Apple To Allow Users To Sideload Apps In iOS 17? All You Need To Know

RECENT reports have revealed Apple is rushing to bring the mixed reality headset to the market. Along with the headset, another hyped upgrade due this year is iOS 17. Reports have already started leaking features of the upcoming update. And in the latest sequel, reports claim Apple, with iOS 17, might allow users to sideload apps.

The California-based giant, in the past, has restricted the installation channel due to its commitment to security on the platform. If the functionality is unlocked, the iPhones and other Apple devices will be open to software apps from third-party developers other than the App Store.

According to a tweet by Mark Gurman, the upgrade is expected to come with "nice to have" features. Codenamed "Dawn," the software aims to tick the boxes of the "most requested" features, Gurman said. The option to sideload apps might make it to the requested list bucket of Apple. However, this change might be limited to the EU in compliance with the law of the land, The Indian Express report suggested.

When Apple set out to develop iOS 17, the initial thinking was to call it a tuneup release — one focused more on fixing bugs and improving performance than adding new features (not unlike the approach the company took with Snow Leopard on Mac OS X back in 2009). The hope was to…

— Mark Gurman (@markgurman) March 26, 2023

Plus, Apple initially aimed to make it a tuneup update to the iOS 16, Gurman adds. The current software underwent a rough start due to the bugs in the initial versions.

Craig Federighi, senior vice president of Apple, said, "Sideloading is a cyber criminal’s best friend and requiring that on iPhone would be a gold rush for the malware industry," The Verge citing a Web Summit 2021 speech reported.

Meanwhile, brewing speculations support more controls on CarPlay with iOS 17. These include controlling volume, FM radio, upcoming tracks and more from the device, The Economic Times reports. Plus, room for Apple mixed reality headsets in the software is likely. On the expected lines, the software will undergo beta trials before going live to a larger audience.

Sideloading apps on Android has been an option for a long time. However, to do the same on an Apple device, in the existing protocol, a user has to jailbreak the iPhone. With the coming of the feature, the user might have to skip the hard work. However, it may lead to negative repercussions in the security terms of the software.