Just about every year, Apple announces new software and occasionally some hardware at its World Wide Developer Conference (WWDC). With that, the public and developers alike are stoked for the newest version of iOS.
Developers, of course, must get access to the newest operating system well before the public release in the fall so that they can better prepare their apps to perform well and play nice with the new operating system. Even though the new version of iOS becomes available for developers to download and install nearly immediately after the Keynote, regular users still want to get their hands on the software. It’s typically frowned upon by Apple to do so, but it can be done.
Just know that downloading and installing the new iOS 11 on a non-development device is not recommended as it will likely be bug-filled and have crashes from time to time. Again, I strongly recommend NOT installing iOS 11 onto a mission-critical device.
You can, however, wait until Apple releases the public iOS beta in just a few weeks, to avoid so many bugs and crashes. You can click here to sign up to recieve the profile when it is ready.
Also, make a full backup to iCloud or iTunes on your PC or Mac before continuing. This way you can revert back to an old version of iOS if need be.
What New Features Are Offered in iOS 11?
This is not by any means a deep and detailed list but a few new features to get excited about include:
- The addition of a Dock like that on Mac for iPad
- An all-new, redesigned Control Center with customizability and 3D-Touch support
- View recent notifications at a glance and older ones with a swipe
- “Do Not Disturb While Driving”
- New compression formats for photos and video
- An all-new Files app
Installing the iOS 11 Developer Beta
1. To install the iOS 11 Developer Beta, simply copy and paste the following link (https://beta.applebetas.co/ios) into Safari for this to work properly. Opening the link through any other application (such as if this article were being viewed within a Reddit client) will effectively block the profile install window from being launched.
2. Click “Install” from this newly-opened window within the iOS Settings application.
3. Once installed, restart your device.
4. Then, launch Settings, visit General, then Software Update. iOS 11 Developer Beta 1 will now be captured through the update portal, and you can now begin the download and install process.
5. This update will be installed like any other update. Just be sure to keep your device plugged in and do not restart it for any reason. This could corrupt the update.
Downgrading Back to iOS 10
To downgrade, things can get a bit more complicated. This is why it is suggested not to install iOS 11 on a mission-critical device and if you are not all that tech savvy. Downgrading will require a Mac or PC with iTunes installed.
1. Begin by fully shutting down your iOS device. Place it in Recovery Mode by holding down the Home button indefinitely. When the device shows “Connect to iTunes,” release the Home button.
2. Launch iTunes and plug in your iOS device running iOS 11.
3. An iTunes window describing the device as being in recovery mode will launch. Click “okay” to begin the restore process.
4. Finally, click restore and update.
5. Your iOS 11 backups will be non-functional, but any from iOS 10 will be! You can restore from one of these or set up your iOS device as a new one.
Conclusion
What’s your favorite feature of iOS 11? Also, what bugs have you ran into over the course of using iOS 11, and how did you get around them? We would love to know in a comment! If you have any questions or issues regarding the process, please leave a comment below, and we will be sure to get back to you.
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