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iOS 17 has some new features that improve your basic smartphone experience. You can customize what people see when you call them. Call screen customization is a new feature for iOS. You can send voicemails and see live transcripts, something we saw earlier on Pixel phones.
There are some new features, UX changes for iMessage, and live transcription. You can create your own Live Stickers with your photos. StandBy is a new full-screen experience. You can turn your iPhone on its side when charging and perform the same as a desktop screensaver.
iOS 17 brings interactive widgets that make the experience and functionality much better. You can swap numbers with someone using NameDrop (via AirDrop). Bringing two phones together automatically initiates AirDrop. If you move away, AirDrop sharing will continue via the Internet.
Finally, there’s a new journal app that is self-explanatory. There were minor tweaks to SharePlay, Apple Music, and Spatial Audio, but these are the only new major features.
If you want to install iOS 17 now, sign up for Apple’s beta program and install the public beta build.
To simplify your decision, we’ve tried to explain whether you should install the Beta on your phone.
Why Shouldn’t You Install the iOS 17 Beta Version?
1. You’ll face several bugs and performance issues
Beta software is not meant for reliable public use. We don’t recommend using Beta software on your primary smartphone. Your primary phone is an essential and private, connected device necessary for many of our daily tasks. If it completely misbehaves on beta software, it can impact your life unprecedentedly.
Apple’s software has a reputation for polish because of the amount of testing that goes into it. iOS 17 is currently in really early beta stages and is premature. You won’t have a reliable or even remotely usable smartphone experience.
We’ll see public betas come out in around a month, and the bugs on those are a bit more tolerable. The phone’s performance might also take a big hit since it’s a new software that isn’t yet tuned for the chips. This isn’t an ideal experience.
- Read: iOS 17 Bug Tracker.
2. It’s probably not worth it
iOS 17 is a minor iterative update focusing only on stability and OS refinements. For those who don’t use iMessage and the other interconnected Apple communication features, the core user experience is not different from iOS 16.
iOS 16.5 is currently stable, and it runs all the apps properly. If there’s nothing much missing from the core UX, you’re not missing out on anything groundbreaking or exceptional with iOS 17.
3. Third-party app compatibility
Developers work with Apple and use the APIs and SDKs to develop their versions of apps, which work beautifully with iOS. This is because Apple makes fewer phones. Developers can create apps that run brilliantly on all of them, and they don’t have to tune the apps individually for multiple chipsets and screen sizes.
SDKs and APIs for iOS 17 are, however, relatively new. Developers have most probably not made the most out of the software yet. Apps are bound to crash often, and you may run into several bugs while using the apps as well. The app quality will be noticeably different if you’re coming from public software. This is a major usability hassle if some banking or essential apps aren’t optimized.
4. You may lose all your data
If you run into problems using Beta software, you always have the option to downgrade back to iOS 16.5. However, this method will completely wipe your user data. Taking a backup of everything on the Cloud is rather annoying and tedious. Settings everything up can get frustrating as well.
5. Battery
The reason why your phone gets through your day is efficiency. Applications optimized for your specific chipset consume as little power as possible while delivering the best possible performance.
All that goes out the window with beta software since optimization isn’t as good. You’ll get heavy standby drain, severe battery drain when using apps, inconsistent screen time graphs, and more.
Reasons Why You Should Update to iOS 17 Beta
1. You might like some of the new features
The new StandBy feature is somewhat helpful for many people. More importantly, you’ll get better overall interaction with your home screen. The new widgets might intrigue you as well.
2. You’re a developer or a tester
If you’re looking to beta-test and develop apps from the SDKs and APIs that iOS 17 brings, this update is worth it. Developers and testers reporting bugs is a key reason for future platform stability, and it’s crucial.
If you’re a hardcore and daring enthusiast, we still recommend extreme caution since these can disrupt your experience. If you want to stay ahead of others and use the latest software, then it’s a thrilling ride.
3. You have a secondary device
If you have another Android phone or iPhone as your primary, you can conveniently test all the new features on your second phone. This won’t interrupt your everyday tasks; you can try all the new features. Bugs and stability issues on a secondary device won’t bother you as much.
It’s worth noting that all iPhones, beginning with the XS and XR, officially support iOS 17. Unfortunately, the iPhone 8, 8 Plus, and X were dropped and won’t get major platform updates. That was five versions and six full years of support, and we’ll still see security patches down the line.
Conclusion
If you’re willing to install the Beta on your second phone, it’s worth trying out the new features. If you’re a developer or tester, it’s also worth it. However, we don’t recommend this for regular users on their primary smartphones. You may draw your conclusions after carefully looking at the pros and cons.
