Apple, please fix these fatal flaws first before the glass interface nonsense

[Tozovac]

It would be wonderful if Apple would fix these flaws before putting new lipstick on the operating system(s) pig(s). I run into these issues several times a week.

I suppose this also applies to macOS because, sadly, certainly, Apple is sure to try porting some of the stupid liquid glass self flagellation into the Mac OS, so Marketing and the designers feel like they’re doing something productive.

1. When Wi-Fi connection is poor, like when in the driveway or on the fridge or Wi-Fi range, please just jump over to cellular data instead of taking forever to load (or not load until manually shutting off WiFi).

2. Please provide a way to alphabetically short tab groups in safari and mail subfolders in the mail app. C’mon now.

3. Please return to a robust way to pause the audio on anything playing in the background when a map app interrupts. Or when dictating into a message while also listening to something. This has been inconsistent for years now.

4. Please return to a robust way to ensure only one audio source is playing at a time. Too often it seems with Instagram, Facebook, and or Safari, more than one audio can be playing at a time.

Oh Apple. Years ago when flaws existed, I felt confident that Apple leadership was working on them before I even knew they existed.

Fresh form means nothing without robust, intuitive, and engaging Function.

Edit:
5. Robust dictation using AirPods. I have AirPod pros. Even with noise cancellation on, the accuracy of dictation is somewhere around 40% of the time it works at all. 60% accuracy stop dictation, required me to go back and just type in fixes. This prevalence to many others?

 

[HouseLannister]

iOS 18 was all about Apple Intelligence. iOS 26 is all about Liquid Glass. iOS 27 will be all about foldables, apparently. Maybe they will get around to improving the fundamentals by iOS 28.

 

[!!!]

1. When Wi-Fi connection is poor, like when in the driveway or on the fridge or Wi-Fi range, please just jump over to cellular data instead of taking forever to load (or not load until manually shutting off WiFi).

Unfortunately this isn't really an easy problem to solve. Apple did actually try something like this, Wi-Fi Assist. It ended with tons of people having large cellular bills because it would end up wasting all their data. How poor is too poor? How long shall it wait for a better signal? I get it, it's frustrating for me too, one of the rooms in my house just doesn't play nicely with my phone & Wi-Fi, but it's not something that's easy/simple to solve.

4. Please return to a robust way to ensure only one audio source is playing at a time. Too often it seems with Instagram, Facebook, and or Safari, more than one audio can be playing at a time.

All I see is people wanting the ability to do the opposite of this, be able to play from multiple sources, or at least not have one source interrupt another.

Maybe they will get around to improving the fundamentals by iOS 28.

Don't worry, they'll find another useless fad to waste all their time on.

 

[Tozovac]

All I see is people wanting the ability to do the opposite of this, be able to play from multiple sources, or at least not have one source interrupt another.

The ability to play from multiple source is great, but not when one is overtop the other. That didn't seem to happen before as much as it does now. If I start something new I want the prior source to fade out/stop. Or, when I'm listening to a podcast or YouTube and then want to dictate a text, it makes no sense to me that the podcast or YouTube lowers in volume and keeps playing, instead of automatically pausing then resuming once I'm done with dictating a text. This seems like a must-have, and I'm surprised it's not. What value is there in the music/audio source continuing to play while you send a message and then have to rewind.

 

[MDTyKe]

Honestly, I always beta test iOS versions, and despite the bugs, I plow through. That said, iOS26 is just so laggy and buggy on my iPhone 15 Pro, even with "Reduce Transparency" enabled. Even doing things like going to Camera to take a selfie takes a few seconds.. and sliding between options is just slow, unintuitive and outright ugly to be honest. This is the Windows Vista of iOS, that feels like Windows Me.

For the first time ever I'm reverting back to iOS 18.5. I can't take this direction anymore. It's so bad I think I'll even wait until 26.5, when the general public gets to give apple the middle finger, and a few of the UI folks get fired.

 

[Slartibart]

4. Please return to a robust way to ensure only one audio source is playing at a time. Too often it seems with Instagram, Facebook, and or Safari, more than one audio can be playing at a time.

You are talking about iOS/iPadOS? If yes, I profoundly disagree - I want mixing of different sources in realtime! It’s nice that Apple moves the mobile OSes in that direction… with glacial speed… but hell yeah! 😀

in Safari you can turn off the audio in the url bar in each tab (symbol appears when there is audio).

 

[Tozovac]

You are talking about iOS/iPadOS? If yes, I profoundly disagree - I want mixing of different sources in realtime! It’s nice that Apple moves the mobile OSes in that direction… with glacial speed… but hell yeah! 😀

To make sure we're talking the same thing: if you're listening to a podcast and decide you want to briefly listen/watch a video in safari, are you saying you'd rather be able to have both play at the same time, rather than have the 1st podcast audio fade out/pause, then the new-commanded safari video/audio play by itself?

 

[Tozovac]

I just added a new car.

I just added number 5 above.

The first line of this post is out AirPod pros dictating my message. The second one in this post is my manual correction.

 

[!!!]

To make sure we're talking the same thing: if you're listening to a podcast and decide you want to briefly listen/watch a video in safari, are you saying you'd rather be able to have both play at the same time, rather than have the 1st podcast audio fade out/pause, then the new-commanded safari video/audio play by itself?

You got that right, but for me (and I assume most others who want this feature) we're listening to music, no podcasts. I'd like to keep listening to my music, regardless of if something plays in Safari or I open up a game with its own music.

The point is that the music should keep playing until I specifically tell it to stop. Kind of like how a regular computer works. The developers of the apps can't know what I want, only I do, so the provided API options just aren't suitable.

Additionally, it wouldn't be so bad if my music at least automatically resumed after the other media stopped playing, but it doesn't, and nor does control center let me resume it, because it's been replaced with the Safari video or whatever.

Ultimately, the control center "now playing" thing needs to have a Windows-like audio mixer component, on both macOS and iOS. It blows my mind that that's still not a thing.

 

[TNman]

It would be wonderful if Apple would fix these flaws before putting new lipstick on the operating system(s) pig(s). I run into these issues several times a week.

I suppose this also applies to macOS because, sadly, certainly, Apple is sure to try porting some of the stupid liquid glass self flagellation into the Mac OS, so Marketing and the designers feel like they’re doing something productive.

1. When Wi-Fi connection is poor, like when in the driveway or on the fridge or Wi-Fi range, please just jump over to cellular data instead of taking forever to load (or not load until manually shutting off WiFi).

2. Please provide a way to alphabetically short tab groups in safari and mail subfolders in the mail app. C’mon now.

3. Please return to a robust way to pause the audio on anything playing in the background when a map app interrupts. Or when dictating into a message while also listening to something. This has been inconsistent for years now.

4. Please return to a robust way to ensure only one audio source is playing at a time. Too often it seems with Instagram, Facebook, and or Safari, more than one audio can be playing at a time.

Oh Apple. Years ago when flaws existed, I felt confident that Apple leadership was working on them before I even knew they existed.

Fresh form means nothing without robust, intuitive, and engaging Function.

Edit:
5. Robust dictation using AirPods. I have AirPod pros. Even with noise cancellation on, the accuracy of dictation is somewhere around 40% of the time it works at all. 60% accuracy stop dictation, required me to go back and just type in fixes. This prevalence to many others?

It seems like you’re the only one with these complaints

 

[Tozovac]

The point is that the music should keep playing until I specifically tell it to stop. Kind of like how a regular computer works. The developers of the apps can't know what I want, only I do, so the provided API options just aren't suitable.

...

Ultimately, the control center "now playing" thing needs to have a Windows-like audio mixer component, on both macOS and iOS. It blows my mind that that's still not a thing.

Agree! Different strokes for different folks then. Then ideal would be for Apple to provide a choice. Do that first before any new emoji's.

It seems like you’re the only one with these complaints

Yeah, you're right.

@HouseLannister , @!!! , @MDTyKe , please stop agreeing with me even in any slight way and get with @TNman 's program why dontcha.

 

[Carlsberg69]

Nothing wrong with Apple introducing Liquid Glass, finally a new fresh look to the UI. They have to do it at some point so the sooner the better. Doesn’t mean they are not working with all other known features and issues, including the ones OP listed. It’s still a Beta, 2-3 months to go.

 

[HouseLannister]

Nothing wrong with Apple introducing Liquid Glass, finally a new fresh look to the UI.

Apple just needs to tell us the minimum is 37 pieces of flair, we all need to pick from the bucket they provide, and stop complaining. It's not like Apple could just let people "express themselves" with launcher support, themes, and icon packs. That way lies anarchy!

 

[Tozovac]

Nothing wrong with Apple introducing Liquid Glass, finally a new fresh look to the UI. They have to do it at some point so the sooner the better.

But why. Always a curiosity to me. Is it to improve the function first and foremost?

Or for something new for those who get excited over a new interface redo first and foremost.

 

[Sunoo]

I can’t believe that people here still think that people working on interface design or art for emojis could be working on bugs and technical issues, as if those are even remotely interchangeable roles.

 

[Tozovac]

I can’t believe that people here still think that people working on interface design or art for emojis could be working on bugs and technical issues, as if those are even remotely interchangeable roles.

I can’t believe someone would think that some people think that the same people who design emojis or interface design also work on bugs and technical issues.

 

[hieubui]

No thanks. I want my music to continue playing instead of being hijacked by some random website/app videos

 

[Tozovac]

No thanks. I want my music to continue playing instead of being hijacked by some random website/app videos

Not a random video. One you commanded.

 

[Silverstring]

I can’t believe someone would think that some people think that the same people who design emojis or interface design also work on bugs and technical issues.

So you don’t think they’re the same people.

Why, then, is your entire premise in this thread that these things have to happen sequentially, and Apple needs to focus on bugs and technical issues “first”?

If you accept that different teams work on these different areas, then a statement like this:

Do that first before any new emoji's.

doesn’t make any sense, because acknowledging that different people work on different aspects is an acknowledgement that these things happen in parallel and aren’t zero-sum. People need to stop pretending that Apple and iOS function and are prioritized as if they’re written by a solo dev.

Yes, I agree with you that Apple needs to improve function. Them failing to do that has nothing to do with emojis.

 

[Tozovac]

So you don’t think they’re the same people.

Why, then, is your entire premise in this thread that these things have to happen sequentially, and Apple needs to focus on bugs and technical issues “first”?

If you accept that different teams work on these different areas, then a statement like this:

doesn’t make any sense, because acknowledging that different people work on different aspects is an acknowledgement that these things happen in parallel and aren’t zero-sum. People need to stop pretending that Apple and iOS function and are prioritized as if they’re written by a solo dev.

Like 99% of posts on MR directed as rants and venting "towards Apple," my post is not a venting towards specific engineers or engineering groups...but rather a general venting 1) towards the clouds in the sky and 2) towards Apple "as a deliverer of these products we love and sometimes hate." Or it's a venting towards someone at the top who *is* responsible for priorities and output into the marketplace...maybe it's the VP's and directors at the top who are responsible for Design, who probably have to wrestle with Marking and Finance VP's and directors who probably ask for something new & shiny more often than a rational engineering director would. I'd expect a rational engineering manager to introduce something robust that works, then keep improving it without requiring a major tear-up. Major tear-ups like iOS7 and iOS26 that deviate so significantly from a prior OS really don't make sense logically other than for Marketing and proving something new & shiny. It's not like our eyes and brains took a 180 degree turn and suddenly think differently...

Anyway, this post was originally not intended to be anti-iOS26 but more a anti-bugs that weren't fixed first, and fixed long ago.

And my post was 90% tongue-in-cheek (as if my venting will change anything), 90% personal venting (after I vent, I feel better), and 90% sincere sentiment (directed towards...who the heck knows who reads posts like mine).

Yes 3 times 90% does not equal 100%. Ever listen to Click & Clack the Tappet Brothers on Car Talk?

Yes, I agree with you that Apple needs to improve function. Them failing to do that has nothing to do with emojis.

Somewhere towards the top is a sole VP or director for whom all things bubble up to the top. That person, or a few key VP's or directors below them, are the ones responsible for a cohesive, robust, and enjoyable product to use. I think that person used to be Steve Jobs who, no matter what, would cut thru the BS and not accept BS. Today I have no idea who that is, if there even is one person for whom the buck stops there.

 

[Andrey84]

Good point about automatic switching from Wi-Fi to cellular, I need this one fixed too.

What about Mail not being able to load old messages?

If I find an old message in Mail, and try to open it - even if it's just a month old - I get a "loading data from server" for about 1-5 minutes. Sometimes it never loads. This is honestly disgraceful and been going on for too long. iPhone 12 mini and iPhone 16 Pro, stable Wi-Fi connection, and the Gmail app can open these emails instantly.

 

[Silverstring]

I'd expect a rational engineering manager to introduce something robust that works, then keep improving it without requiring a major tear-up.

…but that’s the thing.

iOS 7 and now iOS 26 weren’t/aren’t “major tear-ups” from a bug/technical issues perspective, so the premise doesn’t hold framed in this way (form vs/over function).

If something technical that a “rational” engineer introduced doesn’t work, it’s not iOS 26’s “tear up” that is an obstacle to that improvement/fix.

None of your functional issues cited have a dependency on how the new UI—or “form”— is rendered.

If iOS 26 was merely a functional iteration of iOS 18 from a UI/UX perspective:

1. Wi-Fi/Cellular handoff would still be an issue, because no one agrees on the “best” way, as already demonstrated by the prior “Wi-Fi Assist” feature (BTW I agree with you, I liked how Wi-Fi assist swapped over to cell…but then again I have unlimited data)
2. Agreed, but what is stopping this is the same thing that stopped it in iOS 1-18, nothing to do with iOS 26’s visual changes
3. Preference/Design choice
4. Preference/Design choice
5. Dependency on AirPod engineering, not iOS.

Major tear-ups like iOS7 and iOS26 that deviate so significantly from a prior OS really don't make sense logically other than for Marketing and proving something new & shiny.

Just as easy to say there’s no “logic” to holding up any UI/UX changes until unrelated/non-dependent technical issues are fully resolved.

Plus, there is logic to marketing and “new and shiny” things to make them attractive to buyers, to generate revenue to pay engineers that can work on bugs and technical issues. Too often people believe that “marketing” is just a completely superfluous end-stage function, as opposed to a fundamental part of the equation that allows these products to exist at all.

It’s not “change for change’s sake”, it’s change that is meant to spur purchases, spur developers to take another look at their app(s) when redesigning them to fit the new UI, spur media coverage about the changes and thus public awareness, spur new opportunities to cross-pollinate ideas from the other platforms and make, say, the Mac feel more familiar to people who might be coming from the phone or watch (the Mac change from “System Preferences” to “Settings” with a UI to mimic iOS, for example), and many other things.

People might think UI/UX changes aren’t successful at their goal(s), and/or they might just plain not like them. That’s fair, but claiming that these changes are done simply for their own sake is not. The changes do have a greater rationale behind them…you not valuing the rationale doesn’t mean it isn’t there.

 

[Tozovac]

…but that’s the thing.

iOS 7 and now iOS 26 weren’t/aren’t “major tear-ups” from a bug/technical issues perspective, so the premise doesn’t hold framed in this way (form vs/over function).

...

You're right.

 

[fatTribble]

I would imagine that each person has their own unique list of improvements they’d like to see.
None of what you listed would interest me. Everyone is different.