It's that time of year again, and after Apple rolls out its annual launch of the new iPhone, you can bet a new iOS is coming with it.
While there was disappointment that the much-hyped Apple Intelligence was released as part of October's iOS 18.1, there were even more glum faces when only certain territories were given a glimpse at the future of the tech giant.
Now that the kinks have been iron out, iOS 18.2 is set to be the biggest Apple update of the year.
Supposedly giving us the next generation of Apple Intelligence, iOS 18.2 boasts new features like ChatGPT integration, time to charge estimates, and AI-powered image generation. Apple is still keeping a lid on when iOS 18.2 is coming out, but thanks to a UK carrier, it might've spoiled the surprise early.
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Bloomberg's Marc Gurman previously suggested the week of December 2 could be the one to mark in your diaries, and thanks to a gaffe from EE, it looks like he was on the money.
EE is disabling the iPhone feature called 'Wi-Fi calling on other supported iCloud-connected devices' on December 9. Remembering that carrier settings are typically bundled with a new iOS release, it's easy to connect the dots.
Even though Apple doesn't seem to be discontinuing the Wi-Fi Calling feature, EE is likely stopping the service in the UK.
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While iOS 18.1 was the big one that started the Apple Intelligence wagon rolling, it's 18.2 that should really be able to showcase the future of Apple.
As previously mentioned, not everyone will be able to make the most of Apple Intelligence.
Any phone that has the A12 Bionic chip or later will be able to download iOS 18.1, but it's only the only the iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, and all phones in the iPhone 16 range that will be able to make the most of Apple's AI innovations.
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Those in the UK could previously 'trick' their iPhone into letting them try Apple Intelligence by setting their device language and Siri to English (United States), but with the launch of iOS 18.2, everyone (well, if you've got the right phone) can test out all these new bells and whistles.
Apple's updates don't stop here, with more AI features expected to land alongside iOS 18.4 in April 2025.
The iOS 18.4 update will include a smarter Siri that will use your device's data to help you more than ever. iOS 18.4 will finally offer Apple Intelligence to those in the European Union, but it's bad news for China, which isn't expected to access AI features until iOS 19 at the earliest.
Despite some worries about what an overreliance on AI will lead to, 2024 is rounding off with an AI boom. As well as one of the biggest tech companies in the world finally succumbing to the powers of AI, Donald Trump has promised an improved focus on AI when he becomes 47th President of the United States.