iOS 16.1: New features and changes
Clean Energy Charging
iOS 16.1 adds the new Clean Energy Charging feature that Apple first announced earlier this week. The company says this feature aims to “reduce your carbon footprint” by “selectively charging when lower-carbon electricity is available.” You can find the toggle for this setting in the Battery menu of the Settings app and tap the Battery health and charge option.
The Apple Wallet app can be deleted
As first reported by 9to5Mac, iOS 16.1 now allows users to delete the Wallet app for the first time. As you might expect, deleting the Wallet app means you won’t be able to use a number of different features, including Apple Pay, Apple Cash, and Apple Card.
Battery percentage for more iPhones
The popular battery percentage icon has been added to more iPhones. After first rolling out late in the iOS 16 beta cycle, the battery percentage icon is now also available on the iPhone XR, iPhone 11, iPhone 12 mini, and iPhone 13 mini.
More changes to the lock screen
One of the key features of iOS 16 is the ability to customize the lock screen. With iOS 16.1, Apple is making a change to make it clear how to customize the lock screen wallpaper versus the home screen wallpaper. When you long press the lock screen and select the Customize button, you’ll now see two clear options: one for customizing the lock screen wallpaper and one for customizing the home screen wallpaper.
Live Activities API
The Live Activities API is back with the release of the first iOS 16.1 developer beta. Apple says: Find out how you can create Live Activities for your apps using the new ActivityKit framework, now available in iOS 16.1 beta and Xcode 14.1 beta. Live Activities help users follow your app content with real-time updates. Your app’s Live Activities appear on the lock screen and Dynamic Island — a new design that introduces an intuitive, enjoyable way to experience iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max. Live Activities are even more important now than they were when Apple first announced them at WWDC. iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max can integrate Live Activities from third-party apps directly into Dynamic Island, giving you an easy way to track things like ride share, sports results, navigation and more.
Early signs of matter for the Home app
iOS 16.1 and iPadOS 16.1 also include early support for Matter smart home accessories. Matter is a new smart home standard that aims to improve cross-platform compatibility for the most popular categories of accessories. This feature is still in its early days, and Apple has some details in its release:
To pair Matter accessories, you must first install a profile on your device. Removing Apple Home from the Matter accessories Connected Services menu in Home does not remove the accessory tile. You may receive a notification to turn on Wi-Fi when pairing a Matter accessory. Adjusting the color or color temperature can result in an unexpected color setting in a Matter accessory. Accessory details may not open if a Matter accessory cannot be accessed. You may not be able to pair a Matter accessory if the accessory is already paired with a third-party ecosystem. The device initiating the pairing must use the same iCloud account as the host. Only the owner of a home, not a guest user, can pair Matter accessories.
Stage Manager changes in iPadOS 16.1
For iPad users, today’s release of the new iPadOS 16.1 beta includes a few changes to Stage Manager. As Federico Viticci notes on Twitter, here are the changes:
The button to add more windows to a stage finally works. Windows open with a “curtain” animation and show you app switching. Viewing all open windows for the same application is easier than before. You can click an app’s dock icon or use the Globe-Down hotkey. This “area” always includes a + button to create a new window. You can now drag windows from iPad to an external display with Stage Manager.
Despite these new features, Viticci says Stage Manager is still incredibly buggy. We’re still expecting a release sometime in October.
Other changes
There is a redesigned menu for screenshots. The icon in the Music app is larger for your connected headphones. New option in Settings > Game Center to “Allow friends to find”.
Spotting other changes in today’s iOS 16.1 beta 1 release? Let us know in the comments below or on Twitter @9to5Mac. Stay tuned for our full hands-on coverage of the new releases here on 9to5Mac today and throughout the rest of the week. FTC: We use affiliate links that automatically earn you income. More. Check out 9to5Mac on YouTube for more Apple news:
