rotating the screen.
Widgets stop working during the day.
Network problems, where my other devices have no problems at all, until I restart the device.
I use dual sim on my iPhone 15 pro: it's a pain in ios17, I have to restart multiple times, otherwise no network is found. Sometimes the network stack just crashes. All in all since iOS 17, working (I work on my iPad) has been a big pain in the you-know-what.
+ stage manager crashes a lot
+ language management is a mess, keyboard showing that i type in English but in reality it’s other language
+ spotlight unpredictable misses results
+ FaceTime crashes when i share screen
+ keyboard somehow stops from entering words in the same time system keys works fine

RESART RESTART RESTART
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
locoboi187 Avatar
19 months ago

I am a bit concerned that this beta will not be as fully vetted as previous iOS17 updates. Seems like the bulk of the beta community will be concentrating on the iOS18 beta.
It’s like this nearly every year
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
CaptainFS Avatar
19 months ago

What kind of bugs? Not going to protect Apple here but also annoyed by people who claiming for huge „bugs“ the whole time. An OS will never be 100% perfect.
You will neither find this with iOS 18, 19.2, 20.4 or whatever.
I'm using my Logitech mouse a lot. Left mouse button just stops working until I completely restart my iPad.
Shortcuts simply stop working, until I restart the ipad.
Wierd vague system behaviour when rotating the screen.
Widgets stop working during the day.
Network problems, where my other devices have no problems at all, until I restart the device.
I use dual sim on my iPhone 15 pro: it's a pain in ios17, I have to restart multiple times, otherwise no network is found. Sometimes the network stack just crashes. All in all since iOS 17, working (I work on my iPad) has been a big pain in the you-know-what.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)