The iPhone Duo adapted iOS 27 for a new form factor but, in the process, got some criticism for the decision to lock the taskbar to the right-hand side. In fact, if you're a leftie and want to use the Duo with a single hand, you've got to use the non-dominant one.
That situation just got a little better with the arrival of the iOS 27.3 developer beta this week. The update brings Reachability to the iPhone Duo, allowing users to move the content within reach, just as you can on a candybar iPhone.
Only instead of shifting the content from the top down, the Duo will now let users swipe left from the left or right from the right edge of the screen to bring it within striking distance of your preferred thumb.
For left-handed users, it's a step in the right direction, and it will work on both the 5.4-inch outer display and the 7.6-inch nano-textured inner display.
Reachability will be turned on by default once the software update is installed, but if you want to find it yourself, head to Settings > Accessibility > Reachability.
Siri AI is about to be let loose
Alongside bringing Reachability to the Duo, 27.3 will also give Siri AI a much bigger playground to explore across iOS, macOS, iPadOS and visionOS. The upgraded assistant will now work inside Music, Messages, Photos, Calendar and Reminders, letting users, for example, ask it to build a specific playlist in Apple Music or create Calendar events.
Going further, Apple is also opening Siri AI's capabilities up to third-party developers via App Intents. Essentially, this could make good on the promise years ago that Apple Intelligence would be able to work across a user's apps to build a personal context.
Back in 2024, then-CEO Tim Cook laid out what set Apple's AI plans apart: “Our unique approach combines generative AI with a user’s personal context to deliver truly helpful intelligence."
It seems like reality is about to finally caught up to the vision.
"Today’s preview allows any app to bring its content and actions directly into Siri AI by using App Intents, making it easier for all apps to tap into Siri AI’s newest capabilities, including personal context understanding, onscreen awareness, natural language, and more," Apple posted on its developer site.
"So people can just ask for help in their own words, and Siri AI carries out any custom action you’ve built, from checking a delivery to booking a reservation to placing an order. For complex requests, we’re also introducing skills to let you teach Siri AI how to combine several actions into a single experience."
The public release for iOS 27.3 is planned for later this year, at which point we could really see Siri AI start to spread its wings.
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