iOS and iPadOS 14.2: Now available with new emojis, wallpapers, and other tweaks and bug fixes

Apple has released iOS 14.2, its first major iOS update since iOS 14’s release in September (iOS 14.1 was primarily just to support the new iPhone 12 hardware).

This release adds over 100 new emojis, a handful of new wallpapers, and makes a few tweaks to Control Center and AirPods. It also allows the Intercom feature of HomePod to work with iPhone, Apple Watch, and CarPlay.

Update 11/05/20: iOS 14.2 is now available.

What’s new in iOS 14.2

This is a fairly substantial release, with a host of new features for iPhone and iPad users.

• Control Center gets a new Shazam toggle. You’ll have to add the “Music Recognition” feature to your Control Center in Settings > Control Center first, but then you’re just a swipe and a tap away from having Shazam identify songs in the background. You’ll get notifications when new songs are identified, and it’s easy to add them to Apple Music.
• There are also new media controls in Control Center, including content suggestions if you expand the “Now Playing” control while nothing is playing.
• The new emojis previewed earlier in the year are included in iOS and iPadOS 14.2, starting with Beta 2.
• The Magnifier accessibility feature now has an optional people detection function that can identify people in view and estimate their distance to you. 
• Adds support for the MagSafe Leather Sleeve
• Adds optional notifications for excessive headphone volume levels
• HomePod can be added as the default sound output to Apple TV 4K for stereo and surround sound (including Dolby Atmos)
• Optimized AirPods battery charging to prolong battery longevity
• Eight new wallpapers with both light and dark mode versions

In addition to those new features, iOS 14.2 fixes a host of small but annoying bugs. 

How to get iOS or iPadOS 14.2

You’ll eventually be prompted to update your iPhone or iPad, but you can download the new iOS update right away. Just open Settings, then tap General, and then Software Update. You’ll see the available update and option to install it.

iOS 14.2 release notes

Apple’s full release notes for iOS 14.2 are as follows:

iOS 14.2 includes the following improvements for your iPhone: – Over 100 new emoji, including animals, food, faces, household objects, musical instruments, gender-inclusive emoji, and more – Eight new wallpapers in both light and dark mode versions – Magnifier can detect people nearby, and report their distance using the LiDAR sensor included in iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max – Support for iPhone 12 Leather Sleeve with MagSafe – Optimized battery charging for AirPods to slow the rate of battery aging by reducing the time your AirPods spends fully charged – Headphone audio level notifications to alert you when audio level could impact your hearing – New AirPlay controls to stream entertainment throughout your home – Intercom support with HomePod and HomePod mini using iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, AirPods, and CarPlay – Ability to connect HomePod to Apple TV 4K for stereo, surround sound, and Dolby Atmos audio – Option to provide statistics about Exposure Notifications, without identifying you, to participating Public Health Authorities

This release also fixes the following issues: – Apps could be out of order on the Home Screen dock – Camera viewfinder may appear black when launched – The keyboard on the Lock Screen could miss touches when trying to enter the passcode – Reminders could default to times in the past – Photos widget may not display content – Weather widget could display the high temperature in Celsius when set to Fahrenheit – Next-hour precipitation chart description in Weather could incorrectly indicate when precipitation stops – Voice Memos recordings are interrupted by incoming calls – The screen could be black during Netflix video playback – Apple Cash could fail to send or receive money when asked via Siri – Apple Watch app may unexpectedly close when opened – Workout GPS routes or Health data are prevented from syncing between Apple Watch and iPhone for some users – Audio is incorrectly labeled as “Not Playing” in the CarPlay Dashboard – Devices could be prevented from charging wirelessly – Exposure Notifications is disabled when restoring iPhone from iCloud Backup or transferring data to a new iPhone using iPhone Migration

iPadOS 14.2 release notes

Apple’s full release notes for iPadOS 14.2 are as follows:

iPadOS 14.2 includes the following improvements for your iPad: – Over 100 new emoji, including animals, food, faces, household objects, musical instruments, gender-inclusive emoji, and more – Eight new wallpapers in both light and dark mode versions – Magnifier can detect people nearby, and report their distance using the LiDAR sensor included in iPad Pro 12.9-inch (4th generation) and iPad Pro 11-inch (2nd generation) – Scene Detection in Camera uses intelligent image recognition to identify objects within a scene and automatically improves the photo on iPad Air (4th generation) – Auto FPS in Camera automatically reduces the frame rate when recording video to improve low light capture and to optimize file size on iPad Air (4th generation) – Optimized battery charging for AirPods to slow the rate of battery aging by reducing the time your AirPods spends fully charged – New AirPlay controls to stream entertainment throughout your home – Intercom support with HomePod and HomePod mini using iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, AirPods, and CarPlay – Ability to connect HomePod to Apple TV 4K for stereo, surround sound, and Dolby Atmos audio

This release also fixes the following issues: – Camera viewfinder may appear black when launched – The keyboard on the Lock Screen could miss touches when trying to enter the passcode – Reminders could default to times in the past – Photos widget may not display content – Weather widget could display the high temperature in Celsius when set to Fahrenheit – Voice Memos recordings are interrupted by incoming calls – The screen could be black during Netflix video playback – Apple Cash could fail to send or receive money when asked via Siri