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iOS 7 was a lot worse than iOS 26.
I'd argue that. iOS 7 is not worse than iOS 26. In fact, I'd further argue that the only worse iOS is before they allow copy & paste function built-in.

You want to know the worst OS / GUI /UX? Try to navigate using Nokia 7280 / 7380 or any Xelibri phone. That's the worst kind of UX.
 
I'm not understanding, didn't y'all check out what this change was going to look like prior to upgrading? There certainly were a ton of video demos and Beta users giving previews.
No, I haven’t upgraded yet. Came here to get opinions.
I looked at videos. It looked ok-ish. But having it installed, it just looks worst in person than on screen.
 
I’m still on the fence about the new UI. I especially don’t like the new keyboard and there are many bugs all over the place. But…

The old UI was boring to tears. It wasn’t fun to use. It didn’t delight the user which is what differentiates a tool from a tool that is a pleasure to use.

iOS 7 sucked all the joy out of the UI in the pursuit of absolute minimalist graphic design. While I’m not convinced the new design is where it needs to be, I’m happy that Apple is exploring the idea of bringing back some fun to the UI.
UI is not suppose to be fun to use. It’s suppose to be practical.

Make it unusable and it stops being practical.
 
if you think iOS 26 is distracting, wait till android. oh boy.
Why do people insist on defending Apple by throwing their competition under the bus? "At least it doesn't suck as much as Android" is not the insult you think it is. I think Material 3 Expressive is the best mobile UI right now. The animations are faster than Apple, everything is well organized, icons are large and legible, and it is miles easier to get to basic settings and functionality that Apple insists on burying several clicks deep. It just feels "clean." Their Android Auto UI could use some work, however. And the At a Glance widget could be bigger. Small quibbles. You might not like Google as a company or you might not have all the app selection you have on iOS, but the OS UI is *chefs kiss*
 
I think that upgrading to iOS 26 on a SE3 must be a terrible experience. Il prefer to stay on iOS 18. My iPhone is very responsive and a don't want to transform it into a turtle.
 
I love the new treatment for unknown sender in messages. Spammer must be pissed.

It's crazy that there's so many great new features like this marred by a half-baked UX redesign. I also love the unified Phone app that shows voicemails (and transcriptions!) inline with call history.
 
Pathetic is the word that immediately comes to mind. I was expecting it to be bad, hearing reviews, looking at screenshots, but it exceeded all that.

Even some functionalities are broken — like Safari’s address bar search is just not working for me anymore.

If Apple survives this kind of butchering, and I suspect it will, then I think we deserve just this Apple.
 
All of these complaints are normal. Apple made some changes. However, once the initial shock of change wears off, and you use the system for a while, everything that’s now new and scary will become normal. Give it some time.

People said the same thing about Windows 11.. which is why my PC (yes, I still keep it around for AI work) got upgraded from Windows 10 to Mint Linux.
 
Just “up”graded my iPhone to iOS 26 and I absolutely hate it. It’s visually the ugliest iOS Apple has ever produced. The icons all have a distracting (and non-sensical) edge to them. The blurred wallpapers look nothing like they used to.

It’s so ugly I’m thinking of cancelling my iPhone Air order and looking at Samsung options.
Get a Google pixel phone instead, so much better
 
You will get used to it. I remember a lot....A LOT of complains with the Aero theme when Windows Vista and Windows 7 came out. A LOT of people were complaining about performance and toggling the Basic theme which looked EVEN WORSE. Now we look back and report Windows 7 was the last objectively BEST operating systems in existence.

And yet many people waited and made the jump from Windows 7 to Windows 10, explicitly so they didn't have to deal with Vista and it's horrible UI elements.
 
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UI is not suppose to be fun to use. It’s suppose to be practical.

Make it unusable and it stops being practical.
A fun UI and fun hardware were pivotal to bringing Apple back from the brink of bankruptcy. Recall Bondi blue, MacOS’s “lickable” buttons, and the considerable amount of time that Jobs spent bragging about the dock’s genie effect and other fun UI elements. He did the same for iOS when it was first released.

Practicality and fun are not mutually exclusive as you seem to be implying.

An example of where the new UI is a practical improvement as well as being much more fun is the selected text popup. No more endless tapping to reach the indentation tool, instead a new menu playfully pops up.
 
Apple should have made the icons transparent at least! Yet another epic failure to destroy the UI experience. This is basically making Android relevant again.
 
What I don’t get is how they managed to get an approval to prioritise a new GUI. They do have other parts and a bit of a backlog of things that I would have considered more important to fix.

It’s not like the old GUI was bad and looked dated
Just like these damned yearly updates, it’s all for marketing
 
Well that’s it I am done,
iOS 26 has tipped me over the edge.
I have been on and off with the beta testing and then I installed the final release last night and what a pile of crap !
Reduced transparency makes everything not work as they haven’t figured the concept of white text on a white background isn’t legible, reduce motion did not work too .
I am now back on iOS 18.6.2 but lost over 6000 photos because iCloud corrupted my phone backup:-(
So that’s it I am out I am just using my phone now as a basic phone just for news or whatever , I won’t be keeping an eye on tech news or anything anymore I will just become a basic person.
I recommend any one thinking of trying iOS 26 to stay away it will ruin your life !
I cannot believe the apple I loved has made me feel this way but here we are ….
I will still continue to use my iPhone as it does work now it’s back on iOS 18 but this whole situation has really changed me.
Could be my words. I feel you.
Since two years my experience has gone from joy over a new iOS to finding workarounds (e.g. shortcuts for apps without a dark icon), anger about unnecessary extra clicks, submenus etc., anger about the missing bottom bar in photo app, absolute disbelief about the maps app on MacOS (mediathek floating on top of the map on the right side of your studio display!) and many other things.
What tipped me over the edge? Yesterday I installed 18.7 and after that I made a few appupdates.
Some apps - Firefox, Carrot - are now using the ios26 appicon with the outlines - even on 18.7!
I know have: 1. Apps without a dark icon 2. with the right dark ios18 icon and 3. apps with the outlines icon. Three different sort of icons in one iOS! Unbelievable!

In the last 10 years I bought in averadge 2 of the main Apple devices - iMac,iPhone,iPad,iPadPro,Watch.
In January I was sure to get the 17pro - coming from a 15pro. No way.
I change to this type of people who will use their devices as long as possible. No more yearly money from me.
And some word about LG: First I will never understand why Apple has decided to take the GUI from the less selled device to force millions of users to deal with it on their iPhones, iPads, Macs. They are different devices with a totally different approach.

And: think about all developers who have spend thousand of hours to create a trademark icon..form, color. It ends now up in a unreadable, colorless glass mess? What is wrong with them?

"but this whole situation has really changed me." - Me too.

PS: Forgot the removement of launchpad..another hit in the stomach.
 
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