Feature in iOS 26 will reduce one major fear about software updates for iPhone users
Apple's release notes for iOS 26 Developer Beta 1 include a new feature that might take the worry out of software updates.
Have you ever been caught in a situation where you have a software update to load on your iPhone but don't have enough storage space remaining? So you are forced to go through your apps to decide which ones you really need. Do you really want to keep CSPAN? Do you really need all 22 weather apps you've downloaded on your iPhone? So you delete some apps and hope that you've opened up enough space to load the software update.
But this might become a thing of the past. Release notes that Apple disseminated with the iOS 26 Developer Beta mentioned a dynamic storage reserve feature. The feature will automatically save some space on an iPhone so that the device has enough storage to install an automatic update, well, automatically. The storage reserve feature is part of iOS 26 Developer Beta 1 which Apple released last Monday. A revised version of the update was pushed out Friday to fix an issue with the battery.
The actual part of the release notes discussing this new feature says, "Depending on the amount of free space available, iOS might dynamically reserve update space for Automatic Updates to download and install successfully." Think about how big this could be for app hoarders or even just those iPhone users who love shopping at the App Store.
What we don't know yet is how the dynamic storage reserve works, how much storage Apple will be able to create in reserve, whether iPhone users will be allowed to opt out of the feature, and whether iPhone users will receive a notification telling them that they have a certain amount of storage held aside for the next software update. With the new feature, the process of installing software updates on your iPhone will be more seamless and less of a worry assuming that the dynamic storage reserve does its thing.
Seeing a notification like this on your iPhone might be a thing of the past once iOS 26 is installed. | Image credit-Cisdem
Currently, iOS uses a temporary feature that requires storage to be temporarily created and employed during an iOS update. This temporary working space can be two to three times the size of the file being downloaded as a software update. This space is needed during the update process to hold the files being unpacked. It's at this point in the updating journey that you might receive a message reading "Not Enough Storage."
While iOS 26 Developer Beta 1 is available now, you don't have to be a developer to install it. Make sure to back up your phone first. There are bugs, as you can expect, and your battery life will be shorter. The first Public Beta for iOS 26 will arrive next month and the stable version of the new major iOS build should be released in September alongside the iPhone 17 series.
FCC OKs Cingular\'s purchase of AT&T Wireless
Things that are NOT allowed: