Apple releases first public beta for OS X Yosemite 10.10.3; includes new Photos app

Apple has released their first-ever public beta update for OS X Yosemite 10.10.3, labelled as build 14D87, the same as the second 10.10.3 beta for developers which had released approximately a week ago.

According to a report by 9to5mac, the new release includes iCloud-based Photos application for Mac PCs, new Emojis across the system along with a simpler way to login into Google accounts for profiles with two-factor authentication enabled.

This public beta is available on the Mac App Store Software Update tab but only for registered beta users. An earlier report had said that the public beta program for iOS will be limited to 100,000 people to maintain a higher level of exclusivity.

We had noted earlier that Apple plans to release the first public beta of iOS 8.3 via the existing AppleSeed program in mid-March. This will be followed by iOS 8.4 which will include Apple’s new streaming music service. As of now, the iOS 8.3 beta available for developers adds features like wireless CarPlay support, Siri improvements and an updated Emoji keyboard. iOS 8.2 on the other hand, will not enter the public beta.

Incidentally iOS 9 is rumoured to focus on stability, optimisations and not just feature additions. iOS 9 will be first shown during Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference in June (WWDC) and released in September for the public after the new iPhones come out.