Oliver Haslam·

macOS 10.12.5 Public Beta 1 Now Available To Download

Apple today pushed a new beta version of macOS out to public testers, with macOS 10.12.5 public beta 1 now available to download. Those on the public beta program can head on over to the Mac App Store’s update section and download the new beta release now.

Apple first made macOS 10.12.5 beta 1 available to developers a couple of days ago and also released the final version of macOS 10.12.4 to everyone around a week ago.

If you are not part of the public beta program and want to get in on the action, then you can head on over to Apple’s beta signup page at beta.apple.com and fill in the required details. This will not only give you access to macOS betas, but iOS betas as well, and they are arguably the more interesting of the two, especially with WWDC 2017 and iOS 11 beta testing drawing ever nearer.

Help make the next releases of iOS 10 and macOS Sierra our best yet. As a member of the Apple Beta Software Program, you can take part in shaping Apple software by test-driving pre-release versions and letting us know what you think.

It is also important to note here, though, that beta testing, while sometimes fun, can cause havoc with your devices. Do not install beta releases of software on devices, be they smartphones or computers, that are important for business use, for example. Nobody wants to lose work or even family photos because a beta release of iOS or macOS did something strange. Betas are called betas for a reason, folks.

As for this particular beta, Apple says that macOS 10.12.5 “improves the stability, compatibility, and security of your Mac,” which means the update is focused on offering bug fixes and the like instead of new features and major visual changes, as are a majority of point releases. Vague? Definitely, but who does not want improved stability, compatibility or security? We know we do!

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