Apple to Allow Users in the EU to Sideload iPhone Apps in H1 2024: Gurman

Sideloading apps on iOS is expected to be limited to iPhone owners in the EU.

Written by David Delima, Edited by Siddharth Suvarna | Updated: 14 November 2023 13:46 IST

Apple to Allow Users in the EU to Sideload iPhone Apps in H1 2024: Gurman

Photo Credit: Apple

Unlike Google's Android, iOS doesn't allow a user to sideload an app onto their iPhone

Highlights

Apple is planning on allowing iPhone owners to sideload apps
Only iPhone owners in the EU are likely to have access to sideloading
Apple is also working on adding support for AI features to iOS 18 in 2024

Apple is working on allowing users in the European Union to sideload iPhone apps onto the company's smartphones, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman states in his weekly newsletter. The ability to install apps that are not hosted on Apple's own App Store will make its way to iPhone owners for the first time, as the company has to adhere to recent EU regulations. The ability to sideload apps is not expected to roll out to users in other regions, unlike Google's Android operating system.

In the subscriber-only version of his weekly Power On newsletter (via MacRumors), Gurman states that iPhone users in the EU will be allowed to sideload apps in H1 2024, allowing users to install apps that aren't allowed on the App Store. The claim contradicts a recent report that stated iOS 17.2 could add support for sideloading for EU residents when it arrives next month, but it appears that the code that was spotted at the time was related to managed devices for organisations.

According to Gurman, Apple will allow EU users to sideload apps through a "highly controlled system" — this suggests that these apps will still be subject to some security checks, as Apple has previously argued that external app sources could introduce security issues on the platform. Both Apple's payment services and the Messages app are also expected to see some changes as required by the EU's Digital Markets Act (DMA).

Apple Expects to Make App Store Changes to Comply With EU Regulations

Recently, development of Apple's iOS 18 update was reportedly paused to resolve several bugs in Apple's code. The company is said to be working on "major new features and designs" — the upgrade to the operating system for its smartphones is likely to bring an overhaul to the user interface as well as several new AI-powered features.

Both Google and Microsoft recently began to roll out AI-powered features to their operating systems in the form of Google Assistant with Bard and Microsoft Copilot. Gurman says that Apple's iOS 18 update needs to be "extra impressive" as the iPhone 16 series — the company's purported smartphones that are likely to succeed the iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 15 Pro, and iPhone 15 Pro Max — is not expected to bring major hardware upgrades next year.

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REVIEW
KEY SPECS
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Design
Display
Software
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Display 6.10-inch

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OS iOS 17

Resolution 1179x2556 pixels

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Display
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Battery Life
Camera
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Read detailed Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max review

Display 6.70-inch

Processor Apple A17 Pro

Front Camera 12-megapixel

Rear Camera 48-megapixel + 12-megapixel + 12-megapixel

RAM 8GB

Storage 256GB, 512GB, 1TB

OS iOS 17

Resolution 1290x2796 pixels

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Further reading: iOS, iPhone, iPhone app sideloading, iPhone sideloading, iPhone apps, iOS sideloading, iOS app sideloading, iOS third party apps, third party app stores, Apple, EU, European Union, Digital Markets Act, DMA

David Delima

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As a writer on technology with Gadgets 360, David Delima is interested in open-source technology, cybersecurity, consumer privacy, and loves to read and write about how the Internet works. David can be contacted via email at DavidD@ndtv.com, on Twitter at @DxDavey, and Mastodon at mstdn.social/@delima. More