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iOS 26 Features: The Ultimate Mega Guide

spamabyss said:
I was actually excited for this update, it really grew on me over the month, seeing it in videos and screenshots.

After installing it yesterday I was shocked how little I like it on my iPhone 15. Maybe it feels better with higher refresh rate but it really looks like a cheap theme/skin and very unlike Apple to my eyes. I might be losing touch to what a new generation of designers likes. I don't know.

All I can say is that the first thing I did was going to accessibility and reducing the transparency and also changing that awful liquid clock on my lockscreen back to the regular one.

And that's beside all the many many glitches and inconsistencies that are still visible in the UI literally everywhere for me which just adds the cherry on top. I'll hold out updating MacOS as long as anyhow possible. This is hoping for some meaningful improvement in the future as I was really excited about the changes.
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I’ve updated my Mac yesterday. My strong advice- don’t do it.

This roundy edges will make you sick

Also, little di you jnow - but old good launcher - is gone
 
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con2apple said:
I'm not saying that the poor readability was widely known and was also shown in every second MacRumors article with promotional images.

But the same ten hardcore fans flooded the comments to sow doubt about the facts.
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Try it and you shall see

You will be “impressed “. Guaranteed

🤬
 
richinaus said:
It’s a pointless update that appears to achieve nothing but cause issues. The glass effect is a wasteful distracting gimmick and overall has made it feel more like a kids toy. I actually struggle to have anything positive to say about all this.
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Absolutely agree

Plus keyboard- feela far worse. I make so many typos now (aa never before).

This was absolutely pointless, fully agree with you
 
jayducharme said:
So far I really like 26, on all of my Apple devices. I use all of them in dark mode, and the windows really pop now. The text is much clearer. For me, the Liquid Glass effect is subtle and pleasing.
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Wow, happy for you mate.

I will cancel by iphone 17 order in the next few minutes
 
Early impressions of iPadOS 26 - UI is very odd feeling and bouncy, but this is a far better multitasking setup than previous attempts and I have been very cynical about the value of adding these kinds of features to iPadOS.
 
I was very sceptical of this liquid glass thing when I first saw the screenshots, but I ignored it, assuming it would be fixed. And yet here we are, and my goodness it's truly hideous. The white "glow" around every icon on the home screen is the ugliest aspect, it looks like the return of skeumorphism by way of Windows Vista. It's genuinely unpleasant and makes the phone look cheap and very dated.
 
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I can't stand the new UI - thinking of going back to previous version or even migrating to something completely different. The only thing that keeps me in Apple is the data and metadata stored (photos, messages etc). But honestly, what a crap Apple! HOW CRINGE! The core of Apple has always been simplicity and human approach. These are just gimmicks and marketing crap. No thinking. No ideas. No clear vision. Bottom line: no guts anymore.
 
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Sakurambo-kun said:
I was very sceptical of this liquid glass thing when I first saw the screenshots, but I ignored it, assuming it would be fixed. And yet here we are, and my goodness it's truly hideous. The white "glow" around every icon on the home screen is the ugliest aspect, it looks like the return of skeumorphism by way of Windows Vista. It's genuinely unpleasant and makes the phone look cheap and very dated.
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Came to point out this very thing. I still believe that the design will mature over time, and like with iOS 7, one year from now the old OS will look dated. But this glare around the icons look like a TV in Dynamic mode, with sharpness cranked way too high. It feels… Android-y. Apple is usually so good at feeling organic instead of techy. This is a step in the wrong direction. I cling to my hope that it will be dialed back over time.

(Have not updated iPad and Mac yet - my watch doesn’t look much different)
 
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i feel nice about the update, i like the glass effect, i wish it could have more transparency and bit more contrast. or atleast a slider to play around with. its just makes the screen much larger.

Though the all clear icon style (introduced earlier) is pointless and useless, colorful icons are really important to identify them quickly, i tried using all-clear style, but in flat 3 seconds i can know that it just doesn't work for me. all icons having same shades, infact the entire screen becomes just washed. who would want that?
 
Blurry icons….
Animations that slow things down (mainly switched off now)
Photos is more or less back to how it used to be be, so at least there is an up side
Too much clutter on my screen

All this hype and the only good thing is they fixed something they broke
 
Nice article. So many changes. Will be definitely customizing my phone a lot. Order tracking through the wallet will be really useful.
 
MacRumors said:


For the last several months, MacRumors has been working on a series of in-depth feature guides and how tos that walk you through the design changes and updates in Apple's new software.

iOS-26-Mega-Guide-Feature.jpg

Our ultimate guide includes all of our iOS 26 coverage, and it is a useful resource for iPhone and iPad users who haven't had a chance to test out iOS 26, or those who might want a recap on what's new. We've organized it by app or feature to make it easy to find what you're looking for.

Liquid Glass

Apple's Liquid Glass design brings a big visual change to iOS 26. Icons, apps, menu bars, navigation bars, and all other interface elements feature a Liquid Glass aesthetic. It's not just translucency that you have to deal with. There are pop out menus, collapsing navigation bars, and a much more rounded aesthetic.

Lock Screen

The Lock Screen clock has embraced Liquid Glass in a big way, and there are also new options for wallpaper and widgets.


Home Screen

A new design means a new Home Screen, and there are new features for icons, widgets, and wallpapers.

Apple Intelligence

Apple is still recovering from the Apple Intelligence Siri delay and the company didn't make a major deal about Apple Intelligence features in iOS 26, but there are quite a few additions.

Live Translation auto translates messages and calls, Visual Intelligence now works with what's on your screen, the Wallet app can track all of your purchases, and there are other small additions to be aware of.
All of the Apple Intelligence features require a device that supports Apple Intelligence, which includes the iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, all iPhone 16 models, and all iPhone 17 models.

Messages

There are a bunch of new features in the Messages app, including the option to set custom backgrounds for each chat. Be warned, other people see the background that you set. Group chats support typing indicators and other features, and you can add polls to chats.

Phone

Some of the biggest changes in iOS 26 are to the Phone app. There's a whole Call Screening feature that can screen calls from unknown numbers, and a tool that'll wait for you when you're on hold.

AirPods

With an accompanying firmware update, the AirPods Pro 2, AirPods Pro 3, and AirPods 4 support Live Translation for in-person conversations, plus there are options like pausing audio when you fall asleep and using the AirPods as a remote for the iPhone's Camera app.

Safari

Safari has an updated layout, a Liquid Glass design, tab bar changes, new privacy features, and more.

Apple Maps

The Maps app can learn your preferred route for your commute and alert you if there's anything that's going to make you late. It's also able to save your location history so you can remember your favorite locations when you travel.

Notes and Reminders

The Reminders app has some hidden Apple Intelligence features included, while the Notes app supports 3... Click here to read rest of article

Article Link: iOS 26 Features: The Ultimate Mega Guide
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12 pro max no issues. New glass OS has my thumbs up.👍
 
I suspect I will wipe my iPad and iPhone soon, system data is at 22Gb and 14Gb. Which on the phone bothers me less but I'd like to use the space on my smaller capacity iPad.

UI is a bit <meh>, I still have AI off since there is nothing compelling about it. Some aspects of iPadOS are better, more suited to the capabilities of the hardware but the ringing in the glass icons is a bit mental. I also feel the icons for my Apps look all a bit completely random and identity-less - the colour changes are so bold that it shouts at me, I preferred a flatter calmer look.

I assume by 26.1 it will *settle". I expect 26.01 by end of next week anyway, it's the law :D :D
 
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kalsta said:
25 years ago, Apple's Aqua UI was exciting. We had seen nothing like it before. It wasn't without it's critics (no big change is), but with such a revolutionary new OS (Mac OS X), the timing was perfect and I couldn't wait to have those lickable water-drop buttons pop out of my screen.
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I wish Apple would allow us to choose our own interface. For those who want liquid glass, fine. I'd love a switch where I could instantly go back to Aqua or brushed steel.
 
delsoul said:
All I’m reading is there’s bugs, bad performance, etc. Seems best to steer clear of iOS 26 for now…Well done, Tim and software team! Bravo! 👏
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Staying away, as always, until version 26.3.1. I'm not a beta user
 
Lizzard899 said:
Tap recents to call Feature to toggle on and off is missing on my iphone se 3rd generation phone. Its suppose to be under settings>app>phone and youre supposed to toggle it on or off. The whole feature is missing
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it's there on my iphone 14pro , at least it's somewhere as i do recall seeing that option. but now i can't find it so maybe it was in ios 18 and gone in ios 26


Ahh ha!!!

go into Phone, turn ON unified view (top right ... button) then go back to settings, apps, phone and the option re appears. This is enough to make me use unified view since i do not like the call to start when i touch the name so i have it disabled.
 
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Ultimate form-over-function upgrade.
Some text is harder to read, some menus are just poorly realised and/or bugged (try the quick bluetooth device selector), all is less clean.
Slower on my iPhone 13, of course.
General feeling of a first public beta.
All of this to get a "cool" new look that I really don't like. Feels like iOS 1.
 
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