iOS 17.4 Public Beta Now Available, Introduces New Emoji and App Store Adjustments for EU Users

The iOS 17.4 public beta incorporates Apple’s App Store and operating system modifications for testing by beta users, ahead of the EU’s deadline on March 6.

iOS 17.4 is now rolling out to beta testers on the company’s public beta channel, a week after Apple rolled out the update to developers. The upcoming iOS update is expected to arrive in the coming weeks with several changes to how iOS works in specific countries. In order to comply with the European Union’s Digital Markets Act (DMA) regulations, Apple will soon allow customers in the region to access third party app stores while opening up other parts of the operating system including NFC support for third party apps.

Apple began to roll out the iOS 17.4 public beta (21E5184k) on Tuesday and there are a few user-facing changes that are visible after updating to the latest version. Apple has updated the Stolen Device Protection feature — introduced with the iOS 17.3 update — with a new option that always requires a delay when changing security settings, ignoring when the phone is in familiar locations.

While users outside the EU won’t benefit from all of the changes coming to iOS 17.4, the update includes support for third-party app stores that can be installed on an iPhone, while browsers like Firefox and Chrome can support their own browser engine. Game streaming will also be allowed with iOS 17.4, while Apple Pay competitors will be able to use the NFC technology on the iPhone for contactless payments.

iOS 17.4 introduces six new emoji, including Broken Chain, Brown Mushroom, Head Shaking Horizontally, Head Shaking Vertically, Lime, and Phoenix Bird. These emoji can be utilized in various applications and shared with other users through the system keyboard. Additionally, the update streamlines family emoji with simplified versions and provides variations for different directions when portraying moving characters.

In the Apple Podcasts app, a noteworthy enhancement includes support for automatic transcriptions for episodes, with the transcriptions visible within the app. Furthermore, both the Listen Now tab in the Apple Podcasts app and the Apple Music app have been updated, featuring a new label – Home. Visual changes in both apps beyond this update are not apparent.