What's New in iOS 27.2 Beta 4: The Health App Preview Ends, Apple Music Gets a New Icon
Apple's fourth 27.2 betas end the redesigned Health app preview as planned, give Apple Music a new icon and color scheme, and land the same day as HomeView.
What does it mean when a beta gets smaller? Apple seeded the fourth round of 27.2 betas on Tuesday, October 13, the same morning it announced HomeView, HomePod mini 2 and a new Apple TV 4K. The most visible change in iOS 27.2 beta 4 is one Apple told testers to expect from the start: the redesigned Health app preview has ended, and the version you already know is back, just as Apple's beta 1 notes said would happen before release.
The additions are smaller and mostly visual. Apple Music gets a new app icon and drops its red and pink accents across the app, finishing the branding refresh that started with a new logo in beta 3. Beta 4 arrived for iOS, iPadOS, macOS Golden Gate, watchOS and visionOS, a week after beta 3, along with a second beta of AirPods firmware 9.1 and release candidates for two older versions of macOS. tvOS and HomePod software had not received a fourth beta at the time of writing.
Here is everything that changed, what the end of the Health app preview means if you were testing it, and where iOS 27.2 stands ahead of its expected release later this month.
iOS 27.2 Beta 4 (Build 24B5110a)
The Health App Preview Ends, as Planned
Apple's beta 1 notes said the redesigned Health app Apple showed at its September iPhone event was a preview that would not be part of the final iOS 27.2 release, and beta 4 follows through, 9to5Mac reports. Updating brings back the previous Health app, and the Longevity section is replaced by the familiar Sharing section. The features that came with the redesign, including the Insights and Longevity tabs, the health age data point and lab appointment scheduling through Quest Diagnostics, are not in this build. We covered the full redesign in our look inside the new Health app.
Your data is safe. After updating, the Health app shows a Coming Later This Year notice confirming that the redesigned app will be available later this year and that your data from the beta remains on your device and viewable in Settings. Apple still says the redesigned app will launch later this year. 9to5Mac expects it to return in the iOS 27.3 betas, likely in late October or early November.
If you booked a lab appointment through the new Health app, check before you update. Apple's beta 3 notes already advised waiting to change iOS versions until your results arrive, and to contact Quest directly to reschedule if anything goes wrong. With the preview ended in beta 4, the safest move is to stay on beta 3 until your results are in.
A New Apple Music App Icon
The Apple Music icon on your Home Screen changes in beta 4. The red and pink gradient is gone: the default icon is now white with a black Apple Music logo, and in Dark Mode it flips to black with a white logo. It follows the new Apple Music logo that first appeared in beta 3, so the icon now matches the branding inside the app.
Blue Tabs, Black Widgets and a Monochrome Library in Music
The color change carries through the app itself. The selected tab in Music's bottom tab bar is now highlighted in blue instead of red, Music widgets on the Home Screen use a plain black background, and the section list at the top of the Library tab (Playlists, Albums, Artists, Songs and the rest) is now black and white. Apple Music has used red as its signature color for years, so this is the most noticeable change you will see after updating.
Nothing needs to be turned on. Open Music after updating and the new look is there, and adding a Music widget from the Home Screen widget gallery shows the new black design.
What Else Is Still in iOS 27.2
Beta 4 keeps the rest of the iOS 27.2 feature set from earlier betas. Siri AI adds French, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese and Spanish, the language expansion Apple said would arrive in October. Group FaceTime gains dual capture, the Apple TV app brings profiles to iPhone, and Apple Podcasts renames Up Next to New Episodes with Continue Playing directly below it. The redesigned brightness and volume sliders from beta 2 are still here too.
iOS 27.2 also matters for Apple's new home lineup. HomeView setup and multiuser support require a compatible iPhone or iPad running the latest software, and MacRumors notes that iOS 27.2 is required for HomeView, which ships November 13.
iPadOS 27.2 Beta 4 (Build 24B5110a)
iPadOS 27.2 beta 4 shares the iPhone build number and the same changes: the Health app preview ends and the previous app returns, and Apple Music gets its new icon, blue tab highlight, black widgets and monochrome Library list. The iPadOS 27.2 features from earlier betas remain, including Apple TV app profiles, Siri AI in more languages and a new contextual Siri shortcut on iPad.
macOS Golden Gate 27.2 Beta 4 (Build 26B5112a)
Siri AI in Five More Languages on Mac
Siri AI launched in English only with macOS Golden Gate. The 27.2 betas add French, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese and Spanish on Mac, matching iPhone and iPad. Beta 4 is otherwise light on visible changes. Apple has returned to a weekly cadence after a two week gap between betas 2 and 3, and 9to5Mac says this may be the last build before a release candidate.
Release Candidates for macOS 26.7.2 and macOS 15.8.2
Apple also seeded second release candidates for Macs that are staying on older versions: macOS 26.7.2 RC 2 (build 25G325) and macOS 15.8.2 RC 2 (build 24H225). Updates like these typically carry security and bug fixes for Macs that are not moving to Golden Gate.
watchOS 27.2 Beta 4 (Build 24S5112a)
watchOS 27.2 beta 4 is out for Apple Watch. No new features have been reported, and it is not yet clear how the Health app change on iPhone affects the Apple Watch side, including the readiness score Apple showed with Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4. We will update this section as testers report back.
visionOS 27.2 Beta 4 (Build 24N5114a)
visionOS 27.2 beta 4 is available for Apple Vision Pro, with no new features or changes reported so far.
AirPods Firmware 9.1 Beta 2 (Build 9B5043a)
Apple also released a second beta of AirPods firmware 9.1 for registered developers. Apple has not published notes for it, and no changes have been reported yet.
tvOS 27.2 and HomePod Software 27.2
tvOS 27.2 and HomePod software 27.2 did not receive a fourth beta alongside the others. Both matter more after today's announcements. tvOS 27.2 is the update that brings Siri AI as a beta to Apple TV 4K (2nd generation) and later, so the new $299 Apple TV 4K is not the only way to get it, and HomePod mini 2 is compatible with HomePod software 27.2. Our roundup of everything Apple announced covers the full lineup.
Apple released the fourth betas to registered developers on Tuesday, October 13. After beta 3, public betas followed a day later, so expect public beta 4 for testers in the Apple Beta Software Program shortly. On iPhone or iPad, go to Settings → General → Software Update → Beta Updates and choose the iOS 27 developer or public beta. On a Mac, the same option is in System Settings → General → Software Update.
iPhone Duo launches October 23 with iOS 27.1, a version made for that device, which is why every other iPhone goes straight to iOS 27.2. With Siri AI's new languages promised for October, iOS 27.2 is expected to follow shortly after, likely toward the end of the month. As always, install betas on a secondary device rather than the iPhone or Mac you depend on every day.
Were you testing the redesigned Health app in the beta, and will you jump to the iOS 27.3 betas to get it back? Tell us in the comments.