A week after the first iOS 18.4 beta dropped, Apple released the second beta build. It packs even more changes and brings an iPhone 16 feature to the iPhone 15 Pro lineup.
Below are all the changes we have discovered in iOS 18.4 beta 2 and previous builds so far.
iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 beta 2: What’s new and changed
Visual Intelligence for iPhone 15 Pro
Photo: Rajesh Pandey/CultOfMac
iOS 18.4 beta 2 brings iPhone 16’s Visual Intelligence to the iPhone 15 Pro lineup. The feature is accessible through a Control Center toggle and Action button.
Visual Intelligence was rolled out to the iPhone 16 family with iOS 18.3. It allows you to point your iPhone’s camera at an object to get more information about it.
On the iPhone 16, it is now possible to use the Action button to trigger Visual Intelligence.
New emoji
iOS 18.4 beta 2 introduces nine new emoji, including a face with bags under eyes so you can express how tired you are:
Here are the new emojis in iOS 18.4 beta 2
If you are on the beta, you can see them here: pic.twitter.com/VVek9EcOUy
— Aaron (@aaronp613) March 3, 2025
Per-app Priority Notifications
The first iOS 18.4 beta introduced the Priority Notifications feature. However, in that beta, there was only a global toggle to turn the feature on or off. iOS 18.4 beta 2 adds per-app control for Priority Notifications, enabling you to turn the feature on/off individually.

Screenshot: u/freaktheclown
Vision Pro app
The second iOS 18.4 beta introduces a new Vision Pro app, which allows you to browse and download content for Vision Pro. You can browse for content across categories like 3D movies, Immersive Video, and more.
New Shortcut actions
Apple has added many new Shortcut actions as part of iOS 18.4 beta 2. Almost all of them are related to changing app settings, like changing Maps settings, creating a new Tab Group in Safari, changing the search engine, and more.

Screenshot: Rajesh Pandey/CultOfMac
Pause App Store downloads
You can finally pause/resume App Store downloads on your iPhone and iPad in iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 beta 2. The pause option is available only through the App Store.
In iOS 18.4 Beta 2 you can now pause and resume app installations. pic.twitter.com/NO2QniujVy
— Aaron Zollo (@zollotech) March 3, 2025
Wallet app enhancements
iOS 18.4 beta 2 improves the Wallet app by adding a three-dot menu button. From here, you can access your orders, Subscriptions and payments, and Settings. The Subscription option is particularly useful, as it allows you to view your recurring payments through Apple Pay in one place.
iPhone 16e and iPhone 12 support
Apple pulled the first iOS 18.4 beta for the iPhone 12 following bricking reports. The second beta is compatible with the device. Plus, the release is also available for the iPhone 16e, the latest member of the iPhone 16 family.
iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 beta 1: What’s new and changed
Priority Notifications

Photo: Rajesh Pandey/CultOfMac
Apple first showcased Priority Notification as part of Apple Intelligence at WWDC24. The feature will finally go live with iOS 18.4. As the name indicates, your iPhone will highlight priority notifications separately on the Lock Screen so that you can give them the due attention.
You can turn on/off the feature from Settings > Notifications > Prioritize Notifications.
Support for more languages in Apple Intelligence
iOS 18.4 will expand Apple Intelligence support to the following languages: French, German, Italian, Portuguese (Brazil), Spanish, Japanese, Korean, and Chinese (simplified), and localized English for Singapore and India.
Apple Intelligence comes to the EU
iOS 18.4 beta 1 finally brings Apple’s AI suite to the EU. This will go well with the expanded language support the OS brings.
Sketch style in Image Playground
iOS 18.4 beta 1 adds a “Sketch” style in Image Playground. You can access it by tapping the + icon in the app. This style was previously only available in the Notes app.
Apple Intelligence expands to Vision Pro

Alongside iOS 18.4 beta 1, Apple also released the first visionOS 2.4 beta for the Vision Pro. As previously reported, it brings Apple Intelligence to the mixed-reality headset with features like Writing Tools, Genmoji and Image Playground.
With the stable iOS 18.4 release in April, Apple will add a new Vision Pro app to the iPhone to control the new Guest Mode feature. It will also provide tips and enable you to download visionOS apps and content.
Mail Categorization comes to iPad and Mac’s Mail app
Apple officially scheduled the launch of iOS 18.4 for April, with beta testing of the new iPhone operating system beginning Friday. The update will give millions of people around the world their first access to Apple Intelligence, and bring other improvements to boot. That might include the much-anticipated smarter version of Siri that Apple promised last year. If you’re curious about what changed in the iOS 18.3 beta, check out the details in this article.
Ambient Music
There are four new Ambient Music toggles in iOS 18.4 beta 1’s Control Center: Chill, Productivity, Sleep, and Wellbeing. You can also set them to be triggered using your iPhone’s Action button. You can control the ambient music playback from the Dynamic Island, skip songs, and see the name of the currently playing song.
iOS 18.4 Beta – Ambient Music Controls pic.twitter.com/ZQGQqD5o3X
— TechDroider (@techdroider) February 21, 2025
Set a default Translate app
iOS 18.4 will let you set a default Translate app. So, you can replace Apple’s Translate app with Google Translate as the default app on your device. In the EU, the new iOS beta adds an option to select a default Navigation map.

Screenshot: Rajesh Pandey/CultOfMac
Apple News+ Food

Photo: Apple
iOS 18.4 will add a new Food section to Apple News+. It will contain stories surrounding restaurants, healthy food, and tens of thousands of recipes from some of the world’s top food publishers, like Allrecipes, Good Food, and Serious Eats.
All recipes will be displayed in an easy-to-follow format, with a cook mode showing the instructions in full screen. Apple claims it will add new recipes every day as well.
Genmoji button on keyboard
The keyboard in iOS 18.4 beta 1 shows a Genmoji button, replacing the previous colored smiley face.

Screenshot: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac
Skip and rewind animations
There are new animations in iOS 18.4 beta 1 when using the skip/rewind buttons in Safari or the Apple TV app.
iOS 18.4 adds a new animation when clicking the skip/rewind buttons when viewing a video in Safari or the Apple TV app!
(h/t @_sli_ck) pic.twitter.com/7gA6lP7ObG
— Aaron (@aaronp613) February 23, 2025
New filters in the Photos app

Screenshot: Rajesh Pandey/CultOfMac
The Photos app in iOS 18.4 beta 1 adds a filter to show pictures and videos that are not added to an album. You can also re-order albums from the Media Types and Utilities section.
Find My network expands to South Korea
As promised by Apple last September, iOS 18.4 beta 1 brings its Find My network to South Korea.
iOS 18.4 beta 1 has enabled Apple’s Find My network in South Korea, after previously being announced in September.
(📸 – @racc00n_dev) pic.twitter.com/QsmT4YbSZx
— Aaron (@aaronp613) February 23, 2025
New Shortcut action
Apple has added a new Shortcut action in iOS 18.4 beta 1 that allows you to open a specific chat in the Messages app.
New Siri loading animation
New in iOS 18.4 beta 1 – When you type to Siri and press the send button, the loading animation is new. pic.twitter.com/8UQVm0c398
— Aaron (@aaronp613) February 22, 2025
iOS 18.4 Beta 1 introduces a fresh loading animation when you tap the send button while using Type to Siri.
iOS 18.4 lands in April
Apple confirmed on Friday that iOS 18.4 lands in April, so expect a few more beta builds of the OS to arrive before that. The second beta should contain a few more changes, with future builds after that focusing on bug fixes.