Apple Continues Promoting iOS 26 and macOS 26 Liquid Glass With Updated Design Gallery

[MacRumors]

Apple is continuing to highlight the Liquid Glass aesthetic that it introduced in iOS 26, iPadOS 26, and macOS 26. The company has shared an updated Liquid Glass Design Gallery that shows off Liquid Glass in third-party apps.

The visual gallery features several iPhone and iPad apps, with screenshots that show the difference between app design in iOS 18 and iOS 26.

In the latest edition of our new design gallery, find out how teams of all sizes are taking advantage of the new design and Liquid Glass to create natural, responsive experiences across Apple platforms.

Apps included in the gallery have adopted Liquid Glass for elements like tab bars, navigation buttons, bottom toolbars, and more. Apple also highlights pop-out menu interfaces and the separate search buttons that some apps have implemented, both of which are Liquid Glass design elements that Apple has added to its own apps.

AllTrails, Carrot Weather, Fantastical, Kroger, SketchPro, Trello, and Le Monde are among the apps featured.

Apple previously shared a Liquid Glass gallery after the iOS 26 launch, and that gallery provides more Liquid Glass design examples.

Since debuting Liquid Glass, Apple has made small changes like adding a slider bar to the Lock Screen clock for adjusting the Liquid Glass level, but no major updates have been introduced. Rumors suggest that iOS 27, iPadOS 27, and macOS 27 will continue to feature the Liquid Glass aesthetic with little change, but Apple could also add a system-wide slider bar for Liquid Glass opacity adjustments.

Article Link: Apple Continues Promoting iOS 26 and macOS 26 Liquid Glass With Updated Design Gallery

 

[surfsofa]

Please just give us a toggle to opt out altogether. Then we’re all happy.

 

[turbineseaplane]

Marketing it more won't help.

Making it a lot better, and with more optionality and customization available to the user, will.

It's also a little weird to be "marketing" your UI.
A well designed and functional UI shouldn't be a point of focus.

 

[platinumaqua]

Spend the time and money into polishing the UI instead of ads please.

 

[tonmischa]

"I tried to drag an icon and my screen just got wet."

I'll show myself out.

 

[neuropsychguy]

It’s quite a minor change compared to iOS 18 (it really is! My very non-techie wife upgraded her phone and computers and barely noticed anything was different). I think Liquid Glass is an improvement over what we had before though. It gives more usable screen real estate and pulls us ever so slightly away from the years of flat design and back to something that’s as usable but more interesting to look at (in my opinion).

I know others don’t agree with me, I’m simply expressing my opinion. My opinion isn’t the right one for everyone (I’d not deign to speak for everyone), it’s just what I prefer. I think it's funny, however, when others express their opinion as if it's valid for all people and that Apple (or any company) should do something just because that person thinks that's the better way.

 

[skiguy45]

At least they are now not highlighting the most offensive examples possible.

Still looks like trash though.

 

[platinumaqua]

It’s quite a minor change compared to iOS 18. I think Liquid Glass is an improvement over what we had before though. It gives more usable screen real estate and pulls us ever so slightly away from the years of flat design and back to something that’s as usable but more interesting to look at (in my opinion).

I know others don’t agree with me, I’m simply expressing my opinion. My opinion isn’t the right one for everyone (I’d not deign to speak for everyone), it’s just what I prefer.

The introduction said point blank they've added more padding (unnecessary dead space) to make the content breathe.

 

[turbineseaplane]

The best thing about this example is that the iOS26 version is barely different than the iOS 18 one.

 

[turbineseaplane]

The introduction said point blank they've added more padding (unnecessary dead space) to make the content breathe.

Yeah, I'm not sure how anyone thinks they are getting more usable screen real estate on the 26 OSes.

The exact opposite is true with the padding and corner radius increases.

I presume this comes from folks counting the "blurry content showing through buttons & menus", but I'm not sure how that's considered "usable" (or useful).

 

[turbineseaplane]

On the right .. having the popup menu be translucent adds literally nothing other than making it harder to read.

This is NOT GOOD UI/UX DESIGN.

omg ..
UGH

 

[turbineseaplane]

Again, just look at the buttons (top and bottom) on iOS26.
This is just literal madness.

What needs to happen, in this example, is just add some contrast to the buttons on the navbar on the iOS 18 version.

 

[MysteriousStain]

I bought a 17 base model (green) this week after my XS went skydiving. Overall, I like the new OS, it's refreshing after years of same same. After reading about how terrible it is here, I was dreading it but am perfectly happy. Now I'm considering updating my Mini to Tahoe.

 

[PSCConMP]

It’s quite a minor change compared to iOS 18. I think Liquid Glass is an improvement over what we had before though. It gives more usable screen real estate and pulls us ever so slightly away from the years of flat design and back to something that’s as usable but more interesting to look at (in my opinion).

I know others don’t agree with me, I’m simply expressing my opinion. My opinion isn’t the right one for everyone (I’d not deign to speak for everyone), it’s just what I prefer. I think it's funny, however, when others express their opinion as if it's valid for all people.

Some like liquid glass, some don't We don't need to agree. What we need is an on/off switch.

 

[QuarterSwede]

Please just give us a toggle to opt out altogether. Then we’re all happy.

Well I wouldn’t be. I much prefer Liquid Glass to the awful flat design era Ive’s headed.

This isn’t going away and an option isn’t going to cut it since that’s not how major design changes actually work.

 

[turbineseaplane]

Well I wouldn’t be. I much prefer Liquid Glass to the awful flat design era Ive’s headed.

This isn’t going away.

You won't be happy if folks can turn off LG if they want?

How on Earth would that be bad?

 

[skiguy45]

It is madness. And just because they got more judicious in what they show in the design gallery doesn't mean there's not absolutely horrendous examples in both the OS itself and 3rd party apps. You're not fooling us Apple! And even worse, you're not trying to make it better!!!!

 

[skiguy45]

And is it just me, or are these examples using "Tinted"??

They know it sucks and they just won't admit it!!

 

[PSCConMP]

Well I wouldn’t be. I much prefer Liquid Glass to the awful flat design era Ive’s headed.

This isn’t going away and an option isn’t going to cut it since that’s not how major design changes actually work.

What is wrong with an on/off switch? That way you can have liquid glass, which you like, and others could have an awful flat design, which they like. De gustibus non est disputandum.

If we can put a man on the moon, we can have an on/off switch.

 

[Avenged110]

My primary issue with the redesign isn't the glass effect itself (it makes controls more difficult to read, which is dumb, but Apple does amusingly offer the toggle to tone that effect down), but the horrible toolbar/button changes. Everything is huge, sometimes providing fewer controls in the same space, and removes the toolbar backgrounds so the content distractingly bleeds all around the controls, destroying any visual separation between the two planes (UI chrome/controls and content). And that's not even touching on the content-driven on-the-fly light/dark mode changes to chrome in places like Safari or the 'occasionally-compressing' toolbar button layouts. On a slightly different note, I still find it rather laughable that we were forced into offensively large screens, but then those screens were filled with oversized controls, useless whitespace, and ridiculously high corner radii so that we're not really getting a whole lot more, if any, usable content than on the smaller screens.

 

[TheMacDaddy1]

I was an iPhone user from the 3G to my 16 Pro Max. I now have a Pixel 10 Pro XL. IOS 26 and Liquid Glass was the reason.

I just got a new M5 Pro MacBook Pro, if I could roll it back to Sequoia I would in a heart beat.

Apple needs to wake up. It is EASY to switch these days. I use no Apple software besides the OS. When my Apple Watch Ultra Gen 1 battery started to go bad I got a Garmin Forerunner 970. It made it easier to move to the Pixel.

 

[citysnaps]

It’s quite a minor change compared to iOS 18. I think Liquid Glass is an improvement over what we had before though. It gives more usable screen real estate and pulls us ever so slightly away from the years of flat design and back to something that’s as usable but more interesting to look at (in my opinion).

I know others don’t agree with me, I’m simply expressing my opinion. My opinion isn’t the right one for everyone (I’d not deign to speak for everyone), it’s just what I prefer. I think it's funny, however, when others express their opinion as if it's valid for all people.

Totally agree with you. Liquid Glass has been a breath of fresh air with respect to modern UI design.

Many here love to slam Apple/Cook with just about every introduction of something new released by Apple, going back years ago to Jobs' release of iPod. And the resulting "Who asked for a thousand songs in your pocket?" retorts.

 

[Sputman99]

Would be great if it didn’t flicker and flas and animate like crazy

 

[aespana]

I was an iPhone user from the 3G to my 16 Pro Max. I now have a Pixel 10 Pro XL. IOS 26 and Liquid Glass was the reason.

I just got a new M5 Pro MacBook Pro, if I could roll it back to Sequoia I would in a heart beat.

Apple needs to wake up. It is EASY to switch these days. I use no Apple software besides the OS. When my Apple Watch Ultra Gen 1 battery for bad I got a Garmin Forerunner 970. It made it easier to move to the Pixel.

I knew I'm not the only one who changed to Android after Liquid Glass.

Sad for the Macbook. I have an Air M1 with Sequoia. Tried a couple of time Tahoe and nop, no thank you, please god, no thank you!!

 

[platinumaqua]

Well I wouldn’t be. I much prefer Liquid Glass to the awful flat design era Ive’s headed.

This isn’t going away and an option isn’t going to cut it since that’s not how major design changes actually work.

I've never warmed up to the previous flat UI but I was surprised how Apple came up with something worse than that when Liquid Glass came out.