While millions of people worldwide have their eyes on the newly unveiled iPhone 18 Pro series and iPhone Duo, existing iPhone users not planning to buy the new devices also have something to be excited about: iOS 27. As announced during today’s Apple Event, iOS 27 is now available to download as a release candidate, while the official stable rollout begins September 14 for all eligible iPhones.
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iOS 27 key features and improvements to look out for
Siri AI: Siri has been overhauled into a much more capable, conversational AI assistant powered by the next generation of Apple Intelligence. It understands personal context across your apps and data, can see and act on what’s currently on your screen, maintain ongoing multi-turn conversations, and handle complex multi-app tasks.
After updating to iOS 27, you’ll find a dedicated Siri app on your iPhone that stores conversation history, and you can also customise its voice pacing and expressiveness. Then there’s a new “Siri mode” within the camera app to ask questions based on what’s in the viewfinder.
Liquid Glass design refinements: iOS 27 adds a transparency/opacity slider so you can fine-tune how glassy or solid Liquid Glass elements appear, from ultra-clear to more tinted. App icons, toolbars, and controls also get sharper refraction and improved readability.
Performance boosts across the system: Apple claims that iOS 27 launches apps up to 30 percent faster, photos appear in the library up to 70 percent quicker, while AirDrop transfer speeds have been boosted by up to 80 per cent. Network switching between Wi-Fi and cellular is also smoother, reducing dropped connections during transitions.
Advanced Photos editing tools: iOS 27 adds and updates major editing tools, now all powered by Apple Intelligence. The Clean Up tool removes complex distractions with more natural results, the new Extend tool intelligently expands a photo beyond its original borders, and Spatial Reframing lets you adjust the camera position or composition after you capture the shot.
AirPods Custom EQ: One of the most requested AirPods features for years, Apple finally delivers a system-wide EQ in iOS 27 that lets you boost or cut three frequency ranges, including lows, mids, and highs.
Improved Image Playground: The Image Playground has been upgraded to output more detailed, precise, and relevant images.
Three live activities in Dynamic Island: Exclusive to the iPhone 18 Pro series, the Dynamic Island can now show up to three live activities, thanks to the smaller size of the Dynamic Island pill. For instance, you can run a timer, play music, and view delivery status at the same time.
iPhone Handoff: This feature allows users to use the same mobile number and receive phone calls and messages on two iPhones. However, in the initial release, the feature is supported only on T-Mobile in the U.S. and Telekom Germany in Germany.
Other improvements: Enhanced AI-powered Flyover in Maps has been added for more detailed aerial views of select cities, improved iCloud Shared Albums with full-resolution sharing and easier access for Android/Windows users, native custom pass creation in Wallet, refined parental controls and child safety features, and various accessibility upgrades are on board as well.
How to download and install iOS 27 through the release candidate
Apple will push the iOS 27 release candidate to users who’ve already signed up for the iOS 27 Public Beta.
Step 1: Open any browser on your iPhone and visit beta.apple.com
Step 2: Sign in with your Apple ID
Step 3: Once done, you’ll have to sign up for the iOS 27 public beta. To do this, ‘Under Get Started’, select ‘Enrol your iOS device’
Step 4: Now on your iPhone, go to the Settings app > General > Software Update
> Beta Updates. Choose iOS 27 Public Beta
Step 5: Now go to the Software Update section within the General menu
Step 6: The iOS 27 release candidate update should appear. Simply tap ‘Download and Install’, and you’re good to go
A release candidate is the final update pushed out to public beta users, and traditionally, it’s the same update that arrives in the stable form, unless a problematic issue is found.
How to download and install stable iOS 27 through OTA
If you don’t wish to install the iOS 27 release candidate update and haven’t enabled the Automatic Updates setting, here’s what you need to do to download the firmware on your iPhone when it rolls out:
Step 1: When the update rolls out on September 14, Open Settings and tap the General section
Step 2: Now select the Software Update menu.
Step 3: The next screen will display the installed version of iOS and prompt you to install iOS 27 if it is rolled out for your device
Step 4: If the update is available, tap Download and Install
Step 5: Agree to the terms and conditions, and the iOS 27 update will begin downloading
Step 6: After it’s downloaded, you can proceed with the installation, which will require the phone to restart before booting into iOS 27
List of iPhones eligible for iOS 27
The iOS 27 update will start rolling out to the following iPhones through OTA on September 14. Users willing to get a glimpse of the software early on can fetch and install the update right away through the release candidate:
- iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max, iPhone Air, iPhone 17e
- iPhone 16e, iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, iPhone 16 Pro Max
- iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max
- iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 14 Pro, iPhone 14 Pro Max
- iPhone 13, iPhone 13 mini, iPhone 13 Pro, iPhone 13 Pro Max
- iPhone 12, iPhone 12 mini, iPhone 12 Pro, iPhone 12 Pro Max
- iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, iPhone 11 Pro Max
- iPhone SE (2020), iPhone SE (2022)
The iPhone 18 Pro, iPhone 18 Pro Max, and iPhone Duo come with iOS 27 out of the box.
