With this week's release, Apple is clearing the decks and getting ready for an imminent public release.
At this point, the beta program is in a bit of a holding pattern as rumors of iOS 13 start to leak out and we wait for WWDC on June 3. At that conference, Apple will announce new features and betas for iOS 13, macOS, watchOS, and more.
What Are We Waiting For?
iOS 13 is bringing the long awaited dark mode to the iPhone. How do we know for sure? The fact that Google introduced an official Dark Mode on their latest version of Android at this week's I/O conference is a pretty good indicator.
In addition, we're getting a redesigned Reminders app, new "Sidecar" features that work with macOS, the combination of the Find iPhone and Find Friends apps, new Message features, a revamped Health app, Sleep mode, and a whole lot more.
What Are We Getting Now?
But in the meantime, we have iOS 12.3, Public Beta 5. What's in this new release? Nothing that wasn't already in a previous release.
Not that this release doesn't have its fair share of interesting things to test out. If this is your first dive into the Public Beta program, then you're in for a treat. The revamped Apple TV app is everything promised at the media event last month, with a clean new design, new subscriptions and more.
Beyond Apple TV, though, there's not a lot to talk about in iOS 12.3. It's a substantial release, but it feels like the majority of iOS is off limits to tweaking.
Off limits, or just not being touched until a looming larger release.
What's Next?
Honestly, iOS 12.3 could have dropped last week. It could have been pushed out to the public this week. The Apple TV feature seems totally wrapped and the few minor bugs that did crop up have been squashed for weeks.
The holdup, then, is that June 3 developer conference. I suspect Apple will wait till just before WWDC to release iOS 12.3, possibly laying groundwork for iOS 13 in the next couple of Public Beta releases.
Expect weekly releases for the rest of May. Will we see an iOS 12.3.1 or iOS 12.4 Public Beta? It's possible. We did last year, after all. In fact the release of the iOS 12 public beta overlapped the final iOS 11 public beta test. The same could happen again.
Just keep those iDevices updated and enjoy the calm before the storm. Lots of exciting things are coming to the Public Beta program soon!
