Apple seeds fifth developer betas of iOS 15.6, iPadOS 15.6, tvOS 15.6, watchOS 8.7

By Malcolm Owen

Apple has distributed the fourth developer beta builds of iOS 15.6, iPadOS 15.6, tvOS 15.6, and watchOS 8.7 to testers.

The fourth developer betas are available for download

The newest builds can be downloaded via the Apple Developer Center for those enrolled in the test program, or via an over-the-air update on devices running the beta software. Public betas typically arrive within a few days of the developer versions, via the Apple Beta Software Program website.

The fifth betas appear after the fourth, issued on June 28, which followed the third from June 14. The first beta surfaced on May 31.

The fifth build number for iOS 15.6 and iPadOS 15.6 is 19G5063a, replacing the fourth build, 19G5056c. The fifth tvOS 15.6 build has been updated to 19M5062a from 19M5056c. Lastly, the fifth watchOS 8.7 beta build is 19U5063a, moving on from 19U5056c.

The betas have largely consisted of bug fix and performance improvement releases so far, instead of providing new features. Since Apple is also testing betas for iOS 16, iPadOS 16, tvOS 16, and watchOS 9, it's not likely that any new features will arrive in sooner-to-arrive release betas.

AppleInsider, and Apple itself, strongly advise users avoid installing beta software on to "mission-critical" or primary devices, due to the small possibility of data loss or other issues. Instead, testers should install betas onto secondary or non-essential devices, and to ensure there are sufficient backups of important data before updating in the first place.

Find any changes in the new betas? Reach out to us on Twitter at @AppleInsider or @Andrew_OSU, or send Andrew an email at andrew@AppleInsider.com.