Connect with us

Apple

10 Things to Do Before Installing iOS 15 Beta

Published

3 years ago

on

If you decide to install the iOS 15 beta on your iPhone you’ll want to spend some time preparing yourself, and your device, for the move up from iOS 14.

The official version of iOS 15 arrives in the fall alongside Apple’s iPhone 13 series, but if you can try an early version of the operating system today if you want.

Apple’s put iOS 15 into beta testing ahead of its official release later this year. The iOS 15 beta is available to iPhone users with a developer account and those enrolled in the Beta Software Program.

Installing the iOS 15 beta is tempting. The software has several notable changes on board including improvements to Maps, FaceTime, a new Focus feature, and a whole lot more.

While some of you might want to wait for the company to fix some of the iOS 15 beta’s initial problems, others might want to jump in right now.

If you do decide to move away from iOS 14, you’ll want to be careful. The iOS 15 beta is pre-release software and it’s plagued with bugs and performance issues. These problems could have a noticeable impact on your day-to-day use.

It’s difficult to predict what kinds of problems you’ll face so it’s important to prepare for the installation. This is especially important if this will be your first time installing iOS beta software.

If you’re in need of assistance, you’re in the right place. We’ve put together an iOS 15 pre-installation guide that will walk you through all of the steps we normally take before we install iOS beta software on our iPhones.

While some of these steps might seem tedious, particularly for those who have installed iOS beta software in the past, they will help you avoid major headaches today and down the road.

Backup Your iPhone’s Data

This is an extremely important step to take.

Data loss issues are fairly rare these days, but there’s always a chance something goes wrong during the installation process. If you store sensitive data on your iPhone, you’ll want to make sure everything is backed up before you move your phone to the iOS 15 beta.

You can backup your data via Apple’s iCloud service or you can do it on your Mac via Finder (if you’re running macOS Big Sur or macOS Catalina) or iTunes if you’re running an older version of macOS or using a Windows computer.

If you store a ton of data on your iPhone this process could take awhile so remain patient.

Read Apple’s Beta Rules & Conditions

If this is your first time trying iOS beta software make sure you read through Apple’s rules before you download iOS 15 beta onto your iPhone.

If you decide to download the developer beta, make sure you comb through Apple’s beta website for developers. The website goes over everything you need to know about joining the developer program.

If you don’t want to pay to use the beta, you’ll want to install the public iOS 15 beta. Again, the public iOS 15 beta is available right now.

In order to download the public iOS 15 beta, you need to join the Beta Software Program. And like the developer beta, the public beta program has some rules you’ll want to follow.

Before you download the public iOS 15 beta on your iPhone, make sure you read Apple’s FAQ on the Beta Software Program.

Get Familiar with iOS 15

While it might be tempting to jump right in, we always recommend getting familiar with new iOS software before installing it. This way, you aren’t caught off guard by the changes.

It’s worth noting that some features may not be available on older iPhone models.

The iOS 15 beta is a huge update with a substantial list of changes. Remember, it’s not the final version of iOS 15 and Apple will probably add, and subtract, features as we get closer to the final release in the fall.

You’ll want to dig into the iOS 15’s changes and decide if the beta is worth the trouble. For many of you, it won’t be.

To help you make a decision, we’ve put together a guide that takes you through the best reasons to install the iOS 15 beta and the best reasons to avoid it.

Gather Your Login Info

Before you install the iOS 15 beta, make sure you track down all of your login information. Having it ready will make the process go a lot faster.

First off, you’ll need your Apple ID to get started with the installation process. Most of you have this information handy, but if you’ve forgotten your password, now would be a good time to track that down.

Once you get iOS 15 beta on board your iPhone, there’s a chance the process will have logged out of some of your apps and services. We’ve been logged out of first-party and third-party applications in the past.

If you haven’t had to login to your accounts in awhile, you may have forgotten your login info. If you use a ton of apps on your device, tracking down this information could be extremely annoying. This is especially true if you rely on these apps and services to get through the day.

Make sure you have all of this information ready ahead of time.

Dig Into iOS 15 Beta Feedback

Some of you might want to hold off on a download until you’ve gathered feedback from early adopters.

Older devices typically have the most trouble moving to new software. So if you own an iPhone 7 or iPhone 7 Plus, you might want to hang back for a bit and see how the iOS 15 beta is performing on those devices.

If your iPhone is currently running an older version of iOS and the software is performing well, you’ll really want to dig in.

Once you move to the iOS 15 beta you can’t move your phone back to anything older than iOS 14.7.1. Apple’s closed off the downgrade path to older versions of iOS so you’ll want to feel confident about the decision to move to beta software.

This is why we recommend digging into feedback from people using iOS 15 beta on your iPhone model. This feedback will help you learn about the iOS 15 beta’s potential benefits and problems.

You can find feedback about iOS 15 beta’s performance on the MacRumors forums, Apple’s forums, and social media sites like YouTube and Twitter.

Find Fixes for iOS 15 Beta Problems

The iOS 15 beta is plagued by a variety of problems. And because of that, we recommend bookmarking fixes for common iOS 15 beta problems before you download the software.

We’ve released a list of fixes for the most common iOS issues. It’s worth a look if you don’t know where to start.

We’ve put together an in-depth guide to fixing poor iOS performance and a guide that will help you fix bad iOS 15 beta battery life should you come across it during your time on the iOS 15 beta.

We also recommend getting familiar with Apple’s Discussion forums. They’ll be a great resource if you encounter a bug or performance issue on your phone.

Learn How to Downgrade from iOS 15 Beta

If you run into annoying problems on the iOS 15 beta you can always downgrade back to iOS 14. Moving back to official software could help improve your device’s performance.

As of right now, you can downgrade to iOS 14.7.1. Unfortunately, you can’t downgrade to anything older than iOS 14.7.1 because Apple’s closed off the downgrade path to iOS 14.7 and below.

If you haven’t already, we recommend getting familiar with the downgrade process before you download the iOS 15 beta.

If you don’t feel comfortable with the downgrade process, you might want to stay put on iOS 14.

Cleanup Your iPhone’s Storage

If you’re running out of space on your iPhone, you might need to do some cleanup in order to install the iOS 15 beta. The iOS 15 beta requires a sizable chunk of space (5+GB in some cases) on your iPhone’s internal storage.

If you’re running out of space, go through your device’s storage and delete files you no longer need to make sure you have room for the download.

Get Familiar with the Beta Installation Process

If you’re new to using iOS beta software you’ll want to familiarize yourself with the installation process before downloading the iOS 15 beta onto your phone. If the process feels intimidating, you might want to hold off on the installation until you feel more confident.

To assist you, we’ve put together a guide that will take you through the proper way to install the iOS 15 beta on your iPhone.

If at any point during the installation you start to feel uncomfortable, stop. The iOS 15 beta isn’t going anywhere.

Learn How to Send Bug Reports

If this is your first time trying iOS beta software, you’ll want to learn how to send Apple feedback about the software’s performance. This feedback will help Apple improve the final product.

You’ll want to send feedback via Apple’s Feedback Assistant service. It’s fairly straightforward, but you’ll want to get comfortable with it.

For more on the Feedback app and submitting iOS 15 bugs and issues to Apple, check out Apple’s FAQ.

4 Reasons Not to Install iOS 15 Beta & 11 Reasons You Should

Install to Help Improve Apple Improve iOS 15

Install to Help Improve Apple Improve iOS 15

Trying new features before they are officially released is exciting, but that's just part of it. Using the iOS 15 beta will also help Apple squash issues before they reach millions of iPhone users around the world. 

Your feedback about the iOS 15 beta's performance could help the company discover a nasty bug or a glitch ahead of the final release later this year. 

If you're sick of dealing with issues or sick of hearing friends and family complain about problems, think about giving the iOS 15 beta a try. 

If you decide to download the iOS 15 beta and find an issue on board, make sure you report it to Apple. This way, engineers can get to work on a permanent fix. 

Related Topics:
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.