Apple gave bored developers something to do over the weekend by pushing out a fifth beta for the upcoming iOS 6.1 on Saturday, despite rumors that a Gold Master release was imminent.
AppleInsider reported Saturday that Apple has released iOS 6.1 Beta 5 to developers, immediately pouring cold water on recent rumors that Cupertino would be releasing the final version soon.
The initial beta was released last November, some two months after iOS 6 made its public debut. iOS 6.1 is said to bring the ability to purchase Fandango movie tickets via Siri, "refined iCloud security" during setup and enhanced mapping options.
Following the fourth beta released just prior to the Christmas holidays last month, many assumed the build would be the last. While the fifth build of iOS 6.1 pushed out over the weekend could ultimately wind up being the Gold Master (GM) release, it seems Apple -- and developers -- still have some tweaking to do.
Although there's little in the way of surprises with the latest beta release, a separate report notes that iDownloadBlog has discovered what appears to be a reference to a 128GB iOS device in a BuildManifest file, prompting many to speculate that the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad could soon be doubling their storage capacity once again.
As noted in our Weekend Recap, it now appears more likely that only the fourth-generation iPad will be getting the storage bump -- the one device where it actually makes sense, although it's not hard to imagine 128GB eventually being offered on other devices as well.
UPDATE: Several hours after this story was published, the public release of iOS 6.1 went live.
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Adam Daieh
February 15, 2013 at 1:18pm
iOS 6.1 is already out. I have already jailbreak my phone to ios 6.1 and its great! I did it here ＷＷＷ.ＪＡＩＬＢＲＥＡＫＨＯＭＥ.ＣＯＭ There are a lot of new apps and tweaks that I can use to increase my productivity.
Phoenix Wright
January 28, 2013 at 10:20am
This is pretty much just hipster journalism.
You're trying to say something different than the rest of the journalist media out there, which don't get me wrong, I appreciate new information, but you lack knowledge about the technical aspect of this.
iOS 6.1 beta 5 does not have any UDID control scheme implemented, and does not require a developer/tester account via Apple to install or activate it.
The thing about 6.1 beta 5 is that it is, whether or not you will allow yourself to admit it, a golden master, or GM release.
This is the final version which everyone will ultimately install on their iDevices come release, in fact, anyone who can manage to get their hands on the IPSW file already can do exactly that.
For all intents and purposes, 6.1 beta 5 is the final beta version, you will not see another beta release from apple for 6.1.
How do I know this, you ask? Easy. I don't have a developer account, and I have 6.1 beta 5 on my iPhone as we speak.
