Apple releases iOS 16.1 with support for iCloud shared photo library, matter, live activities and more

Apple today released iOS 16.1, the first major update to the iOS 16 operating system. iOS 16.1 comes more than a month after the launch of ‌iOS 16‌, which was released in September.

iOS 16.1 will be available to all the same devices that iOS 16 is currently able to run on, which means all iPhones powered by the A11 Bionic SoC and later, starting with the iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and iPhone X.

iPhone users can navigate to Settings > General > Software Update to check for iOS 16.1 on their device, or wait for a prompt if they have automatic updates enabled.

iOS 16.1 will introduce some very visible new features, most notably Live Activities which are notifications that can stay pinned to users' lock screens to show live updates of ongoing activities. These could include sports scores, breaking news, and even status updates for delivery apps. The Live Activities API will allow third-party app developers to create integrations with the iOS lock screen and even the Dynamic Island on iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max devices.

iCloud Shared Photo Library was announced when iOS 16 was first previewed. This feature will allow users who use iCloud family sharing to save photos and videos directly to a joint library. Up to six family members can access this photo library, and choose which of their existing photos and videos to add to it.

The much-requested battery percentage icon also returns in iOS 16.1 in a more useful avatar that actually indicates the battery level visually. It will also be visible on eligible iPhone models with smaller and lower-res screens, which weren't able to display iin iOS 16.

Matter, the emerging smart home and IoT device communication standard, will be supported starting with iOS 16.1. This could help spur the adoption of smart home accessories, creating a unified ecosystem that's easy to manage and add to.

Clean Energy Charging might not be available in India yet, but this will allow users in countries with variable energy sources to choose to prioritize drawing power when the grid is being fed by clean, renewable sources.

Some of the default iOS apps will also see minor tweaks. Users will be able to delete the Wallet app if they don't want to use it. The wallpaper settings and screenshot editing UIs are also expected to be slightly improved.

The current version of iOS is 16.0.3. Apple introduced iOS 16 with the launch of the iPhone 14 series in early September, with a dramatic overhaul of the lockscreen UI, the introduction of lockscreen widgets, the ability to edit iMessages, improved search in the email app, more Siri commands, text recognition in videos, a Fitness app that works even without an Apple Watch, and multiple bug fixes. The incremental releases since then have also mainly focused on squashing bugs and improving security.

Which iPhone models support iOS 16

iOS 16.1 will be compatible with the recently launched iPhone 14 series, which includes the iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 14 Pro, and iPhone 14 Pro Max.

The iPhone 13 series models are also all eligible: the iPhone 13, iPhone 13 mini, iPhone 13 Pro, and iPhone 13 Pro Max are still popular and widely available in India.

Apple's iPhone 12, iPhone 12 mini, iPhone 12 Pro, and iPhone 12 Pro Max as well as the iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, and iPhone 11 Pro Max will also receive an update to the newest version of iOS.

The oldest eligible devices are the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, iPhone XR, iPhone X, iPhone 8, and iPhone 8 Plus. The more affordable iPhone SE (2020) and iPhone SE (2022) will also be able to run iOS 16.1. Apple dropped support for older models dating back to the iPhone 6S and even the last iPod touch model for the first time since iOS 13 was released.