Apple releases iOS 16.2 with iCloud backup encryption, Apple Music Sing, Freeform app, persistent settings and more

New iPhone features in iOS 16.2 include iCloud backup encryption, the Freeform app, Apple Music Sing, always-on display settings, and so on.

On December 13, 2022, Apple released the iOS 16.2 update, which brings more than a dozen new iPhone features to encrypt iCloud backup, turn off wallpapers and notifications on always-on displays, track medications and sleep on the lock screen, and collaborate and draw with others.

How to update your iPhone to iOS 16.2

To install iOS 16.2 on your iPhone, go to Settings → General → Software Update. If you see multiple updates listed, select Download and Install or Install Now next to iOS 16.2. You may need to enter your iPhone passcode to continue.

If you don’t want your device to automatically install iOS software updates, go to Settings → General → Software Update → Automatic Updates and turn off the Download iOS Updates and Install iOS Updates toggles.

Be sure to leave the “Security responses and system files”option enabled. This feature allows your iPhone to receive Rapid Security Responses, which are fixes for critical vulnerabilities and zero-day exploits available before they are integrated into future iOS software updates.

What’s new in iOS 16.2?

Apple Music Sing Apple Music Sing is a new text-based experience for iOS, iPadOS, and macOS that includes multiple lyric views and vocal splitting to lower the volume of vocals for a better karaoke experience.

End-to-End Encryption for iCloud Backup Advanced Data Protection makes iCloud more secure by end-to-end encryption of device backups, including photo and message backups.

When enabled in iCloud settings on your device, encryption keys will be transferred from Apple’s servers to your device. This feature is available in the US, but will roll out to other countries in early 2023. For security reasons, you cannot immediately enable Advanced Data Protection on a new device.

The Freeform Freeform app is a new whiteboard-style app in iOS 16.2, iPadOS 16.2, and macOS Ventura 13.1 that supports real-time collaboration via FaceTime and iMessage. It reminds us of the Endless Paper app (for more information, visit the Endless Paper website.app).

Always-On Notifications and Wallpaper Toggles Display Settings in iOS 16.2 has new toggles under Display & Brightness → Always-On Display that allow you to turn off lock screen wallpaper and notifications when always on. This makes for a more minimalistic, Android-like always-on lock screen with a solid black background.

Medication and Sleep lock screen widgets iOS 16.2 introduces new Medication and Sleep lock screen widgets. The Medications widget lets you track your pill intake and quickly view your medication schedule. With the Sleep widget, you can see your last sleep session and sleep stages on your lock screen.

10-minute limit for AirDrop setting “Everyone”The AirDrop setting “Everyone”in iOS 16.2 automatically reverts to “Contacts Only”after 10 minutes. The option has been conveniently renamed “Everyone for 10 minutes”. This change was first tested in China with iOS 16.1.1, but iOS 16.2 makes it available to all users. Apple says it prevents unwanted requests from strangers, but some people suspect it was a request from the Chinese government to prevent protesters from sharing information via AirDrop. There is no way to prevent this behavior.

Old notifications are shown by default In iOS 16.2, iPadOS 16.2, and macOS Ventura 13.1, old notifications are now shown by default in the Action Center without having to swipe up instead of being hidden. This will prevent missed notifications as iOS will no longer remove the new invisible notification from the lock screen and send it to the Notification Center.

Modern architecture for the Home app The Home app in iOS 16.2, iPadOS 16.2, and macOS Ventura 13.1 has a more modern architecture that should improve app performance and improve the reliability of smart home appliance controls.

5G in India iOS 16.2 adds support for 5G cellular networks to the iPhone 12, which will later be sold in India through carriers Airtel and Reliance Jio.

More frequent real-time event updates Live Action now supports sports scores. This allows you to track results in real time from the lock screen or Dynamic Island without having to launch the app.

To get started, select the Sports tab in the TV app and click Subscribe to find a supported game. Live sports scores are available for NBA and Premier League games (US and Canada) and MLB games (US, Canada, Australia, UK, Brazil, Mexico, Japan, and South Korea).

tidbits

• Fixed an issue that prevented you from being able to exit the Camera app on the lock screen with a swipe.
• The Weather app brings together weather-related stories through Apple News.
• Message search now supports object recognition similar to Photos, making it easy to find animals, people, or text in images sent in chats.
• Game Center in iOS 16.2, iPadOS 16.2, and macOS Ventura 13.1 received Apple SharePlay support, which means you can start a multiplayer game via FaceTime.
• New sorting filters in the Stocks app include Ticker, Price, Percentage and more.
• Last but not least, iOS 16.2 fixes a long-standing bug that caused system animation to freeze and skip frames on the iPhone Pro.

Apple Release Notes for iOS 16.2

This update introduces the Freeform app, which offers a great place to brainstorm and bring your ideas to life. This release also brings Apple Music Sing, Advanced Data Protection for iCloud, lock screen improvements, and other features and bug fixes to your iPhone. Some features may not be available in all regions or on all Apple devices.

Free form

• Freeform is a new creative app for working with friends or colleagues on Mac, iPad and iPhone.
• The flexible canvas lets you add files, images, stickers, and more.
• The drawing tools allow you to draw anywhere on the canvas with your finger.

Apple Music Sing

• A new way to sing along to millions of your favorite songs in Apple Music.
• Fully adjustable vocals let you duet with the original artist, sing solo or mix.
• New and improved step-by-step lyrics make it even easier to follow the music.

Advanced data protection for iCloud

• The new option increases the total number of categories of iCloud data protected with end-to-end encryption to 23, including iCloud Backup, Notes, and Photos, protecting your information even in the event of a data breach in the cloud.

Lock screen

• New settings allow you to hide wallpapers or notifications when always displayed on iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max.
• The sleep widget allows you to view your most recent sleep data.
• The Medications widget lets you view reminders and quickly access your schedule.

game center

• SharePlay support in Game Center for multiplayer games so you can play with the people you’re talking to on FaceTime.
• The Activity widget lets you see what your friends are playing and what they’re achieving in games right from the home screen.

Apple TV

• The Apple TV Live Stream app lets you follow your favorite teams and track scores right on your lock screen or Dynamic Island on iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max.

House

• Improved communication reliability and efficiency between your smart home accessories and Apple devices.

Bug fixes and security updates in iOS 16.2:

• Improved search in Messages allows you to find photos based on their content, such as a dog, car, person, or text.
• The “Turn off IP address hiding”option allows iCloud Private Relay users to temporarily disable the service for a specific site in Safari.
• News articles in weather display information related to the weather at that location.
• Participant cursors in Notes let you see live indicators when others make changes to a shared note.
• AirDrop now only automatically reverts to contacts after 10 minutes to prevent unwanted content requests.
• Optimized crash detection on iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Pro models.
• Fixes an issue that caused some notes to not sync to iCloud after updates were made.

Some features may not be available in all regions or on all Apple devices. For details, visit the iOS 16 feature availability webpage. For information about security content in Apple software updates, visit support.apple.com/kb/HT201222.

Another useful iOS update

As you can see, iOS 16.2 brings a lot of changes, improvements, and new features for you to explore and experiment with. This release is still missing some features that will come in future updates. We definitely expect at least two major updates – iOS 16.3 and iOS 16.4 – to arrive in the first half of 2023 before Apple starts talking about iOS 17. See: New Features in iOS 16 Messages