When Apple announced the iPad mini 7 this week, the company also announced that updates to iOS 18.1, iPadOS 18.1, and macOS 15.1 would be available by the end of October. With these updates, we finally get our first group of Apple Intelligence features.
iPad Mini 7 was released in a press release. In it, Apple wrote, “The first set of Apple Intelligence features will be available in U.S. English this month through a free software update in iPadOS 18.1, and will also be available on iPads running A17 Pro or M1 or later.” are.
Although we don’t have a specific date, we can estimate when Apple will release the update.
The new iPad mini is available for pre-order and is expected to be fully available on Wednesday, October 23rd. Of course, Apple is touting its latest iPad as AI-enabled with its integrated A17 Pro chip.
If you don’t want to wait, you can download the iOS 18.1 public beta and try out the new AI features.
Not all announced Apple Intelligence features are coming with this update, but here’s what’s coming:
- Writing tools: These tools are available in all apps that can be created with Apple Intelligence acting as an editor. This tool can be used to check spelling and grammar, and will suggest rewrites based on the tone you choose. The tool also provides AI summaries.
- Photo features: Apple is adding three new tools to the Photos app. Cleanup to erase unnecessary people and things. Memory Movies creates slideshows from your library based on written prompts. Natural language search of your photo library is also available.
- summary: Similar to the writing tool, Summaries add auto-generated blurbs and transcriptions of audio recordings in your phone or upgraded iOS 18 Notes.
- Siri: Although version 2.0 of Siri won’t be fully available until iOS 18.4 is released, Siri has made several improvements in iOS 18.1, including more powerful responses to troubleshooting and follow-up questions for Apple devices. I am.
- Postal: The Mail app in iOS 18.1 introduces email summaries, smart replies for quick replies, and prioritized messages to highlight important emails and prompt you to take action. Later this year, the app will also add new categories such as receipts, sales, newsletters, and personal messages.
However, according to the press release, the update will be coming to Apple devices through a software update and will not be available out of the box. This means that the earliest you can receive the update is October 24th. However, there’s a good chance it won’t be released next week.
Instead, you’ll likely see the update for all devices on Monday, October 28th, or shortly thereafter. That would be in line with a report from Bloomberg’s Mark Garman.
Apple doesn’t typically ship software updates on Fridays, and it doesn’t start updates the day after a device launches, so the next Monday is the most likely update date.
Oddly enough, Apple has been holding off on releasing a much-hyped feature for its latest flagship device, but it looks like it’s finally here.
