iOS 16.1 is out! Here are the standout new features

Download it! You can now install iOS 16.1 on your iPhone. It is a relatively large interim update, which brings several new features to your iPhone.

Download iOS 16.1

iOS 16.1 has been available for the iPhone since tonight at 7:00 PM. The first version of iPadOS 16 has also been released. With the update, your device has two major features: ‘Live Activities’ and ‘Shared Library’. More on that later.

This is how you download iOS 16.1:

1. Make sure your iPhone or iPad battery is at least 50 percent full, or hang it on the charger;
2. Go to the Settings app and tap “General”;
3. Choose “Software Update” and tap “Download and Install.”

The new features of iOS 16.1

In an article we have extensively listed the iOS 16.1 functions. One of the most interesting is ‘Live Activities’. This allows you to see the progress of ongoing activities right from the iPhone’s lock screen.

Live activities

For example, you can see the standings of a sports match, without having to unlock your iPhone. In this way, a parcel service can also keep you informed of the estimated time of arrival via the access screen. Apps must still support the new API. The apps from Starbucks and Uber do that, for example. If we know more apps, you’ll read it on iPhoned.

Shared library

With iOS 16.1, there is also a new way to share photos. You can create a shared album in iCloud where you can share photos with up to five others. Rules can be set here, so that (previously) taken photos are automatically added.

To create a shared library, do the following:

1. Open the Settings app;
2. Scroll down and tap ‘Photos’;
3. Select ‘Shared library’.

Battery percentage

A small, but very nice improvement is the battery percentage in the status bar. It could already be added with iOS 16 (via the Settings app, under ‘Battery’), but the icon was very confusing. Visually, the battery icon always remained full.

With iOS 16.1, the icon corresponds to the percentage. Also, Apple is bringing the percentage to more iPhones, so the iPhone XR, iPhone 12 mini and iPhone 13 mini can also add it.

You can read more about the new features in the following article:

Also read: iOS 16.1 coming out tonight! These are the 7 new features