iOS 26 Available Tomorrow With These 8 New Features

[MacRumors]

Following three months of beta testing, iOS 26 will be released this Monday, September 15. The update is compatible with the iPhone 11 series and newer, and it will be available to install via the Settings app, under General → Software Update.

Below, we have highlighted eight new features included in iOS 26. Even more new features and changes are outlined in Apple's release notes for the update.

Some of the features are only available on newer iPhone models.

Liquid Glass

iOS 26 introduces an all-new Liquid Glass design with translucent menus, buttons, and icons.

Apple describes Liquid Glass as "a new translucent material that reflects and refracts its surroundings, bringing greater focus to content, and delivering a new level of vitality across controls, navigation, app icons, widgets, and more."

Lock Screen Enhancements

On iOS 26, the Lock Screen's clock automatically adapts to fill the empty space, and you can view full-screen animated album art for supported Apple Music songs.

New iMessage Features

Here are some of the key new features and changes in the Messages app on iOS 26:

• Backgrounds: You can now add a background to any conversation, and all participants will see it. You can choose from Apple's selection of backgrounds, or you can set any of your own photos as a background. You can turn off conversation backgrounds in the Settings app if desired.
• Polls: You can now create polls in group chats, allowing people to vote on topics or questions, such as which restaurant to go to. Apple Intelligence can detect when a poll might come in handy and suggest one.
• Apple Cash in group chats: You can now send and receive Apple Cash in group chats.
• Typing indicators in group chats: You can now see who is typing in group chats.
• "Add Contact" button in group chats: This button makes it easier to add people to the Contacts app in group chats.
• "Select" option: When you tap and hold on a message bubble, a new "Select" option appears. Tapping on it allows you to select a portion of text in a message, whereas you could previously only copy an entire message.
• Unknown sender screening: When turned on, this setting automatically moves messages from unknown senders to the Unknown Senders folder, and hides notifications for them until you accept them.

Call Screening and Hold Assist

iOS 26 adds a couple of useful features to the Phone app: Call Screening and Hold Assist.

Call Screening is an opt-in setting that asks unknown callers for their name, and the reason why they are calling. And with Hold Assist, your iPhone can automatically wait on hold for you during a call, and notify you when the agent on the other line is ready.

Adaptive Power Mode

iOS 26 introduces an Adaptive Power Mode on the iPhone, alongside the existing Low Power Mode.

Apple says Adaptive Power Mode can make "performance adjustments" when necessary to extend an iPhone's battery life, including slightly lowering the display brightness, allowing some activities to "take longer," and automatically turning on Low Power Mode when the iPhone's remaining battery life reaches the 20% mark.

Adaptive Power Mode is only available on the iPhone 15 Pro models and newer. The setting can be turned on in the Settings app, under Battery → Power Mode.

AutoMix

A new AutoMix feature in the Apple Music app can seamlessly transition from one song to the next, like a DJ would. AutoMix replaces the previous Crossfade feature.

Preview App

iOS 26 extends a version of the Apple's Preview app from the Mac to the iPhone, providing you with a built-in app to edit and mark up PDFs and images.

CarPlay Upgrades

When you are using CarPlay with an iPhone running iOS 26, the new Liquid Glass design extends to the CarPlay interface. Like on the iPhone, the new look includes more shimmery app icons and translucent user interface elements.

Starting with iOS 26, you can respond to messages with standard Tapbacks like a heart, thumbs up, or exclamation marks directly through CarPlay.

You can now view your pinned conversations in the Messages app on CarPlay.

CarPlay has a new compact view for incoming phone calls, so that you can still see other information on the screen, such as turn-by-turn directions.

CarPlay's Dashboard screen can now show Live Activities, letting you keep track of things like a flight's arrival time at a glance.

The regular version of CarPlay now has a widgets screen, for things like... Click here to read rest of article

Article Link: iOS 26 Available Tomorrow With These 8 New Features

 

[vertsix]

1. Bugs

 

[timborama]

Guaranteed there will be be an update BEFORE the phones arrive 9/19.

 

[Porco]

The public beta moves to the global beta. I’ll likely wait and see a bit longer, I don’t need surprises this week.
To all who install immediately: I thank you for your service.

 

[klasma]

Time to update to iOS 18.

 

[jz0309]

Wasn't on beta but installed the RC on Friday in my 13PM and am quite happy with ios26

 

[vi2867]

I have been using the developer beta since June. It was a crazy ride. My phone over heated, crashed and did some crazy things. It was fun. I did not get mad, because I was on the edge.

 

[con2apple]

Does anyone know what model of car this is?

Previously, there was a VW Golf, a Mercedes E-Class, and a Chevrolet.

 

[hieranonymous]

This has actually been one of the smoother betas overall. Haven’t run into any showstopping bugs.

 

[DrJR]

I've run the betas and it is an excellent OS, love the design, look, polish all that. The only things I see as "glitches" that are going to be debatable is where I perceive Liquid Glass to get in the way of viewing certain things, or where the stoplight buttons explode out and cover up something else, those kinds of things. The Liquid Glass actually hides the controls in some cases where I look through them, and my eyes search for them. Other than that all the OS's seem great. I lamented the loss of slide over on iPad OS at first, but I got over it pretty quickly. The new windowing system is wonderful. It would be interesting to see that windowing system applied to iPhone in some tiny way where I could have a calendar on top half of screen and look at dates while reading an e-mail below, for example. Some tiny bit of multitasking like that would go a long way in the next update. If I had the Pro Max, I would be upset that isn't a thing yet. Too many cases where I'm flipping back and forth between two apps alike notes and some info I want off a web page.....as I sit at my Mac I notice the SSD icon doesn't match the HD icon.... that's a complaint...... welp, I've exceeded my maximum word threshold....

 

[goodthymes]

Wonder what features will be nerfed for older iPhones *for reasons*, and still run dog slow - and Apple will immediately stop signing older iOS 18.

 

[mcilwraith]

I have held off on the betas. I’m not crazy. But tomorrow is the day. iOS 26. iPadOS 26. MacOS 26. My apple cup runeth over. Thank you apple. I better leave work early…

 

[Johnny907]

Yeah I wanted to mess with it over the weekend so already downloaded the RC.
Liquid Glass is trash. I’m 45, I don’t want all this bubbly bouncy nonsense. Spent an hour going back and forth between a couple Reddit subs and the settings/accessibility menus just turning most of it off.
While I like the rounding and softening of certain elements, it’s the transparency and goofy animations that are annoying. It’s like Apple turned iOS into a fidget spinner for the easily distracted. I’m sure there is a demo for that, but would really appreciate if Apple added a “Professional Adult” toggle to switch it all off instead of making us deep dive through pages of settings.

 

[Pezimak]

I am more excited for iPad OS 26 then anything else.

 

[B4U]

Limiting the adaptive power mode to 15 series and newer is total 🐂💩.

 

[bababooie]

when does the live translation kick in?

 

[antiprotest]

I have been using the developer beta since June. It was a crazy ride. My phone over heated, crashed and did some crazy things. It was fun. I did not get mad, because I was on the edge.

Is it better now or still bad?

 

[delsoul]

Essentially, it’ll be a new iOS that the software team solved old bug problems, while introducing a whole slew of new ones…I’ll be sitting this update out for a long time. Apple’s software team continually declines and they refuse to get competent workers in there.

 

[Flamingdeathbolts]

Does anyone know what model of car this is?

Previously, there was a VW Golf, a Mercedes E-Class, and a Chevrolet.

2025 Ford Mustang

 

[Kevin2055]

Anybody like liquid glass?

 

[jz0309]

Anybody like liquid glass?

I do

 

[jz0309]

Yeah I wanted to mess with it over the weekend so already downloaded the RC.
Liquid Glass is trash. I’m 45, I don’t want all this bubbly bouncy nonsense. Spent an hour going back and forth between a couple Reddit subs and the settings/accessibility menus just turning most of it off.
While I like the rounding and softening of certain elements, it’s the transparency and goofy animations that are annoying. It’s like Apple turned iOS into a fidget spinner for the easily distracted. I’m sure there is a demo for that, but would really appreciate if Apple added a “Professional Adult” toggle to switch it all off instead of making us deep dive through pages of settings.

I'm 66 and I quite like it, nothing really that bothers me ... guess we are all different

 

[bmark]

when does the live translation kick in?

You mean lost in translation! Probably iOS 30.

 

[winxmac]

For iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, iPhone 11 Pro Max users, best to stay on iOS 18.x or older

 

[bmark]

Limiting the adaptive power mode to 15 series and newer is total 🐂💩.

Low power mode is basically the same feature. You aren't missing anything.