Apple to reportedly expand iOS beta testing to include retail employees

Breaking the long-held tradition of restricting iOS beta releases to developers and select Cupertino campus employees, Apple has plans to expand pre-release mobile software testing to select retail employees, according to a report today by Mark Gurman. The program is set to commence soon with a beta version of iOS and comes nearly half a year after Apple’s introduction of public betas for OS X Yosemite, its desktop operating system.

If true, this will be the first time Apple will be expanding its pre-release testing program to beyond its employees in its Cupertino headquarters and developers who are a part of its program.

In recent times, Apple has been criticised heavily for the declining stability of OS X and iOS. While previously the OSes were known for their “It just works” attitude, they have become highly bug-ridden and unstable recently. For example, months after the release of OS X Yosemite, the OS is still giving WiFi issues to many users.

Either way, Apple appears to be noticing recent complaints about a decline in software quality, as this news seems to be one method of trying to catch as many software issues as possible before the public release. A launch in the first part of the year should allow sufficient time for the program to be well oiled by the time iOS 9’s release rolls around, which is expected to be in early June.

Here’s hoping that by widening its pre-release testing program Apple will be able to fix more bugs before iOS releases.