December 13 update below. This post was first published on December 11, 2023.
If it feels like it was just days since you updated your iPhone, well, that’s because it was. The unexpected iOS 17.1.2 iPhone update appeared on Thursday, November 30, 2023. Less than two weeks later, here’s the next release, warning all users to update now.
This update, iOS 17.2, was not a surprise as it’s been going through beta releases, but there was still an element of the unexpected: it arrived a day sooner than many were expecting.
Here’s what’s in it—and it’s pretty jam-packed—plus how you can get it straight away.
Which iPhones Can Run iOS 17.2?
Like all the releases since the arrival of iOS 17 back in September, this new update is compatible with all iPhones released in 2018 or after. That means iPhone Xs, iPhone Xs Max and iPhone XR from 2018, then iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, iPhone 11 Pro Max, plus all the iPhone 12, iPhone 13, iPhone 14 and iPhone 15 variants. It also includes iPhone SE second- and third-generation models.
How To Get It
Open the iPhone’s Settings app, click on General, then Software Update. Here, you’ll see sections on Automatic Updates, and Beta Updates. Whether you have automatic updates on or off, you can choose to download the new software now. Pick Download and Install, and your iPhone will be good to go in no time.
What’s In The Release
Unlike the last couple of updates, which were all about bug fixes and security measures, iOS 17.2 has lots of new features as well as the customary bug-squishing effects. Chief among these is the new Journal app, which helps you write about the stuff that’s happening to you. It’s designed to help improve your wellbeing and is stunningly integrated into the iPhone, all securely encrypted to help your private entries stay for your eyes only.
Talking of integration, with this release Apple AAPL
has added the capability to shoot video in a particular way that will integrate with Apple’s next big product category, the Apple Vision Pro headset. With this update you can shoot spatial video on the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max. These videos will play back in 3D on the headset—I’ve seen these videos on the headset, and they look amazing—but just regular 2D on the iPhone.
Also on the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max only, there’s a new shortcut for the Action button, which replaced the Mute/Ring slider of previous iPhones. You can now set it to Translate, making it easy to have conversations in foreign languages without even having to open an app.
There are improvements to Messages, including body shape customization in your Memoji, stickers to add to messages as reactions, and security improvements to protect against spyware. Typing messages, or anything else, is updated so you can turn off predictions inline, although personally I love that feature.
There are enhancements to AirDrop. Similar to NameDrop (which is entirely secure, despite the furor that arose last week about it), you can now share boarding passes or movie tickets just by bringing two iPhones together. There’s also Qi2 charger support for the iPhone 13 and iPhone 14, which haven’t had it until now.
Default notifications sounds can be customized to a greater degree—something previously restricted to texts, mail and calendar alerts.
With big new features like Journal and so many smaller details, this is a big update.
December 12 update. Alongside the release of the update, Apple has set out lots more details about spatial video capture on the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max.
In a Newsroom post, Apple specifies how the two latest Pro handsets are now capable of recording spatial videos, describing it as “a groundbreaking new capability that helps users capture life’s precious moments” and watch them back on the Apple Vision Pro when it’s released next year. Apple’s senior vice president of worldwide Marketing, Greg Joswiak, describes these videos as “magical.” Although Apple, like most companies, can tend towards hyperbole, I’d say there is something really extraordinary about these videos, which I saw in a demonstration of the Vision Pro some months ago. They have a wow factor which, I suspect, will lead some potential customers to reach for their credit cards as soon as they’ve seen them.
Apple has more details of how the recording will work, explaining that they are captured at 1080p resolution, at a frame rate of 30 frames per second, and with standard dynamic range. The 3D effect, which is highly compelling when you see the videos played back on a Vision Pro, is created by shooting video on two of the iPhone’s cameras at the same time, the Main and Ultra Wide lenses.
How the iPhone 15 Pro captures spatial video.
Apple
This is clever: the two cameras have different focal lengths and sensors with different resolutions—48 megapixels on the Main camera, 12 megapixels on the Ultra Wide. Combining them into one video is complex and achieved when the iPhone “scales the field of view from the Ultra Wide camera to match that of the Main camera, which is then saved into a single video file.”
As mentioned above, if you play back these files on the iPhone or iPad, say, then you’ll just see a regular 2D video. This has less wow factor but adds to the compatibility for playback. On the Vision Pro, remember, they will appear to be life-sized, appearing either as a large window or an immersive environment that largely surrounds the user.
Apple sees this as a way of recording your memories. Well, all photos and videos do that, but this is an all-encompassing, spectacular way to see your memories again.
December 13 update. Another Newsroom update has appeared relating to iOS 17.2 new features. This one is all about the headline act, the new Journal app. Apple defines it as an app that “helps users reflect and practice gratitude through journaling, which has been shown to improve wellbeing. With Journal, users can capture and write about everyday moments and special events in their lives, and include photos, videos, audio recordings, locations, and more to create rich memories.”
It’s far from the first journaling app, but its success is down to the simplicity of entry, from simple text logging to adding photos, videos, locations or audio. I particularly like the location entry capability as a way of remembering how a particular place made you feel. Apple says, “Users can browse past entries, bookmark them, or filter for details like photos, workouts, places, and more. Scheduled notifications can help make journaling a consistent practice.”
Where it takes things to another level is in the form of personalized suggestions curated from recent activity, and these suggestions are also available in another journaliing app, Day One, as that app has integrated the Journaling Suggestions API into it.
In both apps, privacy is paramount—well, this is Apple, after all—so that, as Apple puts it, “more people can benefit from journaling and the personalized, secure experience only iPhone can deliver.” Your entries are protected by passcode, Face ID or Touch ID, in the case of the iPhone SE.
The new Journal app in iOS 17.2
Apple
Early reviews, such as one from CNet, have been largely positive. Sometimes it gets the location slightly wrong, for instance, and video files need to be under 500MB, which means two minutes of 4K video could be too large. But reviewer Bridget Carey also said, “But if the job of Journal is to help our mental health and fix some of the busy-brain problems we have in this day and age, it does that. It made me think about what really matters and offered a way to quickly switch my mindset.”
Other reviews have commented that it is basic in some ways, which seems to me a smart move: if you get into the habit, which is a big thing with apps like this, Apple can refine it with extra capabilities as we go. That’s the Apple way: think how basic iMessage was at first compared to all the things it does now. Expect this to be an app that grows with you.
The federal government is ordering the dissolution of TikTok’s Canadian business after a national security review of the Chinese company behind the social media platform, but stopped short of ordering people to stay off the app.
Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne announced the government’s “wind up” demand Wednesday, saying it is meant to address “risks” related to ByteDance Ltd.’s establishment of TikTok Technology Canada Inc.
“The decision was based on the information and evidence collected over the course of the review and on the advice of Canada’s security and intelligence community and other government partners,” he said in a statement.
The announcement added that the government is not blocking Canadians’ access to the TikTok application or their ability to create content.
However, it urged people to “adopt good cybersecurity practices and assess the possible risks of using social media platforms and applications, including how their information is likely to be protected, managed, used and shared by foreign actors, as well as to be aware of which country’s laws apply.”
Champagne’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment seeking details about what evidence led to the government’s dissolution demand, how long ByteDance has to comply and why the app is not being banned.
A TikTok spokesperson said in a statement that the shutdown of its Canadian offices will mean the loss of hundreds of well-paying local jobs.
“We will challenge this order in court,” the spokesperson said.
“The TikTok platform will remain available for creators to find an audience, explore new interests and for businesses to thrive.”
The federal Liberals ordered a national security review of TikTok in September 2023, but it was not public knowledge until The Canadian Press reported in March that it was investigating the company.
At the time, it said the review was based on the expansion of a business, which it said constituted the establishment of a new Canadian entity. It declined to provide any further details about what expansion it was reviewing.
A government database showed a notification of new business from TikTok in June 2023. It said Network Sense Ventures Ltd. in Toronto and Vancouver would engage in “marketing, advertising, and content/creator development activities in relation to the use of the TikTok app in Canada.”
Even before the review, ByteDance and TikTok were lightning rod for privacy and safety concerns because Chinese national security laws compel organizations in the country to assist with intelligence gathering.
Such concerns led the U.S. House of Representatives to pass a bill in March designed to ban TikTok unless its China-based owner sells its stake in the business.
Champagne’s office has maintained Canada’s review was not related to the U.S. bill, which has yet to pass.
Canada’s review was carried out through the Investment Canada Act, which allows the government to investigate any foreign investment with potential to might harm national security.
While cabinet can make investors sell parts of the business or shares, Champagne has said the act doesn’t allow him to disclose details of the review.
Wednesday’s dissolution order was made in accordance with the act.
The federal government banned TikTok from its mobile devices in February 2023 following the launch of an investigation into the company by federal and provincial privacy commissioners.
— With files from Anja Karadeglija in Ottawa
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 6, 2024.
LONDON (AP) — Most people have accumulated a pile of data — selfies, emails, videos and more — on their social media and digital accounts over their lifetimes. What happens to it when we die?
It’s wise to draft a will spelling out who inherits your physical assets after you’re gone, but don’t forget to take care of your digital estate too. Friends and family might treasure files and posts you’ve left behind, but they could get lost in digital purgatory after you pass away unless you take some simple steps.
Here’s how you can prepare your digital life for your survivors:
Apple
The iPhone maker lets you nominate a “ legacy contact ” who can access your Apple account’s data after you die. The company says it’s a secure way to give trusted people access to photos, files and messages. To set it up you’ll need an Apple device with a fairly recent operating system — iPhones and iPads need iOS or iPadOS 15.2 and MacBooks needs macOS Monterey 12.1.
For iPhones, go to settings, tap Sign-in & Security and then Legacy Contact. You can name one or more people, and they don’t need an Apple ID or device.
You’ll have to share an access key with your contact. It can be a digital version sent electronically, or you can print a copy or save it as a screenshot or PDF.
Take note that there are some types of files you won’t be able to pass on — including digital rights-protected music, movies and passwords stored in Apple’s password manager. Legacy contacts can only access a deceased user’s account for three years before Apple deletes the account.
Google
Google takes a different approach with its Inactive Account Manager, which allows you to share your data with someone if it notices that you’ve stopped using your account.
When setting it up, you need to decide how long Google should wait — from three to 18 months — before considering your account inactive. Once that time is up, Google can notify up to 10 people.
You can write a message informing them you’ve stopped using the account, and, optionally, include a link to download your data. You can choose what types of data they can access — including emails, photos, calendar entries and YouTube videos.
There’s also an option to automatically delete your account after three months of inactivity, so your contacts will have to download any data before that deadline.
Facebook and Instagram
Some social media platforms can preserve accounts for people who have died so that friends and family can honor their memories.
When users of Facebook or Instagram die, parent company Meta says it can memorialize the account if it gets a “valid request” from a friend or family member. Requests can be submitted through an online form.
The social media company strongly recommends Facebook users add a legacy contact to look after their memorial accounts. Legacy contacts can do things like respond to new friend requests and update pinned posts, but they can’t read private messages or remove or alter previous posts. You can only choose one person, who also has to have a Facebook account.
You can also ask Facebook or Instagram to delete a deceased user’s account if you’re a close family member or an executor. You’ll need to send in documents like a death certificate.
TikTok
The video-sharing platform says that if a user has died, people can submit a request to memorialize the account through the settings menu. Go to the Report a Problem section, then Account and profile, then Manage account, where you can report a deceased user.
Once an account has been memorialized, it will be labeled “Remembering.” No one will be able to log into the account, which prevents anyone from editing the profile or using the account to post new content or send messages.
X
It’s not possible to nominate a legacy contact on Elon Musk’s social media site. But family members or an authorized person can submit a request to deactivate a deceased user’s account.
Passwords
Besides the major online services, you’ll probably have dozens if not hundreds of other digital accounts that your survivors might need to access. You could just write all your login credentials down in a notebook and put it somewhere safe. But making a physical copy presents its own vulnerabilities. What if you lose track of it? What if someone finds it?
Instead, consider a password manager that has an emergency access feature. Password managers are digital vaults that you can use to store all your credentials. Some, like Keeper,Bitwarden and NordPass, allow users to nominate one or more trusted contacts who can access their keys in case of an emergency such as a death.
But there are a few catches: Those contacts also need to use the same password manager and you might have to pay for the service.
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Is there a tech challenge you need help figuring out? Write to us at onetechtip@ap.org with your questions.
LONDON (AP) — Britain’s competition watchdog said Thursday it’s opening a formal investigation into Google’s partnership with artificial intelligence startup Anthropic.
The Competition and Markets Authority said it has “sufficient information” to launch an initial probe after it sought input earlier this year on whether the deal would stifle competition.
The CMA has until Dec. 19 to decide whether to approve the deal or escalate its investigation.
“Google is committed to building the most open and innovative AI ecosystem in the world,” the company said. “Anthropic is free to use multiple cloud providers and does, and we don’t demand exclusive tech rights.”
San Francisco-based Anthropic was founded in 2021 by siblings Dario and Daniela Amodei, who previously worked at ChatGPT maker OpenAI. The company has focused on increasing the safety and reliability of AI models. Google reportedly agreed last year to make a multibillion-dollar investment in Anthropic, which has a popular chatbot named Claude.
Anthropic said it’s cooperating with the regulator and will provide “the complete picture about Google’s investment and our commercial collaboration.”
“We are an independent company and none of our strategic partnerships or investor relationships diminish the independence of our corporate governance or our freedom to partner with others,” it said in a statement.
The U.K. regulator has been scrutinizing a raft of AI deals as investment money floods into the industry to capitalize on the artificial intelligence boom. Last month it cleared Anthropic’s $4 billion deal with Amazon and it has also signed off on Microsoft’s deals with two other AI startups, Inflection and Mistral.
