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Don't Want to Upgrade to iOS 26? Here's How to Stay on iOS 18 [Update: Now Unavailable]
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Well, i really like iOS 17.7.2 on my trusty 12 Pro! 👍 
18 already was a sh*t show and I'm happy, I "survived" the luring to 18.7.3 phase staying strong.
26 is a no go for me and so I'll stay on iOS 17.7.2 until I need a new phone - probably with another logo...
18 already was a sh*t show and I'm happy, I "survived" the luring to 18.7.3 phase staying strong.
26 is a no go for me and so I'll stay on iOS 17.7.2 until I need a new phone - probably with another logo...
You can tell a lot by the "dress sense" here right?
I had no idea who Alan Dye was tbh, but the cartoonish over-sized (ill fitting!) style of clothes that seems to be fashionable in some quarters at Apple HQ was very off putting while trying to watch Apple presentations, might seem facile comment but is a perfect analogy for how the Ui is, ill-fittin, so these optics were indeed a insight for what is passing as "design" is actually "fashion", a display of the inner on the outer of the key people, and that explains so much.
Remember when Steve just wore blue jeans, black polos and sneakers, a personal uniform so everyday he wound't have to think about what to wear (it wasn't just American casual), it was efficient, cutting down on the "decision fatigue" in the day, those closest to him dressed nearly identically, in fact Tim did in one presentation with the marketing guy, three of them sitting on stools. There is your influence right there, believe what your eyes.
I'll tell you what, having that anti-decision-fatigue uniform stayed out of the way of the presentation.
Also on this tangent, does anyone find the way Apple does the audio since the coivds, is very stilted, it sounds to clear and clean it is annoyingly unnatural. There is no enviroemtonal signature in it. It's feels dubbed. It really puts me off and it sounds even more insincere. Intentionally or otherwise.
Exactly, one way or another the holdouts will be assimilated. It's just a matter of time.
There might be a RAM shortage and ridiculously overpriced RAM at the moment, but then we consumers aren't buying RAM in the tens of millions. And I was so happy when Forstal left, that skeuomorphic design was starting to look very dated, I much preferred the flatter design of 7, it was a breath of fresh air.
Oh well I guess?
Why does anyone else care if folks stay on whatever versions they prefer?
People should do whatever they want.
I don’t think holding out is a solution. Ultimately a product develops into something different. In which case the solution is to find a another product. Which is what I plan to do once my current tech reach ends of life, assuming I can find a decent alternative.
Yes... but it's better not to hold your breath.
Unlikely. It's likely just gonna be security updates only so 18.7.4 and only for devices that don't support 26.
Apple has been trying the transparency thing since at least Aqua 1.0 in 2001, and iOS 7 was the largest indicator of that. Alan wasn’t the head of user interface design when iOS 7 released.
Plus, it’s been reported by several developers that a lot of the new rules of 26, most specifically the floating tab bars at the bottom, were almost single-handedly added for future use by a curved screen iPhone in 2027.
They’re absolutely will be changes as time goes on, much like what happened between iOS 7 and 18.
But the fundamentals of the Liquid Glass UI like the floating tab bars, dynamically changing borders on icons and pop-out menus are likely here to stay well into the 2030s.
As easy as it is to blame one guy, let’s not forget that thousands of people were involved with this redesign, it was the first ever redesign they launched across all of their platforms at once, and even the new head of UI who’s been there since the late 90s was likely still very involved with Liquid Glass.
I think it’s pretty safe to say it will be here a while, although it will be improved upon, of course.
But anyone expecting OS’s ‘27 to revert back to the way things looked before, or to go back to iOS 6, or look like something completely new we have never seen before… It will not. Keep your expectations in check.
Alan Dye became head of design in 2015, there wasn’t an operating system redesign completely under his leadership until Big Sur… five years later.
Personally, I think there are much bigger battles to be fought. The endless onslaught of intrusive advertising everywhere you look. The continuous watchfulness needed to avoid scams. The uncertainties around whether we can find true privacy from any of our tech giants. The move to subscription-based ‘hiring’ of software.
Steering a good course through all this becomes a growing challenge.
My recent thoughts even turned to what happens if, for any reason, we in Europe are cut off from cloud solutions and curtailment in the use of American products. Modern-day America is starting to catch up with Russia as an adversary rather than a supportive friend. In turn America starts to treat Russia as a more deserving ally than many European countries.
Steering a good course through all this becomes a growing challenge.
My recent thoughts even turned to what happens if, for any reason, we in Europe are cut off from cloud solutions and curtailment in the use of American products. Modern-day America is starting to catch up with Russia as an adversary rather than a supportive friend. In turn America starts to treat Russia as a more deserving ally than many European countries.
Go sign up for the public beta updates on apples site then go back and switch to the public beta track for 17 in software updates settings, and you won’t get any more notifications
It’s 100% to force users to update. They released the RC for all devices, then released the same exact build number for devices that don’t support 26 only. Which mirrors their pattern since iOS 15.
It’s the same battle. Less and less control over your devices. Part of the push to get you on the latest OS is to control the experience.
Imagine they'd made an iOS 26 that people wanted to upgrade to.
It really says something when it's totally free and people are looking to avoid it as long as possible.
It really says something when it's totally free and people are looking to avoid it as long as possible.
That is false, this is exactly the same pattern they’ve followed since 2021. They only release 2-3 security updates for devices that support the next version, to force you to update.
Don’t forget the almost daily notifications to do so
What else can Apple do besides dismissing their chief designer? You seem to have little current knowledge.
Even as someone who hasn’t updated a single device to 26, I find it almost impossible that 26.2 won’t be smoother than the GM of 26.0
iPhone 17 sales don’t seem to indicate a fall in Apple’s popularity. Nobody buying new devices will have the option to use anything but iOS26 and its successors
www.macrumors.com
iPhone 17 Demand Is Breaking Apple's Sales Records
Apple's iPhone 17 lineup is selling well enough that Apple is on track to ship more than 247.4 million total iPhones in 2025, according to a new report from IDC. Total 2025 shipments are forecast to grow 6.1 percent year over year due to iPhone 17 demand and increased sales in China, a major...
www.macrumors.com
That's what the BORG thought too.
- Why then have leadership positions that get rewarded handsomely?
- Rolling out to macOS (as well) was A level screw up of screw ups.
Never surrender!
In the foreground we see Alan Dye escaping in a smaller Borg sphere.
Outside of the tech community, has any regular consumer ever *wanted* to perform a software update?
I have never found this to be the case, even with updates that are objective improvements most consumers never want to actually perform the software update, they either find the entire process tedious, or give it zero thought.
This week my entire household finally are entirely on OS’s 26.2, there was one hold-out who was just waiting for their phone to automatically update for them because they don’t even like messing with it.
They made one single remark after the update when I asked them about it, “I guess the icons do look a little different.”
Other than that, they literally didn’t notice any other changes. That is your regular consumer.