But the launch of iOS 17 today does not mean that if you check the Software Update page in the iPhone settings, you will find the new update notification, as the stable version of it will not be available until sometime this fall, often next September coinciding with the announcement of the iPhone 15 series. But if you are determined to download the update and try the new features now, you can download the beta version of iOS 17 and install it on your iPhone by following the steps that we list in the following lines.
The iOS 16.4 update, which Apple recently launched, represents a major shift in the mechanism for receiving beta versions of iOS updates on the iPhone. Prior to this, regular users and developers could install beta versions after first downloading a Configuration Profile from Apple's beta program website. As for after the new update, the required steps have been shortened and the installation of trial versions has been made available through an explicit option found within the settings, without the hassle of downloading configuration profiles. Therefore, downloading the iOS 17 beta no longer requires creating a developer account on the Apple Developer Center website , which costs $99 for membership.
But it goes without saying that beta versions are inherently unstable, especially when the operating system is still in the early beta stage, as installing them can lead to problems such as fast battery drain, heating and other unexpected problems. So it's best to do the following steps on a test phone or a secondary phone, and if that's not available, you might want to wait for the iOS 17 Public Beta instead, which has better stability than the Developer Beta releases. In any case, if you are determined to try the new iOS 17 features before anyone else, it is important that you start by saving a backup copy of your data stored on the iPhone now before doing anything. If you go straight to iOS 17 and then something goes wrong, downgrading to the latest stable iOS 16 builds will result in losing all your data.
Therefore, I either save an iCloud Backup or store the backup locally on my computer through iTunes is the preferred method. Where you connect the iPhone to the computer and then launch the iTunes program. Next, tap the iPhone mini icon at the top, tap the Back Up Now button, select whether you want to save an encrypted backup or not (it's best to choose the encrypted one to make sure all data is backed up), and wait for the process to finish.
After saving the backup copy, you will need to register in the Apple Beta Software Program if you are not already registered, and let me tell you that it is very simple, all you have to do is visit the program website from your iPhone, then press Sign up and enter your account information your Apple ID, then tap "Accept" to agree to the usage agreement. With that, your account is now eligible to receive iOS betas.
Now to download the iOS 17 beta update, open the Settings app from the home screen, go to the General section, tap Software Update, and tap Beta Updates. If you don't see this option immediately after opening the Software Update page, wait a few seconds. Note that this option will only appear if you have iOS 16.4 or higher.
On the "Beta Updates" page, select "iOS 17 Developer Beta" and note that through the same page you can change the Apple ID account as well, if you have another account registered in the beta program from Apple other than your main account. In any case, after selecting the beta version, return to the previous page to check for the availability of new updates.
The iOS 17 developer beta update should appear [as shown in the image above], then all you have to do is tap Download and Install and choose either Download Only or Download and Install Automatically from the list, then enter the passcode, and wait for it to finish the operation. Here, the time taken depends largely on the speed of your internet connection, as you can see, the update is rather big (~4.8 GB). After that, it will take some time 10 or 15 minutes or so. Once you're done, you'll be ready to explore the all-new features of the iOS 17 update.