iOS 15 is here, but without key features like SharePlay

Apple’s iOS 15 and iPadOS 15 are finally here, but not all of the features announced at WWDC have made it alongside them. We looked through Apple’s product pages for each OS to find the features that have yet to show up on iPhones and iPads, such as SharePlay, improved AirPod Find My support, Universal Control, and more. Except for Universal Control, which isn’t for iPhones (yet), every feature listed is missing from both platforms.

Perhaps the most prominent missing feature is SharePlay, which lets users watch videos or listen to music with friends on a FaceTime call. Apple warned us (and developers) about the delay after removing SharePlay from beta tests, but it’s still a bit awkward given how significant the feature looked at first. Its delay is worse because it’s holding other features back — Apple recently announced that Group Workouts for Fitness Plus is on hold until SharePlay comes out.

Apple also says that better Find My support for AirPods isn’t coming until later this fall. The feature was announced at WWDC, with Apple saying that some of the devices in its headphone lineup are getting an AirTag-like proximity view. The AirPods Pro and Max will be able to connect to the Find My network, making them easier to find even when they’re not physically with you. As someone who is currently missing a set of AirPods (and whose hope of finding them is draining like the earbud’s batteries), this is probably the delay that hurts the most.

Image: Apple

The App Store’s in-app events feature, which will show off things like in-game events, live video streams, and other limited-time features, is also not here yet. It’s labeled with the same asterisk as the other features, saying that it’s “coming later this fall.”

Image: Apple

iPad users will also have to wait for the incredible-looking Universal Control feature, which seamlessly lets you share a cursor between Macs and iPads. It missing the launch shouldn’t be a surprise: unlike SharePlay, Universal Control didn’t show up in the betas, and the feature also requires the not-yet-released macOS Monterey.

Of course, it’s worth mentioning that two of these features could be waiting on new hardware — another Apple event this fall seems likely, with predictions focusing on new MacBook Pros and AirPods. As I try to remind myself, rumors should be taken with a grain of salt, but it makes sense that Apple will wait to launch a new version of macOS along with new hardware if it’s really that close.

If you want to read more about the features that did make it into iOS and iPadOS 15, check out my colleague Chaim’s titanic review of Apple’s new updates.