The Journal app that Apple promised will be included in iOS 17 is now available in iOS 17.2 as well. Users can organize and keep a record of their daily activities and ideas by using Apple's Journal app, and the company offers optional prompts that can serve as sources of creative motivation.

When using the Journal app, users can add a new entry to their journal by tapping on the "+" button. From there, users can select a recommendation to use as the foundation for their writing, or they can simply choose the "New Entry" option to write anything at all.

There are bookmarking options available in addition to the entries having a date that is automatically appended to them for organizational purposes. Journal entries may contain photographs, audio recordings, and location markers. Journal entries may also include text.

You may now add a sticker response to any chat bubble in the Messages app by doing a long press on any chat bubble. This function acts as an alternative to the tapback reaction. When you send an iMessage to someone, you may personalize the corner of the screen with an emoji or a sticker by tapping the "Add Sticker" button. 

With the release of iOS 17.2, both the iPhone 15 Pro and the iPhone 15 Pro Max are now capable of recording spatial footage that can be viewed on the Vision Pro headset within the Photos app.

To begin shooting spatial video, open the Settings app on your device, navigate to the Camera section, pick Formats from the menu that appears, and then turn on the "Spatial Video for Apple Vision Pro" switch. Apple recommends that while recording spatial video on an iPhone, the device should be held steady in landscape mode while the video is being captured for the best results. Video is captured at a rate of 30 frames per second at a resolution of 1080p, and the storage space required for one minute of video is 130 megabytes.

When viewed on an iPhone, recordings that were recorded in 3D space using an iPhone appear to be standard videos on that device. You will need the Vision Pro headset to watch the video in 3D.

Within Apple Music, there is now an ability to create a playlist that several users can contribute to simultaneously. Tap the icon with three dots in the upper right corner of the app while you are viewing a playlist that you have created.

From there, select the option to Collaborate, and then click the option to "Start Collaboration." You will have the ability to generate a link to the playlist, and anyone who has access to that URL will be able to add to the playlist. You can also invite people to join through the use of a QR code, and if you so choose, you can approve each individual who requests to join.

The Apple Music app now has a Favorites playlist that compiles all of the songs that you have marked as favorites while using the service.

Users of the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max now have access to a new Translate option that can be found under the Action button.

When the Action button is set to Translate, tapping and holding the button will force the iPhone to display a window that listens for spoken text and translates it. It can translate from one language to another, utilizing the languages that you have already configured in the Translate app. This ability allows it to translate from one language to another.

The iMessage Contact Key Verification feature was previewed for the first time in December 2022. It was developed as a security measure for individuals who are subject to "extraordinary digital threats," such as government officials, journalists, and human rights advocates.

Users can ensure that there is no "man in the middle" snooping on iMessage discussions, and there is an option to display a Contact Verification Code so that users of iMessage can verify that they are speaking to the correct individual while they are in person with them or on a FaceTime chat with them.

The area in the Settings app formerly known as "Messages" has been rebranded as "Messages in iCloud" to reflect its new location. It displays the overall amount of storage that is being used by messages, the number of messages that have been synchronized to iCloud, as well as the time that the most recent sync occurred. In addition to that, there is a "Sync Now" option that will automatically trigger an update.

Since Apple has previously stated that new options would be synchronized through Messages in iCloud in iOS 17, such as Text Message Forwarding, Send and receive accounts, and SMS filters across devices, these extra settings may be synced as a result of this update.

The Movies and TV Shows sections of Apple's TV app for iOS devices, including the iPhone and the iPad, no longer have their own dedicated tabs in the Store area. As part of a revamp for the TV app, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Apple also wants to remove the option to purchase films and television series from within the iTunes app; however, this has not yet been implemented.

There is an option to Share Name and Photo inside the settings for both Phone and FaceTime. This option makes use of the Contact Poster. You have the option of turning off Name and Photo Sharing, restricting it to Contacts Only, or setting it to Always Ask, which will remind you to decide whether or not to share that information with other people.

The Weather app has been updated with brand new widgets for Details, Daily Forecast, and Sunrise and Sunset. Details display information such as the probability of precipitation, the UV index, the wind speed, and the air quality, whereas Daily Forecast provides the weather forecast for the next several days in the form of a compact widget. The sunrise and sunset hours for each day are displayed on the Sunrise/Sunset app.