What's New in iOS 11.3? Update Includes Battery Health Feature, New Animoji, ARKit
Since Apple released iOS 11 last year, the company has been plagued by complaints and problems surrounding its latest mobile operating update. Mainly, Apple was accused of, and then admitted to, slowing down older iPhones.
Apple is hoping its iOS 11.3 update will rectify those issues. The new iOS update also adds new Animoji and addresses some data and privacy concerns.
Despite complaints about battery and iPhone performance, Apple said it intentionally slowed down older devices to give them longer life. An iPhone 6, for example, would last longer if it was slowed down instead of running at peak performance of the latest operating system.
With this week’s iOS 11.3 update, Apple addresses those concerns by giving users the option to operate their phone with the latest iOS iteration and have less battery, or continue with slower processing power that lengthens the phone life.
To turn on the battery percentage health on iPhone, go to settings and then battery. This update is only available, Apple said, on iPhone 6 phones and latter. You can toggle battery percentage and low power mode from that screen.
On Apple forums, the iOS 11.3 update is being well received. The top post on the popular r/apple subreddit is titled "iOS 11.3 has made my device feel like new again." Other threads are receptive as well with headlines like: "much better ram management after updating to 11.3" and "wowza the performance of my phone and Siri have gotten a lot better after updating to iOS 11.3."
See all of the best photos of the week in these slideshows
Also new in this update, Animoji. Available only on the iPhone X, the new Animojis include a lion, dragon and skull. Who wants to do some Animoji karaoke with the Dragon?
Apple Privacy
After updating to iOS 11.3, users were directed to a screen (they had no choice) about Apple's data and privacy policy. It was an introduction to a new icon on iOS 11. "This icon appears when an Apple feature asks to use your personal information," the notice said. "You won't see this with every feature since Apple collects this information only when needed to enable features, secure our services, or personalize your experience. Apple believes privacy is a fundamental human right, so every Apple product is designed to minimize the collection of use of your data, use on-device processing whenever possible, and provide transparency and control over your information."
This statement and update on iOS 11.3 come on the heels of the massive Facebook data sharing scandal with Cambridge Analytica. Apple CEO Tim Cook addressed the scandal in comments this week, saying user privacy is more important than data monetization.
“The truth is, we could make a ton of money if we monetized our customer — if our customer was our product. We’ve elected not to do that,” Cook said in an interview on MSNBC.
iOS 11.3 also enhances ARKit, includes business chat and updates Apple Music. Click here for a full list of iOS 11.3 features.