IOS 26 is not yet ready to launch, but we are enough in the experimental process that Apple is sowing the update to several million public beta examiners today. Ios 262 is now enough paid now that we are able to share more details about what this update actually means for iPhone users when we arrive in September.
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When Apple showed the liquid glass on the stage at WWLUDC 2025, it was dramatically different from iOS 18, which had such heavy focus in OS translusion that primary users expressed concern about usage and readability.
During the developer beta examination, Apple has more dramatic fluid glass effects behind and the design is behind. The control center is no longer so transparent that buttons, the navigation bars look more opaque, and the notifications are no longer unreadable in the busy background.
Beta 3, especially as a result of the complaint, has gone too far to walk behind its design change, mainly because it eliminates a lot of transparency in applications. Apple then re-added something to Beta 4, which is getting public beta testers. Beta is not as transparent as Beta 1 and Beta 2, but more re -introduction of liquid glass has disturbed people who support the design heavier than the design. There is still an important division among those who like transparency and those who think it is wrong with a major design.
Apple liquid glass has not been tweeted, and the public beta response can result in visibility and better balance between the liquefied glass look. It would be great if Apple applied a transparency slider, lets users decide how much “frost” they want for the interface.
Liquid glass on the lock screen draws the eye and control buttons and is aesthetically pleasing with a photo-based wallpaper. Apple has added a feature where the time will change in size based on your wallpaper and it is capable of drowning more on the back of a image. It is also available for the face of the photos of the photos and it works better on the wrist. Applications icons have a stacked glass effect and folders, dock, app library and lock screen notifications are still transparent. You can choose the all-glass look for your app icons and widgets, which enhances the effect. The backgrounds will also give a glaciers the appearance, Apple uses more opaqueness for a light background to improve reading.
The real glass appearance of the re -design has seen changes during the beta, the navigation tweets and simplifications remain. The OTPotos app is the best example, and it has a flowing bi-tab main interface that exposes it as much as you need. The pop-out menu and buttons that have replaced more complex buttons-burden layouts from IIOS 181 are a welcome change in Apple applications.
Some design updates are Al Chhik. There is more compact design of the safety that removes the tab tools behind the menu, but you can also choose the same safari design you can use in AIOS 181. There is a unified phone app that integrates recent calls, missed calls and voicemails, but you don’t have to use it. The interface contains places where the menu and the navigation bars are gone if they do not need to emphasize the content by serving as an example. The tab bar breaks down when you scroll up and if you scroll up the right. This is an intuitive change that makes sense.
Apple returned to at least one controversial design that was introduced in ios 181. The OT Fotos app has no more united views and is now divided into a library tab and collection tab. This is not a complete navigation bar that was available before 18 18, but it is a compromise between the whole bar and the integrated color. Everything in ios 269 is round, and soft curve works better than the starch line with the appearance of liquid glass. The buttons that were not before. The menu bars are in a circular corner and larger size. There are even more rounded edges on the keyboard.
There are also features beyond the liquid glass, though not as much as our past years. Apple did not emphasize as much as Apple detectives did in WWLUDC 2024 for clear reasons, but there are several Apple intelligence features in AIOS 263.
- Live translate – In messages, facetime and phone applications, you can get a real-time translation for a conversation with someone who doesn’t speak in your language. This is a text-based translation in messages and translation of Voiceover on FASTime and phone app. The languages are limited now but it has done well in our exam. The translations were almost always perfect and the feature was fast.
- Visual intelligence for screenshots – You can take a screenshot and ask questions about it or bring visual intelligence tools to find it in an app. If it seems to you it is effective then it may not be a natural work flow for many people. This is mostly earned ChatzPT, Google Search and several other applications, and many of us have already been able to get a quick screenshot on these services as intermediaries of Apple.
- Wallet order tracking – The Wallet application can combine all your purchases in one place, pull the order and track information from the mail app. It is a “beta” feature in a bit and it is not working perfectly. It is not always great in connecting an order to an order email with the next tracking email, so you may have to spend time manually to identify the packages according to the distribution.
- Pic -player – Apple did not mention it on WWLUDC, but the playground of the image of iOS 26 is very good in the image generation, especially when you are creating a figure based on a person. Apple ChatzPT also integrates the styles that open more options for the appearance of an image, but if you do not have the ChatzPT subscription it is not effective. And if you do it you can only use the chatzipi for what you want to make.
- Genmoji – Genmoji has a feature that allows you to select two or more existing emoji characters to create something new and to give users a better idea of how to use the feature. Creating an igenmoji with a strawberry and a frog was perfectly possible but now you can tap this emoji as an early off -point. The end results have more emoji-style appearance because they are based on emoji.
- Reminder – Siri may suggest reminders who want to add to your reminder list based on the content found in the mail. If you are given a lot of work with any of these applications, it may be effective. There is also a classification option that automatically organizes reminders in the logical list.
- Shortcuts – Apple Intelligence has added 3 options to the Apple Shortcut application, but unfortunately, making shortcuts doesn’t really make it really easy to use. Creating a shortcut is not more intuitive than ever, and it is still a feature that is out of the casual users who do not want to invest in a time of shortcut creation, or those who do not fully understand how it works.
- Battery change – ios 261 has better battery reporting equipment but it is limited to new devices. This is a weekly view of the battery use and compares your general average average vs. how much battery you are using. This is an amazingly helpful metric, and it notifies a new adaptable power mode that can adjust things like display brightness and background activities if you identify that you are usually using more battery than you.
Apple APP 26ois 261 has not locked all useful effectiveness behind the Appaple Intelligence barrier, so there are new features that will be able to use old iPhone users.
- Screening – The phone app may ask a caller for their name and reasons for calling, that information relay to you before you answer. It can be very absurd for anyone but it is an effective way to screen for spam.
- Help – The HOLD HELP name does what suggests. If you are holding you can keep Their Hold too. When someone returns to line, iphone will warn you.
- Message background – The backgrounds of the conversation of messages can be customized, but you are chatting with another iPhone user. Each conversation may have a separate background, but should be careful – changing the background changes it for everyone. Apple needs to add a toggle to the background, because now, it’s all or nothing. There may be examples where someone wants to set a background that is for yourself only, it is not an option.
- Copy of Message/Paste – This is what you want to copy a tracking number, email or any other part of an iMaceage than the whole message ever Finally Ios 261 is an alternative 1
- Automix – Automics is an Apple Music Feature that is transferred from one song to another song that ends playing. It uses time to extend time and beat the matching for a smooth shift and it is almost like having AI DJ in your pocket. It is not yet great with all the genre, but it is a feature that Apple Music users are about to choose.
- Spatial scene – The spatial scenes add a bit of depth to the 2D photo, it gives more 3D look and feeling. If you have ever seen those spatial Facebook images that move a bit based on depth information, it’s a lot like that.
- Map of Apple – Apple maps can learn your frequent travels and provide useful information as there is a delay when you are trying to work that can provide you if you can slow down. Apple has also added a reserved place feature that keeps track of the places you have visited. For some people, this is going to be an unwanted privacy nightmares, but for others, a great way to remember the spots you like and want to see again. This is completely opt-in.
- Player – There is a game app, but what do people use it? Is it as a result of any significant enthusiasm in mobile gaming? We have just touched the app during the beta and do nothing useful that the App Store App does not do. A game for challenging friends has a feature to defeat your score but it is now limited to a few fist applications.
Should you update?
Ios 262 is fairly stable at this point, but keep in mind that this is a beta update and things can be wrong. Applications can be broken, features can stop working, battery drain can be severe and the repertoles and crashes can be frequent. Apple does not suggest installing beta on any main device.
We have not had a significant problem with the developer who developed for the past one and a half months, but if you have the necessary application or need to maximize the battery life, it is not appropriate.
If you are expected to install ios 261 and are concerned about design changes, do not. The main features of iOS are still and what has changed is fairly intuitive. It is easy to adjust with many updates on the new look and interface and to adjust the new safari bar and all-in-one appearance can be turned off for the phone application.
Read more about iOS 26
We have a dedicated iOS 26 roundup that have multiple guides in addition to various ios 26 features that go further depth.
