iOS 17.4 RC Released - What's New?

Summary

In this video, Brandon covers the release of iOS and iPadOS 17.4 release candidate to developers and public beta testers. He highlights new features like adding identified songs to Apple Music playlists, displaying business logos for call ID, iMessage encryption enhancements, and new emoji. He tests performance which seems great so far and shows Geekbench scores. Brandon expects the public release next week, likely Monday March 4th, with iOS 17.5 betas to follow. WatchOS, macOS, and tvOS RCs aren't released yet so should come later this week or after iOS 17.4 public release.

Takeaways

• 😀 Apple released iOS 17.4 RC and other beta software updates to developers and public beta testers
• 📱 iOS 17.4 RC build number is 21E5217 with modem firmware 1.55.04
• 🆕 New features include adding songs from Music Recognition to playlists, business name in Caller ID, and new emoji
• 🔋 Battery life seems improved over iOS 17.3 in testing
• 🎵 Changes in Music app: Listen Now renamed to Home, Monthly Replay
• 🎙 Podcast transcripts now more accessible with text sizing, contrast changing, VoiceOver support
• ⛔ Still no NFC setting in privacy or animation fix when searching podcast transcripts
• 📈 Geekbench scores slightly higher single-core and slightly lower multi-core vs beta 4
• 🔜 Expect iOS 17.4 final release likely next Monday, March 4
• 🌀 iOS 17.5 beta 1 could also come next week after 17.4 release

Q & A

What version of iOS was released as an RC build?

iOS 17.4 and iPadOS 17.4 were released as RC (release candidate) builds.

What is the build number for the iOS 17.4 RC release?

The build number for the iOS 17.4 RC release is 21E217.

What new music recognition feature was added in iOS 17.4?

A new feature was added that allows you to add identified songs directly to your Apple Music playlists and library.

What change was made to call identification in iOS 17.4?

Call identification now displays an Apple verified business name logo, department name when available.

What bug was fixed related to the Find My widget?

A bug was fixed where the Find My widget would fail to show a contact's picture around 50-60% of the time.

What change was made to the battery settings page?

The battery health information is now shown on the main battery settings page before entering a submenu.

What new emojis were added in iOS 17.4?

New mushroom, phoenix, lime, broken chain and shaking heads emojis were added along with 18 new people/body emojis.

What enhancement was made to Apple Podcast transcriptions?

Accessibility features were added like adjustable text size, increased contrast and VoiceOver support.

When is iOS 17.4 expected to be publicly released?

iOS 17.4 is expected to be publicly released on Monday, March 4th.

Could there be an iOS 17.4 RC2 release?

It's unlikely but possible if issues are found in testing that need to be addressed quickly.

Outlines

00:00

📱 Overview of iOS 17.4 RC Release

The paragraph provides an overview of the iOS 17.4 RC (Release Candidate) version that was released by Apple. It discusses the version number, build details, update size, new features like music recognition additions, call ID changes, messages for business context, bug fixes, new emoji, Siri language support changes, and expectations for the final 17.4 release.

05:01

🎧 Enhancements to Apple Music and Podcasts

The paragraph talks about some of the changes related to Apple Music and Podcasts in iOS 17.4 RC. This includes a new Home tab, monthly replay, podcast transcriptions being more accessible, and a bug with the podcast search animation.

10:01

📈 Performance and Release Plans for 17.4 and 17.5

The paragraph discusses the performance, battery life impressions, Geekbench scores, and release timeline expectations for iOS 17.4 and 17.5 going forward. It also mentions how the RC version has only been released so far for iOS and iPadOS, with other platforms pending.

Keywords

💡iOS 17.4 RC

iOS 17.4 RC refers to the Release Candidate version of iOS 17.4. This is typically the final version of the iOS software that Apple releases to the public. In the video, Brandon mentions that the iOS 17.4 RC was released to developers and public beta testers. This version has bug fixes and performance improvements over previous iOS 17.4 betas.

💡battery health

The battery health feature shows the maximum capacity and current condition of your iPhone's battery in Settings. Brandon mentions that the font size for the battery health information was increased in iOS 17.4 beta 5/RC compared to previous betas.

💡Apple music transcriptions

A new Apple Music feature in iOS 17.4 that provides real-time transcriptions/lyrics for songs and podcasts. This allows users to follow along with lyrics and search transcripts. Brandon demonstrates this feature in the Podcasts app.

💡EU law

EU law requires Apple to allow sideloading of third-party apps on iPhones by a certain date. Brandon explains that Apple is rushing to release iOS 17.4 to meet this EU regulation deadline, which is why iOS RC came before other platforms.

💡music recognition

The Music Recognition feature in iOS uses Shazam technology to identify songs playing around you. Brandon shows that iOS 17.4 adds the ability to automatically add identified songs to your Apple Music library or playlists.

💡call identification

A Phone app feature that displays verified business names and logos for incoming calls. Brandon notes that additional context was added for this in iOS 17.4.

💡messages for business

An iMessage feature for managing business communications like orders, appointments etc that users opt into. Brandon cites improvements in iOS 17.4 for providing more context around these business messages.

💡new emoji

iOS 17.4 includes new emoji characters like mushrooms, phoenix, broken chain etc. Brandon shows what some of these new emoji look like on iPhone.

💡imessage encryption

Enhanced end-to-end encryption for iMessage content in iOS 17.4. Brandon notes that indicators for this new encryption were missing from the iOS 17.4 RC.

💡iOS 17.5

The next major version of iOS after 17.4. Brandon predicts Apple will release the first developer betas of iOS 17.5 shortly after iOS 17.4's public release.

Highlights

Apple released the release candidate version of iOS and iPadOS 17.4 to developers and public beta testers

New features allow adding identified songs to Apple Music playlists and library after using Music Recognition

Call Identification now displays verified business names, logos and department names when available

Messages for business provides trusted information for transactions you opt into

The Find My widget now properly shows contact pictures

New mushroom, phoenix, lime, broken chain and shaking heads emoji added

Apple Podcast transcriptions now available for accessibility features

Siri can now respond in a combination of English and Hindi

iOS 17.4 RC performance and battery life feel great so far

Expect iOS 17.4 final release likely on Monday, March 4

First betas of iOS 17.5 could come next week after 17.4 release

WatchOS, macOS and tvOS RCs not released yet, could come later this week

Apple prioritizing iOS 17.4 release due to EU sideloading laws

Geekbench scores slightly higher single-core and lower multi-core

Make sure to follow on Twitter for the latest software release news

Transcripts

what's up guys my name is Brandon and

today Apple released the RC or release

candidate version of iOS and iPad OS

17.4 to both register developers and to

public beta testers now along with this

release we also got watchos 10.4 beta 5

Mac osoma 14.4 beta 5 tbos 17.4 beta 5

and also Vision OS 1.1 beta 4 now for

older devices we did also get iOS and

iPad OS 16.7 point6 RC and iOS and iPad

OS 15.8 point2 RC but of course in this

video we're talking all about iOS and

iPad OS 17.4 RC so you can see the size

came in at 6.46 GB on my 15 Pro Max and

that size is only large because we're

going from a beta to a final release

which the RC is typically the final

release the same version same build

number that everybody will get in the

public next week so that is why the size

is large if you're coming from 17.31 and

going to 17.4 you're not going to see a

6 gbyte file next week but anyways let's

look at the new build number for this

iOS 17.4 RC so it's 21e

217 and if we go back and check out the

modem firmware that is 1. 155.0 4 all

right so now what's new here in iOS 17.4

RC now I'm going to focus on on

different features and changes that we

did not already cover beforehand so if

you want to see every single new feature

and change in iOS 17.4 that will be in

my official what's new video which is

coming next week when 17.4 releases to

the general public so as usual Apple

released a big log of release notes Here

4 17.4 and there were a few things in

there that were not covered beforehand

so the first thing I want to talk about

is this one right here where it says

music recognition lets you to add songs

you've identified to your Apple music

playlists and Library as well as Apple

music classical so if we go into our

Control Center and go to our music

recognition toggle right there the

Shazam one we're going to tap and hold

to see our history so these were all the

songs that I you know heard and I wanted

to know the name of it so we have this

one right here that I just did for this

test and you can see that now it shows

not only Apple music which it showed

that beforehand but we also have this

add to button and now when you tap on

that you will have to you know give uh

Shazam access to your Apple music

account but you can see you can

automatically add songs to a specific

playlist after you identify them with

music recognition which is pretty cool

and of course this does also work for

Apple music classical as well if you

maybe you know played a classical song

that's available in that application

this update also includes a change to

call identification so it now displays

Apple verified business name logo and

Department name when available there's

also some additional context surrounding

the change in settings messages and then

down here near the bottom we have

messages for business there's some new

context around this so Apple says

business updates and messages for

business provides trusted information

for order status flight notifications

fraud alerts or other transactions you

opt into there's also a bug fix for the

find my widget so it now shows the

contact picture whereas before on 17 .3

and

17.31 that would be blank like 50 to 60%

of the time there's also a fix for dual

SIM users where the phone number changes

from primary to secondary and is visible

to a group they have messaged now

there's also a change to one of the big

changes in the settings so if you go

into your settings on an iPhone 15 or 15

Pro device and go into battery we now

have battery health and it shows normal

right here before you even go into a

section whereas before you would have to

click into there to see your maximum

capacity now that's not what's new here

that was in previous betas of 17.4

what's new is that when you go under

battery health and tap on the about

battery and warranty section that text

is now larger than it was on beta 4 so

you can see beta 4 on the left beta 5 on

the right so it looks like some

formatting changes and also some changes

to the font size also the first time I

opened up the music application I got

this splash screen that says what's new

in apple music and it shows monthly

replay and listen now is now home so

what that's talking about is on the

little tab bar down here in the bottom

it now says home instead of listen now

and that's also across other

applications like podcasts as well as

you can see down here there's also new

Emoji in iOS 17.4 and apple describes

what these are specifically in the

release notes which is pretty

interesting so they say new mushroom

Phoenix lime broken chain and shaking

heads Emoji along with 18 people and

body emoji emoi and which we've already

showed but these are what the new Emoji

look like in 17.4 also mentioned is that

Apple podcast transcriptions are also

available for accessibility so you can

change the text size increase contrast

and have voice over for podcast

transcriptions which if you don't know

what that is if you've not been

following the betas if you go into one

of your podcasts you can see down in the

bottom left now on the now playing

screen you have a new lyrics icon which

will open up the transcriptions and it

Act just as lyrics do in apple music so

it goes along with the voice so you can

see it goes along in real time with the

voice of the podcast you could also tap

here you could search the transcript or

you could also tap on the top right to

go to the three dots and then go to view

transcript and you can see the entire

thing outlined right here but

unfortunately Apple did not fix the

clunky animation when you tap to search

in the podcast you can see that has that

really clunky slow animation there so

I'll show you one more time it take a

look right here it kind of drops down so

this might be the new notification

center bug that never gets fixed for you

know a year so hopefully Apple fixes

that in the next version also I did want

to point out that there are no

indicators of the new iMessage

encryption enhancements with 17.4 here

in the RC release they're just all on

the back end which if you don't know

what I'm talking about just go back and

watch my Apple weekly episode from

Saturday also if you go into your

settings and into privacy and security

we still have not seen the return of the

N f c section that was here in the

privacy and security section in beta 1

so for some reason that was never added

back to iOS 17.4 but we do have pass

Keys access for web browsers that's new

in 17.4 that remained until the final

release anyways moving on to the release

notes here there's only two new features

that have been added to the release

notes going from beta 4 to the RC so no

bug fixes just some changes here some

additions and you can see the first one

has to do with Siri so it says Siri can

respond in a combination of English and

Hindi depending on the primary language

you use to interact with Siri and then

there's also a new feature under

gestures and reactions for developers

now as far as the performance goes here

on iOS 17.4 the RC release it feels

great I mean I've really had no issues

yet of course it's only been about an

hour and a half since I installed the

software but still no issues that of

note you know at least not yet I will

give you guys an update in my app weekly

episode on Saturday if anything changes

and same goes with battery life you guys

will have to tell me what I started this

video with but it seems like battery

life is holding up great here and I

really started noticing that with beta 4

so I would assume that iOS 17.4 battery

life in general will be better than 17.3

and

17.31 at least from my experience which

I have been using it on my main device

as well so I have pretty good experience

with 17.4 and it seems to be better now

I I just realized I forgot to show the

geekbench scores here for iOS 17.4 RC so

you can see 2951 on the single core 7299

on the multicore so we can see how that

compares to the previous build which was

beta 4 and it does have a higher single

core but a very slightly lower multicore

score so take these all with a grain of

salt it's not really indicative of dayto

day usage but it is always interesting

to log these all right so now let's talk

about what to expect next from Apple so

next up is going to be the final release

of iOS 17.4 and I would expect to see

that next week most likely on Monday

March 4th now it could potentially go

until Tuesday or Wednesday but I highly

doubt it Apple typically releases final

versions of software on Mondays so we

should see that on Monday March 4th

around the same time as usual now we

could also see the first betas of iOS

17.5 go out next week as well so Apple

typically releases the next versions

betas pretty much the day after or that

same week of the final release so we

should see 17.5 beta 1 next week but it

could also be pushed until the week

following you really never know with

apple these days and I do also want to

touch on the other versions that got

released today because if you noticed in

the beginning we only got the RC version

for iOS and iPad OS so watch OS Mac OS

and tvos are not on the RCs verion yet

so that means that either they're going

to be released later this week or

they're just going to be released after

the iOS and iPad OS updates which I

think that's less likely but it seems

like we might be seeing the RC version

for watch OS Mac OS and tvos later this

week I don't necessarily think that this

means we're going to get an rc2 for iOS

17.4 I mean it's not out of the question

it is possible but I don't think that

that is Apple's plan right now I think

they're just going to release those at a

later time because once again if you

forgot Apple is you know abiding by EU

law they have to have 17.4 out by next

week because of the whole side loing

issue so that's why apple is in a hurry

to release iOS 17.4 and not necessarily

watch OS Mac OS or tvos so we'll have to

wait and see of course make sure to

follow me over on X or Twitter for the

latest on these software releases but

anyways that is IOS 17.4 the RC version

make sure to stay tuned for my final

release video that's coming next week

when 17.4 is released to the general

public but if you guys enjoy this video

as always I would appreciate if you give

it a thumbs up also make sure to

subscribe for a lot more videos just

like this one but anyways guys thanks

again for watching and I'll see you soon