iOS 18.2 won’t arrive until the first week of December, but we’ve already got a few details of the upcoming update due to the ongoing developer beta and public beta releases. When Apple launches iOS 18.2 next month, users can expect to see a new unified section that allows users to set default apps for eight or more app categories, including calls, messaging, call filtering, autofill, and apps that can be used with iPhone’s NFC chips.
iOS 18.2 adds the ability to set default apps for more categories
Apple has added a new “Default Apps” section to the recent iOS 18.2 beta version, which was discovered by 9to5mac. This is a unified part of the iOS Settings app that allows users to use the default app when selecting links or clicking or specific features such as call filtering or autofill.
As of now, the ability to choose a default browser or keyboard application is located in various parts of the setup application, making these options difficult for users to find. With the help of the new default app section in the app, Apple has introduced at least eight new categories for the default app.
After updating iOS 18.2, users will be able to select the default email, browser, call and messaging app, allowing users to switch out from Apple’s mail, Safari, phone and messaging apps, respectively. Likewise, they will also be able to select a default call filtering application from the “New Default Application” section.
Users will also report that they will also see two default application sections, which allow multiple applications to be selected – contactless applications and passwords and codes. These can be useful if users want to use multiple payment apps or switch between multiple keyboards on their iPhone.
According to the publication, these eight default app sections will be displayed to users in the United States, while other regions may see different numbers of sections. iPhone users in the EU have stricter anti-competitive rules and may see other options that allow them to set the default app to more categories, but it is not yet clear.
