iOS 10.2 includes TV App, New Emojis, HomeKit Notifications

Dec 13, 2016 12:31 PM EST

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After almost seven betas and a couple of months testing, Apple has released the final version of iOS 10.2 to all the devices that can run iOS 10.

This is the second major update by the company for iOS 10 since it came out in September and like iOS 10.1, this release also adds new features and provides an extensive list of fixes for existing ones out.

The most noticeable changes for customers are the revamped emojis, which includes both new characters  introduced in version 9.0 of Unicode specification as well as support for new professions and revamped Retina-friendly designs for many existing emoji. 

The biggest new feature in iOS 10.2 is the TV App, which Apple announced during its last product event in October. This App replaces the "videos" app on devices, now handles all playback of movies and TV shows purchased through the iTunes store as well as streaming content aggregated from compatible third-party apps. 

Other apps have barely been tweaked. Apple has improved the stabilization and increased the frame rate for Live Photos, added a section for saved stories in the News App, tweaked sorting and navigation options in Music App. HomeKit notifications, in addition, are available now to send notifications when they need your attention or when a software update is available, reducing any need for dedicated apps for your individual home kit devices.

As for minor changes in the device, the company has improved performance and connectivity with third-party Bluetooth accessories, provided fixes for bugs in FaceTime and Mail, and improved RAW support in the Photos app for photos taken with dedicated cameras.

iOS 10.2 can run on iPhone 5 and newer devices, the 4th generation iPads and newer devices, the iPad mini 2 and newer devices, both iPad Pros, and the sixth-generation iPod Touch. The company has also released a couple of updates for the Apple Watch and fourth-generation Apple TV. The tvOS 10.1 update includes Apple TV of the iOS 10.2 TV App, while watchOS 3.1.1 adds support for the new emojis and fixes a good amount of bugs for first-generation, Series 1 and 2 Apple watches.

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