First developer beta for iOS 12.1.1 is now available with FaceTime Live Photos

On Tuesday, Apple disseminated iOS 12.1, and already the company is back with the first developer beta for iOS 12.1.1. Appearing in the beta is FaceTime Live Photos, a feature that was removed from the final version of iOS 12. With FaceTime Live Photos, you can take a photo of what is on your screen during a FaceTime video chat. Both sides of the video conversation must have the feature enabled (Settings > FaceTime > Live Photos), and have the developer beta for iOS 12.1.1 installed.

Apple also has updated the FaceTime expanded card view. In iOS 12, users needed to perform a swipe gesture in order to gain access to the flip camera and mute buttons. And while the expanded card blocked users from seeing the thumbnail image from their own camera, all of these issues have been addressed in the first developer beta of iOS 12.1.1. At the bottom of the screen, the collapsed card now has four options: Effects, Mute, Flip Camera, and End Call. The shutter button for Live Photos is just above the card. The expanded card includes those same four options on top, with the "camera off" and "speaker" lozenges right underneath. That is followed by the names of those participating in the FaceTime call.

Since this is a minor update, you can expect it to clear up some bugs leftover from iOS 12 and iOS 12.1. The final version of iOS 12.1.1 is expected to be released before the end of this year. If you're a registered Apple developer, you can load the update now from the Apple Developer website.