iOS 17 beta 2 includes big Siri upgrade — what you can do now

iOS 17 is set to make sending messages by Siri much easier, especially if you’re using common third-party apps like WhatsApp for your communications needs.

You could already use Siri to send messages in any app you like, but if you didn't specify which app, Siri would send it via Messages. In iOS 17 beta 2 however (via 9to5Mac), you now dictate your message and decide afterward which app you’ll send it, without having to command Siri specifically to do so.

As 9to5Mac's image seems to show, the pop-up which shows your message now has a drop-down menu for different messaging apps. While it still defaults to Messages at the top, you'd be able to send it through an alternative with just a couple of taps.

You're also able to swap contacts and edit what you said to Siri before sending it off from this preview window, too. It makes relying on Siri to send specific messages to specific people far less risky, since you can not only double-check before ordering Siri to send it, but change anything about the message before doing so.

That's not all the new iOS 17 beta brings

iOS beta 2 has only been out a couple of days, but a number of features have been discovered in it. The Check-in safety feature has had some of its wording changed to make its functionality clearer, the new AirDrop and NameDrop features have been added, and Apple Music's crossfade ability can now be adjusted in length.

Apple focused on these features during iOS 17's announcement at WWDC 2023, but the new beta also features some previously unmentioned improvements like a mysterious new Microlocation setting, which currently doesn't have an obvious purpose. Hopefully more features, or expansions on ones we know about already, will be found as beta users examine the new update.

iOS 17 beta remains in developer beta for now, although anyone can sign up for a developer account and try it out if they’re willing to accept the risks of using unfinished software. We should see a more stable public beta open up in a couple of weeks. The final version of iOS 17 will likely launch this September alongside the iPhone 15 series.

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Richard is based in London, covering news, reviews and how-tos for phones, tablets, gaming, and whatever else people need advice on. Following on from his MA in Magazine Journalism at the University of Sheffield, he's also written for WIRED U.K., The Register and Creative Bloq. When not at work, he's likely thinking about how to brew the perfect cup of specialty coffee.