Apple Rolls Out iOS 18.4 with New Emoji, Apple News+ Food and Priority Notifications

Apple has rolled out iOS 18.4, iPadOS 18.4, macOS 15.4, and visionOS 2.4, bringing a mix of new features and improvements to its devices. This update also expands Apple Intelligence to more countries and supports additional languages.

One of the standout additions is the Apple News+ Food section, now available in the News app. As Apple previously announced, this section curates a collection of recipes and food-related articles, with exclusive recipes available for Apple News+ subscribers.

Beyond that, the latest updates introduce new emoji, smarter Priority Notifications that use AI to organize alerts in the Notification Center, and better photo filtering options in the Photos app. AirPods Max users also get a boost with support for lossless audio.

Here are a few more quality-of-life upgrades included in this release:

AI-generated summaries for App Store reviews, making it easier to skim through feedback.
An Ambient Music feature in Control Center for a more immersive sound experience.
Support for Matter-compatible robot vacuums in the Home app, allowing better smart home integration.
New widgets for the Podcasts app to keep your favorite shows easily accessible.
A new “Sketch” effect in Image Playground, adding creative flair to your photos.

Apple is introducing Apple Intelligence capabilities like Image Playground and Writing Tools to the Vision Pro for the first time with the update to visionOS 2.4. This implies that users will now be able to use their headset to receive AI-powered writing support and creative image editing.

Additionally, the update adds a Spatial Gallery app, a new Apple Vision Pro app for iPhone that enables you to remotely download apps and experiences to your headset, and greatly improves the experience of sharing your Vision Pro with others. This new gallery offers a new way to experience immersive material by showcasing a changing selection of Apple-curated spatial photos and movies.

Apple has also confirmed that, following some delays, iPhone and iPad customers will be able to access Apple Intelligence in the European Union. The AI-powered features are also adding support for French, German, Italian, Brazilian Portuguese, Spanish, Japanese, Korean, and Simplified Chinese to its list of supported languages. Additionally, Apple is making these tools more widely available by introducing localized English versions for consumers in Singapore and India.