Your iPhone will quickly glance a quantity other when iOS 26 (named for 2026) comes out within the fall, however there’s extra to peer beneath the frosted glass facade. Introduced at Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference, the untouched model of the iPhone’s running device comprises some options iPhone house owners have watched their Android buddies experience, plus plethora of alternative improvements.
As an example, the Digital camera and Footage apps are gaining long-awaited practical redesigns; the Messages and Telephone apps are taking a less assailable arise towards unwelcome texts and yells; and Apple Knowledge contributes some enhancements in a while when Siri has been delayed. Listed below are the updates you’ll be expecting to peer at the iPhone quickly.
The upcoming model of the running device is because of send in September or October (most likely with pristine iPhone 17 models), however developer betas are available now, with a crowd beta anticipated in July.
Attend to this: Introducing iOS 26 at WWDC25
Clear pristine Liquid glass design
Upcoming greater than a decade of a flat, blank person interface — an overhaul presented in iOS 7 when former Apple Design Officer Jony Ive took over the design of device in addition to {hardware} — the iPhone is getting a pristine glance. The pristine design extends all through the Apple product lineup, from iOS to WatchOS, TVOS and iPadOS.
The Liquid Glass interface additionally now allows a 3rd technique to view app icons at the iPhone house display screen. No longer content material with Shiny and Dim methods, iOS 26 now options an All Unclouded glance — each and every icon is cloudless glass without a colour. Lock displays too can have an enhanced 3-d impact the usage of spatial scenes, which worth system finding out to offer intensity in your background pictures.
The pristine All Unclouded icon glance in iOS 26 is a part of the Liquid Glass design.
Dynamic and adaptable lock display screen
Translucency is the defining function of Liquid Glass, behaving like glass in the true global in how it trade in with brightness and colour of items at the back of and close to controls. Nevertheless it’s now not only a glassy glance: The “liquid” a part of Liquid Glass refers to how controls can merge and adapt — dynamically morphing, in Apple’s phrases. Within the instance Apple confirmed, the glassy moment numerals on an iPhone lock display screen stretched to house the picture of a canine or even contracted as the picture shifted to house incoming notifications. The dock and widgets at the moment are rounded, glassy panels that glide above the background.
As notifications fill the base of the display screen, the topic within the background symbol is driven up and the moment numerals resize to house.
Attend to this: I’m Inspired With iOS 26. Apple Simply Made iPhones Higher
Digital camera and Footage apps proceed much more minimum
The Digital camera app is getting a pristine, simplified interface. You want to argue that the wave Digital camera app is nice-looking minimum, designed to build it fast to border a shot and strike the bulky shutter button. However the age you get into the outer edge, it turns into a unusual mixture of secret controls and unintuitive icons.
The Digital camera app has fewer distractions.
Now, the Digital camera app in iOS 26 includes a “new, more intuitive design” that takes minimalism to the endmost. The streamlined design presentations simply two controls: Video or Digital camera. Swipe left or correct to make a choice methods. Swipe up for settings reminiscent of side ratio and timers, and faucet for backup personal tastes.
With the up to date Footage app, viewing the photographs you seize must be a greater enjoy — a welcome change that customers have clamored for since iOS 18’s cluttered try. In lieu of a protracted, difficult-to-discover scrolling interface, Footage regains a Liquid Glass menu on the base of the display screen.
The Footage app will get a welcome redesign.
The Telephone app will get a revamp
The Telephone app has saved extra carefully to the glance of its supply than others: a sparse interface with immense buttons as for those who’re keeping an old school headset or pre-smartphone mobile phone. iOS 26 after all updates that glance now not simply with the pristine total interface however in a unified sequence that takes benefit of the bigger display screen genuine property on nowadays’s iPhone fashions.
The Telephone app’s unified sequence must build for much less switching between displays when coping with yells.
It’s now not simply seems which are other, although. The Telephone app is attempting to be extra helpful for coping with untouched yells — those you need to remove. The Name Screening property mechanically solutions yells from unknown numbers, and your telephone rings best when the caller stocks their identify and explanation why for calling.
Or what about all of the moment wasted on store? Store Lend a hand mechanically detects store track and will mute the track however hold the decision attached. As soon as a are living agent turns into to be had, the telephone rings and we could the agent know you’ll be to be had in a while.
Messages updates
The Messages app is most certainly probably the most older apps at the iPhone, and for iOS 26, Apple is making it a extra colourful enjoy. You’ll upload backgrounds to the chat window, together with dynamic backgrounds that sing their own praises the pristine Liquid Glass interface.
Brighten up your day by day chats with backgrounds and extra team options.
Along with the pristine glance, team texts in Messages can incorporate polls for everybody within the team to answer — not more scrolling again to determine which eating place Brett advised for lunch that you simply ignored. Alternative individuals within the chat too can upload their very own pieces to a ballot.
A extra helpful property is a property to come across unsolicited mail texts higher and display screen unknown numbers, so the messages you spot within the app are those you need to peer and now not those that distract you.
Safari will get out of its personal method
Within the Safari app, the Liquid Glass design floats the tab bar above the internet web page (despite the fact that that appears correct the place your thumb goes to be, so it’ll be fascinating to peer if you’ll walk the bar to the supremacy of the display screen). As you scroll, the tab bar shrinks.
Internet pages occupy all the display screen and the deal with bar shrinks to withdraw from the way in which.
FaceTime specializes in yells, now not controls
FaceTime additionally will get the minimum glance, with controls within the lower-right nook that disappear all the way through the decision to withdraw from the way in which. At the FaceTime touchdown web page, posters of your contacts, together with video clips of earlier yells, are designed to build the app extra interesting.
FaceTime minimizes its controls into one nook.
Untouched Song app options
Do you just like the tone of that music your good friend is taking part in however don’t perceive the language the lyrics are in? The Song app features a pristine lyrics translation property that presentations together with the lyrics because the music performs. And for when you need to sing together with one among her favourite Ok-pop songs, for instance, however you don’t talk or learn Korean, a lyrics speech property spells out how one can method the sounds.
AutoMix blends songs like a DJ, indistinguishable the beat and time-stretching for a continuing transition.
And when you are obsessively taking note of artists and albums over and over, you’ll pin them to the supremacy of your track library for fast get admission to.
Reserve the beat going with intelligence-based music transitions the usage of AutoMix.
Untouched Video games app is a reminder that sure, crowd recreation on iPhone
The iPhone doesn’t get the similar roughly gaming affection as Nintendo’s Transfer or Valve’s Steam Deck, however in reality that the iPhone and Android telephones are older broadly for gaming — Apple says part one billion crowd play games video games on iPhone.
Looking to capitalize on that, a pristine Video games app acts as a particular portal to Apple Arcade and alternative video games. Sure, you’ll get to these from the App Bind app, however the Video games app is designed to take away a layer of friction so you’ll get correct to the gaming motion.
The pristine Video games hub has a easy regulate display screen to mean you can navigate all your Apple video games on any software.
Reside translation complements yells and texts
Even supposing now not particular to iOS, Apple’s pristine are living translation property is perfect at the iPhone while you’re speaking with others. It makes use of Apple Knowledge to dynamically enable you communicate to anyone who speaks a special language in near-real moment. It’s to be had within the Messages, FaceTime and Telephone apps and presentations are living translated captions all the way through a dialog.
Reside translation all the way through a tone name
Maps will get extra private
Updates to the Maps app on occasion contain including extra quality to customery farmlands or restructuring the way in which you pack places. Now, the app takes be aware of routes you advance continually and will warn you of any delays ahead of you get at the highway.
A Maps widget presentations a frequently-used path.
It additionally features a welcome property for the ones people who get our favourite eating places blended up: visited parks. The app notes how repeatedly you’ve been to a park, be {that a} native trade, eatery or vacationer vacation spot. It organizes them in divisions or alternative standards reminiscent of by way of town to build them more straightforward to search out the upcoming moment.
Untouched CarPlay options
Liquid Glass additionally makes its technique to CarPlay to your automobile, with a extra compact design when a choice is available in that doesn’t difficult to understand alternative pieces, reminiscent of a directional map. In Messages, you’ll follow tapbacks and pin conversations for simple get admission to.
Widgets at the moment are a part of the CarPlay enjoy, so you’ll focal point on simply the knowledge you need, just like the wave climate statuses. And Reside Actions seem at the CarPlay display screen, so that you’ll know when that espresso you ordered will probably be carried out or when a pal’s gliding is ready to reach.
The pristine CarPlay interface with Liquid Glass.
Pockets enhancements
The Pockets app is already house for the usage of Apple Card, Apple Pay, digital automobile keys and for storing tickets and passes. In iOS 26, you’ll assemble a pristine Virtual ID that acts like a passport for date and identification verification (although it does now not exchange a bodily passport) for home advance for TSA screening at airports.
The app too can mean you can worth rewards and arrange installment bills while you acquire pieces in a pack, now not only for on-line orders. And with the backup of Apple Knowledge, the Pockets app can backup you observe product orders, although you didn’t worth Apple Pay to buy them. It will probably jerk main points reminiscent of delivery numbers from emails and texts in order that knowledge is multi function park.
The Pockets app helps criminal climate IDs and nationwide IDs for date and identification verification.
Untouched options powered by way of Apple Knowledge
Even supposing closing while’s WWDC featured Apple Knowledge options closely, enhancements to the AI tech had been much less leading this while, folded into the bulletins all the way through the WWDC keynote.
As an additional to making Genmoji from scratch, you’ll mix present emojis — “like a sloth and a light bulb when you’re the last one in the group chat to get the joke,” to worth Apple’s instance. You’ll additionally exchange expressions in Genmoji of crowd you understand that you simply’ve older to assemble the picture.
Mix present emoji the usage of Apple Knowledge.
Image Playground provides the power to faucet into ChatGPT’s symbol occasion gear to proceed past the app’s animation or caricature kinds.
Sight Knowledge can already worth the digital camera to struggle to decipher what’s in entrance of the lens. Now the generation works at the content material at the iPhone’s display screen, too. It does this by way of taking a screenshot (press the ease and quantity up buttons) and upcoming together with a pristine Symbol Seek possibility in that interface to search out effects around the internet or in alternative apps reminiscent of Etsy.
This may be some way so as to add match main points from photographs you come back throughout, like posters for live shows or immense gatherings. (Possibly this might paintings for QR codes as smartly?) Within the screenshot interface, Sight Knowledge can parse the textual content and assemble an match within the Calendar app.
Some iOS 26 updates Apple didn’t point out
No longer the whole lot suits right into a keynote presentation — even, or possibly particularly, when it’s all pre-recorded — however one of the most extra fascinating new features in iOS 26 went unremarked all the way through the bulky divulge. As an example:
- In case you have AirPods or AirPods Professional with the H2 chip, you’ll worth AirPods Digital camera Far off to start out recording video for your iPhone by way of urgent and keeping probably the most AirPods.
- You’ll make a selection your personal snooze period of between 1 and quarter-hour for alarms.
- Audio recording choices have expanded, enabling high quality recording all the way through convention yells and high-definition recording within the Digital camera app with AirPods and AirPods Professional that include the H2 chip.
- Accessibility options come with an “all-new experience designed with Braille users in mind,” extra choices for the Car Movement Cues property to steer clear of movement disorder and “a more customizable reading experience.”
- Reminders makes use of Apple Knowledge to “suggest tasks, grocery items and follow-ups based on emails or other text on your device.”
- The Magazine app helps more than one journals, inline photographs and a map view that tracks the place magazine entries had been made.
- Parental controls were up to date in unspecified techniques, together with “enhancements across Communication Limits, Communication Safety and the App Store.”
iOS 26 availability
The completed model of iOS 26 will probably be exempted in September or October with pristine iPhone 17 models. Within the period in-between, builders gets get admission to to the primary developer betas creation on Monday, with an preliminary crowd beta arriving in July. (Don’t put out of your mind to proceed into any beta device with open eyes and clear expectations.)
Observe the WWDC 2025 live blog for information about Apple’s bulletins.
iPhone fashions appropriate with iOS 26
iOS 26 will run at the iPhone 11 and then fashions, together with the iPhone SE (second occasion and then). That incorporates:
- iPhone 16e
- iPhone 16
- iPhone 16 Plus
- iPhone 16 Pro
- iPhone 16 Pro Max
- iPhone 15
- iPhone 15 Plus
- iPhone 15 Professional
- iPhone 15 Professional Max
- iPhone 14
- iPhone 14 Plus
- iPhone 14 Professional
- iPhone 14 Professional Max
- iPhone 13
- iPhone 13 little
- iPhone 13 Professional
- iPhone 13 Professional Max
- iPhone 12
- iPhone 12 little
- iPhone 12 Professional
- iPhone 12 Professional Max
- iPhone 11
- iPhone 11 Professional
- iPhone 11 Professional Max
- iPhone SE (second occasion and then)
