Apple today sent the iOS 16.1 Release Candidate to developers ahead of the update’s expected release next week. The release notes for the update confirm that iOS 16.1 will enable iCloud Shared Photo Library, the ability to share keys in the Wallet app via apps such as Messages and WhatsApp, and the Apple Card’s new savings account option.
iCloud‌ Shared Photo Library makes it easier to share photos with your family or friends in the Photos app. This feature allows you and up to five other people to add, edit, or delete photos in a shared library accessible through iCloud.
Last week, Apple announced that Apple Card users can open a new “high-yield” savings account from Goldman Sachs and have their daily cash back rewards automatically deposited there, with no fees, no minimum deposits and no minimum balance requirements. Users can manage the savings account in the Wallet app.
iOS 16.1 also includes support for Live Activities in third-party apps, a Clean Energy Charging option in the United States, support for Matter accessories in the Home app, Apple Fitness+ workouts without Apple Watch, reachability support for Dynamic Island, bug fixes for the Messages app and using a VPN with CarPlay, and more.
Apple’s full release notes for iOS 16.1:
This update introduces iCloud Shared Photo Library, making it easy to keep your family photos up to date. This release also adds support for third-party apps in Live Activities, support for Apple Fitness+ on iPhone even if you don’t have an Apple Watch, and includes other features and bug fixes for your iPhone.
Shared iCloud Photo Library – Separate library for seamlessly sharing photos and videos with up to five other people – Setup rules make it easy to contribute past photos based on the start date or people in the photos when you set up or join a library – Library filters for quickly switching between viewing the shared library, your personal library, or both libraries together- Shared edits and permissions allow anyone to add, edit, favorite, caption and delete photos- Swap with Share in Camera lets you choose to photos you take directly to the Shared library, or enable a setting to automatically share when other participants are detected nearby via Bluetooth
Live Activities – Live Activities from third-party apps are available on Dynamic Island and on the lock screen for iPhone 14 Pro models
Fitness+- Apple Fitness+ is supported on iPhone even if you don’t have an Apple Watch
Wallet- Key Sharing allows you to securely share car, hotel room and other keys in Wallet using messaging apps like Messages and WhatsApp- Savings Account allows Apple Card customers to grow their daily cash by using it on a high-yield savings account
Home-Matter, the new standard for smart home connectivity, is supported, enabling a wide range of smart home accessories to work together in different ecosystems
Clean energy charging – New institution that can try to reduce your carbon footprint by selectively charging when electricity with lower CO2 emissions is available
Books – Reader controls are automatically hidden when you start reading
This update also includes bug fixes for your iPhone:- Deleted conversations may appear in the conversation list in Messages- Dynamic Island content is not available when using Reachability- CarPlay may not connect when using a VPN app
iOS 16.1 is expected to be released on Monday, October 24, along with iPadOS 16.1 and macOS Ventura.