New Features in iOS 15.2
Later this year, Apple will release iOS 15.2, the second major additional update to iOS 15. In it, Apple adds some features that were previously delayed, but also includes a number of other additional improvements. For example, the TV app gets a number of useful improvements and there are also new possibilities for detecting an AirTag. These are the new features of iOS 15.2:
- Privacy Report
- Legacy Contact
- Hide Email Address in Mail App
- TV app
- AirTag improvements
- Refreshed scheduled notification overview
- Additional emergency notification switch
- iMessage Communication Safety (US)
#1 Privacy Report for Apps
One of the biggest new features in iOS 15.2 is the app privacy report. This allows you to view which activities they have performed per app. This way you get a better insight into which data apps have used (such as your location) and which network activities apps have performed. It's a kind of counterpart to the privacy report in Safari, which shows which trackers appear on websites. You can read how the privacy report for apps works in our tip.
#2 Legacy contact after your death
Hopefully you won't need this new feature in iOS 15.2 for a long time, but it can come in handy. With the Bereavement Contact function you can set who can access the data on your iPhone after your death. Your inheritance contact will need the iCloud access key and a copy of your death certificate. The moment you die, your inheritance contact has access to your data such as photos, videos and documents. A reassuring thought, we think.
#3 Hide email address in Mail app
You may already know the Hide My Email feature, which Apple added in iOS 15. Anyone with iCloud+ can create any email address in the settings, for example if you need to register somewhere. The e-mails are then forwarded to your own personal e-mail address, without that service knowing which address it is. If there is a data breach, then only that random email address that you have used specifically for that service will be stolen. As of iOS 15.2, you will also find this feature directly in the Mail app. You can therefore create any email address directly from composing a new email.
#4 TV app gets sidebar on iPad and Store tab
The TV app gets two useful improvements. On the iPad, the button bar at the bottom has been replaced by a sidebar, like many other apps on the iPad. So you no longer have separate buttons at the bottom, but everything on the left side neatly under each other. That is a lot clearer and easier to use. But there is also something new on the iPhone. The TV app will have its own Store tab. In that part of the app you will only find films (and in the US and some other countries also series) that you can buy or rent separately. The TV app is often criticized for being cluttered and content from Apple TV+ and the iTunes Store mixed up. Previously, the TV app had a separate button for Apple TV+ originals, but now also for iTunes Store content.
#5 AirTag improvements to prevent tracking
If you are afraid that an unknown AirTag is secretly following you, Apple has already taken all kinds of anti-stalking measures. For example, an unknown AirTag will beep if it moves with you for a certain time and you will receive a notification on your iPhone. But if you're worried that there might be an unknown object nearby, Apple has now created a feature for that. The Objects That Can Track Me button in the Find My app scans for AirTags and other objects that support the Find My app. There is also a redesigned Help button for returning lost objects. This replaces the Identify Found Object button and helps you find out if the owner left a message with the object you found.
#6 Updated scheduled notification overview
The scheduled notification overview feature is getting a visual update. Instead of the notifications appearing one after the other, they now appear as separate ‘cards’ in a larger block, where the suit of the ‘cards’ matches that of the app. For example, WhatsApp's block is green and that of the iCulture app is white.
However, Apple has tweaked the design a bit in the second beta. It therefore remains to be seen which design Apple ultimately chooses in the final version of iOS 15.2.
#7 Additional switch for SOS emergency notification
There are multiple ways to activate SOS emergency notification: by pressing the side button five times or by holding down the side button and a volume button. Previously there was one switch to disable just the five presses, but now you can enable or disable both individual functions. There is also a longer 8-second countdown before calling emergency services and SOS contacts. Previously it was 3 seconds.
#8 iMessage Communication Safety feature (US only)
Last summer, Apple announced a series of measures to protect children from nude images. Two of those features included scanning iCloud Photos for nudes and alerting and blurring potentially sensitive photos via iMessage. Both features were indefinitely postponed, after firing criticism. Detecting abused photos in iCloud Photo Library is still indefinitely delayed, but the Communication Safety feature in iMessage is making a comeback in iOS 15.2. But for now, the feature will only be available in the US.
Compared to the original operation, a child now has more control over the function. Kids can now decide for themselves whether they want to send a notification to a parent or guardian as soon as they receive a potentially sensitive photo. A child can always decide for themselves whether to view the blurred photo. But again, the feature is only rolling out in the US for now.
iOS 15.2 will be released to everyone sometime later this year, along with iPadOS 15.2, watchOS 8.3, tvOS 15.2, and macOS 12.1. In the near future, Apple will first release a number of betas of iOS 15.2.