Apple Delays FaceTime Group Chat

Apple today revealed that it will no longer provide FaceTime group chat functionality in the initial shipping version of iOS 12.

“Group FaceTime has been removed from the initial release of iOS 12 and will ship in a future software update later this fall,” Apple notes in the release notes for iOS 12 Beta 7, which is heading out to private beta testers today.

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FaceTime group chat was announced with much fanfare at Apple’s WWDC 2012 conference in June. In typical Apple fashion, the feature is coming late to the party, given that virtually all other chat solutions have support group chats, many for several years. But it also provides a unique visual display, with undulating tiles representing each user in the chat.

“It’s beautiful,” Apple’s Craig Federighi said during an on-stage demonstration of the feature. “With big, gorgeous tiles right up front [for the participants that are current interacting]. Down at the bottom, there’s an area we call the roster that contains everybody else.”

Whether it’s beautiful—I find the weaving and bobbing to be distracting—is open to debate. But that it is now delayed is a fact. And with that, it becomes yet another example of a creeping problem for Apple where it can never seem to deliver on its promises on time.

As a Microsoft fan, I understand completely.

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Conversation 18 comments

  • Jason Peter

    13 August, 2018 - 2:03 pm

    <p>Like my Mom used to say before dinner, “it will come out of the oven when its fully baked. Until then, shut up…”</p><p><br></p><p>Tech companies could learn a lot from my Mom…</p>

    • darrellprichard

      13 August, 2018 - 3:08 pm

      <blockquote><em><a href="#301271">In reply to Jason_P:</a></em></blockquote><p>Your mom is very wise. Unfortunately, shareholders will punish mom, bloggers will eat the half baked dinner and then write about how crappy a meal it was and tech enthusiasts will complain about how shareholders and bloggers are nothing but haters.</p>

  • johnbaxter

    13 August, 2018 - 2:14 pm

    <p>"Software takes longer and costs more." –someone</p>

  • dontbe evil

    13 August, 2018 - 2:41 pm

    <p>but but apple is the best, they never delay anything, just works</p>

  • dcdevito

    13 August, 2018 - 2:47 pm

    <p>Wow, 7 betas – seems like an awful lot. If I had an iPhone I'd wait it out a couple months before upgrading.</p>

    • CrownSeven

      Premium Member
      13 August, 2018 - 4:11 pm

      <blockquote><a href="#301292"><em></em>In reply to dcdevit</a></blockquote><blockquote><br></blockquote><blockquote><em><span class="ql-cursor"></span></em>The betas are very stable. If i didnt tell you it was a beta you woukd never know. </blockquote>

      • ChristopherCollins

        Premium Member
        14 August, 2018 - 1:33 am

        <blockquote>The CarPlay aspect of this beta has been a disaster (for me). Even my 'enhanced' bluetooth link fails to play Apple Music songs 90% of the time. This integration is via Ford Sync 3.</blockquote><blockquote><br></blockquote><blockquote>The rest of the phone has been okay since dev beta 4… I started early, though, so it's on me. First time in years I began on Developer Beta 1.</blockquote><p><br></p>

    • Darekmeridian

      13 August, 2018 - 4:39 pm

      <blockquote><a href="#301292"><em>In reply to dcdevito:</em></a></blockquote><p>7 is nothing compared to the number of Insider builds dropped between releases</p><p><br></p>

    • will

      Premium Member
      13 August, 2018 - 6:15 pm

      <blockquote><em><a href="#301292">In reply to dcdevito:</a></em></blockquote><p>Yea having 7 betas or 15 betas before release does not indicate the quality per say. I would rather have more frequent betas to make sure stuff is good before general release.</p>

  • dstrauss

    13 August, 2018 - 4:17 pm

    <p>Kind of like Timeline; or was that Longhorn….</p>

  • SvenJ

    13 August, 2018 - 9:53 pm

    <p>Why can't the two companies try to adopt the best of their competitors, instead of the worst?</p>

  • GT Tecolotecreek

    13 August, 2018 - 11:18 pm

    <p>Umm, reminds me of a story I recently read…</p><p><br></p><p><strong><em>Microsoft Finally Fixes Surface Pro Pen Problems</em></strong><em> Barely a week after it was buried under a mountain of firmware updates, Microsoft’s latest Surface Pro is getting patched again. The good news? This time, Microsoft is finally fixing an “intermittent pen inaccuracy when [one’s] hand is on the screen” issue that its </em><strong><em>customers first reported over a year ago.</em></strong><em> “If my hand is not on the screen, the pen is perfectly accurate, even at an angle,” the original complaint explains. “About 50 percent of the time, if I begin a stroke with my hand already resting on the screen, there is a significant offset of the pen line to the actual tip position. This makes hand-writing nigh impossible.” </em><strong><em>Well, Microsoft is listening. They’re just moving very slowly… …I can only assume this was a difficult computer science problem.</em></strong></p><p><br></p><p>Maybe being late on the initial release, but having it work as advertised, is far better than having a flagship feature not work for over a year…?</p>

  • Patrick Yore

    14 August, 2018 - 11:30 am

    <p>but but what now…..it doesn't support group chat already! lol</p>

  • rwest

    14 August, 2018 - 12:17 pm

    <p>"FaceTime group chat was announced with much fanfare at <strong>Apple’s WWDC 2012 </strong>conference in June" — I didn't realize that this was 6 years in the making!</p>

    • GT Tecolotecreek

      14 August, 2018 - 1:53 pm

      <blockquote><em><a href="#301556">In reply to rwest:</a></em></blockquote><p>Copy editor, copy editor! We don't need no stinking copy editor!</p>

  • David Berk

    14 August, 2018 - 12:31 pm

    <p>Or delivering on time an/or buggy as hell?</p>

  • prebengh

    14 August, 2018 - 1:42 pm

    <p>Based on the headline for the story, I had to read how you would twist the story, as always as negative on Apple as possible.</p><p><br></p>

  • michael_babiuk

    14 August, 2018 - 2:38 pm

    <p>"As a Microsoft Shrill, I understand completely." (Corrected your last sentence for you.)</p><p><br></p><p>But these are the dog days of summer after all so I can't blame dogs for howling about something inconsequential. Then again, how is that promised Microsoft Windows 10 support for iPhone users for Windows 10 Phone App coming along, Paul? Hmm, guess we (and every Android user also-not just some chosen few) will have to wait for some version after 1803 for that or any promised added functionality. </p>

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