Apple just announced iOS 26, the newest version of its operating system.
The major thing about iOS 26, aside from the abrupt name change, is the major visual redesign, which adopts the ethereal glass-like design language that debuted with Apple's visionOS software.
iOS 26 will arrive this September with the iPhone 17 generation and will support iPhone 11 and newer. Yes, this means the iPhone XS and the iPhone XR are getting sunset and will no longer receive major iOS software updates.
Liquid Glass: Apple's largest redesign in more than a decade
The new design language is called Liquid Glass.
Apple's Liquid Glass new design language (Image Credit-Apple)
The style combines fluidity and clarity to emulate glass and dynamically reacts to how you use and even move your device around. Interfaces are rethought with translucency and adaptability in mind, adding a functional layer that is consistent when you move between apps and screens. Notifications, Control Center, and most iOS interfaces are now transparent.
iOS 26 now also introduces new parallax lock screen wallpapers, which react to the way you move your device.
New icon appearances include a more toned-down icons with a slightly gentler hues as well as a brand new clear look which desaturates and adds transparency to your icons, allowing you to look straight through them and enjoy your wallpapers. You know, just like glass!
The transparency effects continue to the lock screen, where notifications also appear fully transparent. Lock screen clock faces are now larger by default when you don't have any pending notifications, but gradually shrinks as you receive more and more of those.
Liquid Glass as a design language is consistent across iOS, watchOS, macOS, iPadOS, and of course, visionOS.
All of Apple's operating systems will get the Liquid Glass redesign this fall (Image Credit-Apple)
Camera
The camera app has also scored a pretty drastic redesign. The two major branches of the app, still photography and video, are now distinctly separated.
You access the two different modes with a swipe to the side. Meanwhile, to access all the available camera modes, like panorama, spatial video, and portrait, you have to swipe up on the screen.
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The interface employs the Liquid Glass redesign through and through, and frankly, looks like a distraction-free change that will help you engross yourself in the photography experience. Remains to be seen if the vast majority of iPhone users will enjoy the change, though.
Safari
Safari has also enjoyed a pretty major visual redesign, but has kept its overall functionality unchanged (Image Credit-Apple)
The iOS browser now displays webpages in full screen, with the tab bar being both translucent and shrinking when you swipe around for a pretty minimalistic look. All the familiar controls are now available in a distraction-free menu at the bottom, while the web address and your essential controls like refresh, back, and search are easily available at all times.
That's a pretty major change for Safari, which usually gets functionality updates, but rarely enjoys visual overhauls. This one is a pretty drastic one that will put the website you're visiting front and center, minimizing the distraction interface of the browser itself.
Phone & Call Screening
The essential Phone app now features a more streamlined combined interface that brings together your favorites, recent calls and voicemails, making the app more intuitive than before. Your favorites are at the top, with large and expressive thumbnails that make it easier to call your besties and family members. Down below, you get your recent calls list and voicemails. Apple Intelligence uses on-device models to summarize the contents of a voicemail and will display it front and center for you to see, which is a great addition to the app.
A new iOS 26 feature dubbed Call Screening will act as a virtual agent and screen any unknown callers instead of ringing, potentially sparing you from telemarketers and spam callers. Based on Live Voicemail, the new feature will let the phone ring only when the caller and the call reason have been identified and neatly displayed on the screen, giving you the choice to answer or decline.
And, if you're stuck on hold, the revamped phone app detects hold music and will automatically wait out for you. Once a live agent joins the call, the app will alert you.
Say goodbye to irritating spam calls and unknown numbers with iOS 26's new Call Screening feature, which will act as a virtual agent for you (Image Credit-Apple)
Messages
Apple's most important app ever, Messages, has now scored a very nifty message screening feature that automatically filters messages from unknown or spam senders, hiding them away in a dedicated page and thus keeping your landing page as clean as possible, populated only with threads from your contacts. Unknown senders' messages will remain silenced until you open their dedicated vault and choose how to interact with them: you can either flag a number as known or delete it.
Say goodbye to spam or unknown messages (Image Credit-Apple)
Messages now lets you apply various dynamic wallpapers to your iMessage backgrounds, just like you can do in pretty much any other popular third-party messaging app, like Meta Messenger, WhatsApp, Viber, or Telegram. Even Apple Intelligence can join the fun and help you create a wallpaper for any thread.
Boring no more (Image Credit-Apple)
You can now also create polls and request, send, or receive Apple Cash in group chats.
Apple Intelligence features
Live translation
iOS 26 now also offers an Apple Intelligence feature dubbed Live Translation which lets you enjoy live interlanguage translation in a slew of apps, like FaceTime, Phone, and Messages. If you're speaking with someone talking in a different language, the feature will interpret the audio or text in real time, giving you your local language equivalent on the fly. This feature relies solely on on-device models for the ultimate privacy, Apple style.
Visual Intelligence
Visual Intelligence is by no means a new feature as it was announced at the previous WWDC summit, but is now getting smarter and more powerful. Compatible iPhones can now use Visual Intelligence to search for anything you're viewing on your screen. It seems to be an Apple-ified mix between Google's Circle to Search and Gemini Live in the sense that it lets you quickly search and take appropriate action with what's on your screen. Visual Intelligence can tap into ChatGPT's prowess, scour Etsy or do a standard Google Search.
Visual Intelligence gains superpowers on eligible iPhones (Image Credit-Apple)
Genmoji & Image Playground
Apple's Apple Intelligence Genmoji scores cool new features and gives you much more control in crafting just the perfect emoji to react to that meme in the group chat. We also get new ChatGPT illustration style. For example, you get Vector, Anime, Print, Oil Painting, and Watercolor image styles in Image Playground, allowing you to expand your creativity.
Other changes
Apple Music
Apple Music adds AutoMix, Lyrics Translation and Lyrics Pronunciation.
AutoMix does just what it says on the tin: it is your on-device DJ that uses Apple Intelligence to automatically switch between songs by matching the beat.
Lyrics Translation automatically translates song lyrics, while Lyrics Pronunciation provides phonetic transcription so that you can easily sing along in trickier foreign languages like Japanese or Korean.
You can also pin your favorite tracks, artists, or playlists at the top of the screen, a la YouTube Music.
Apple Maps
The navigation app will now proactively suggest routes based on traffic, road closures, and other obstructions.
Apple Pay
Wallet can now use Apple Intelligence to pull order details from your Mail app, keeping all your orders in one place.
The app can now also keep more and more digital car keys from many more car brands.
Apple Games
New iOS app alert! Games will keep track of all the games you have on your iPhone, allowing you to keep them all neat and tidy in one place. Social aspects include your friends' achievement scores and challenges; you can even turn single-player games into multiplayer ones by challenging friends to complete challenges and feats.
Apple is once again trying to make gaming interesting (Image Credit-Apple)
Peter, an experienced tech enthusiast at PhoneArena, is captivated by all things mobile. His impartial reviews and proficiency in Android systems offer readers valuable insights. Off-duty, he delves into the latest cryptocurrency trends and enjoys sci-fi and video games.
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