iOS 14.4 and WatchOS 7.3 released to the public – here’s what’s inside

Today your iPhone may have access to the newest in iOS software, iOS 14.4. This new software upgrade for your device has access to a collection of new features and upgrades to features already in-play on the phone. Apple also released the newest in Apple Watch software with watchOS 7.3 this morning – let’s take a peek at what’s inside.

The newest in iOS software include the ability to classify Bluetooth device type in Settings. With this upgrade, users will allow users to correctly identify which devices are headphones or otherwise non-headphone speakers for audio notifications.

With iOS 14.4, users will be able to recognize “smaller” QR codes than ever before. These will be recognized by the standard iPhone camera – for those times when your QR codes are tiny, tiny babies!

This update also fixes a bunch of issues for various bits of your iPhone. The iPhone 12 Pro had an issue where image artifacts appeared in HDR photos – that should be fixed. This update should fix the issue where your keyboard would come up with the wrong language in Messages.

This update should also fix an issue where typing was delayed whilst typing with the standard keyboard. Users will also more likely see suggestions for words while typing.

Perhaps the strangest bit of this update is the camera notification “improvement.” Per Apple, this update includes “notifications for when the camera on your iPhone is unable to be verified as a new, genuine Apple camera in iPhone 12, iPhone 12 mini, iPhone 12 Pro, or iPhone 12 Pro Max.” So… no installing a new oddball bit of camera hardware on your device – Apple will know!

This may be important for people who work in government or otherwise volatile spy-adjacent operations, where their hardware could be compromised. It’s better for your smartphone to have the ability to recognize “genuine” components than for you to have a device with sneaky parts inside, right? This specific sort of situation only really happens once in a great while, of course.

Meanwhile, watchOS 7.3 was released with a new Unity watch face. This watchface is inspired by the colors of the Pan-African Flag, and it includes shapes that change “throughout the day as you move creating a face that’s unique to you.” This is just part of the new look setup for the Apple Watch shown by Apple today.

This update also brings “Time to Walk” for Apple Fitness+ subscribers. This is “an audio experience in the Workout app where guests share inspiring stories as you walk.” There’s also a fix for an issue where, if Zoom was enabled, Control Center and Notification Center might’ve become unresponsive.