iOS 26's Liquid Glass Design Draws Criticism From Users

[Saturn1217]

The liquid glass is fine. Apple did a decent job of taking care of the worst usability issues. It may not be to everyone’s tastes and I personally think it isn’t going to age well. But it’s easy enough to ignore.

It’s the weird bubbly outlines around EVERYTHING that’s the issue. I’ve only used this on my old iPad but I’m assuming the effect is the same across all the platforms. Buttons and sidebars that don’t feel like they are part of the window or app that owns them is just weird. Sometimes it’s downright confusing (like I can’t easily figure out how to minimize a sidebar or exactly which parts can be minimized). It makes the button controls really distracting when these types of UI elements should fade into the background so you can focus on content. It’s just BAD. Not in a “I don’t like change” way. It is objectively worse than what we had before. If they can just tone that part down (or rethink it entirely) this liquid glass update would be much better.

 

[Mr. Heckles]

I like it. It ran choppy for about 2 hours after I updated, but it runs smoothly now. I like the animation also. I feel like the notifications are more gentle (if that makes sense).

No matter what Apple did, people are going to complain. If they didn’t change it, people would complain about that.

To people who are complaining, it’s a phone.

 

[Marcourrea]

Music menus on carplay arent mapped;
Buttons during facetime call get lost dependign on the video feed.
Too many steps to do things on safari

 

[GrumpyOldGuy52]

If anyone has parents over the age of 50, good luck. You’re going to be tech support

I'm a parent over the age of 50 and am the tech support for my teens.

 

[jecowa]

It sounds bad. Wasting RAM and processing power and battery for unnecessary animations. But hearing how bad it is makes me want to update so I can try it out before they get rid of it all. Because it sounds like a cool novelty, but the novelty will wear off quickly, and then it will probably become annoying.

 

[octoberist3]

deleted

 

[Koneka]

Liquid Glass is beautiful

 

[GeezGlitch]

The UI elements are inconsistent. I love the gummy/droplet sliders in the General settings. I wish that were used everywhere, such as in browsers and emails, etc. Where the "liquid glass" is needed, it just isn't there.

 

[haruhiko]

I like the new design but why it drops frames so frequently whenever something is loading?

 

[ZMacintosh]

With that logic they wouldn't have scrapped Launchpad on macOS - but they did. Instead, they've left everyone with Spotlight. Perhaps, though, since Spotlight has so many fans, they should just scrap the iOS app icons altogether, and everyone can just search for the apps via Spotlight.

you missed my point

 

[octoberist3]

deleted

 

[maxdefcon]

I hate hate hate hate having to tap more than once to see my Safari tabs!

You don't have to tap more than once. Tap and HOLD the three dots, move to All Tabs, and release.

 

[jhgale1895]

I'm a parent over the age of 50 and am the tech support for my teens.

I'm 64. With a very few exceptions, I don't find the upgrade at all hard to navigate.

 

[wikiverse]

The best version of iOS26:

Settings > Accessibility > Display & Text Size > Reduce Transparency

Also:
Settings > Accessibility > Motion > Reduce Motion

The ugly lines around everything remain, but all of the search bars/folder backgrounds on the home screen are just blurred, mostly opaque backgrounds now that are much closer to iOS18.

Also:
Press and hold the lock screen > Customize > Click the clock > change from Glass to Solid > click Done in the top right.

 

[ProbablyDylan]

• The constantly changing colors, shapes, and shading are distracting.

Hey, that's my post! Here's another one: virtual UI bloat. Basically every navigation button is bigger and takes up more space than previously - meaning there's less usable screen space for content. You know, content, the thing that this UX redesign was supposed to be all about.

 

[joeblow7777]

I didn't like it that much at first but it only took a day to grow on me. The icons flying in when I unlock my phone does feel a little slow though.

 

[WWP99]

Feels like Windows. Everything now requires one more step. Not intuitive and requires MORE user input which means its less efficient and more user-intenstive than ever.

 

[CocktailHour]

Works great on my iPhone 15 Pro. I considered using the tone down control, but it would need to be a slider, not a switch.

 

[anthony131]

I don’t think it’s actually being that negatively received, I just simply think that no one wants to read a thread that’s “The New iOS Is Good, I Have No Problems, It Works Great”.

I would love to read an article about someone’s positive experience. I don’t understand how anyone, especially Apple, could feel like there’s anything positive about this at all. I mean, “fresh” is one thing but this is literally like polishing a turd. There are blatant… Sorry, your comment isn’t the place for me to rant.

I just want someone to point at these things everyone is complaining about and provide a counter argument. Give me a legitimate reason why you believe it is a better or even acceptable experience to have text on top of text and a lack of definition when a white icon is on top of a white background. Tell me how it’s more intuitive and a joy to have to go about all four corners of your 6+” screen to find menu items.

To be fair, a lot of complaints are frivolous and will likely be resolved. They shouldn’t exist, for a three trillion dollar company, but they’ll be fixed this version or the next or the next.

The larger issue is the whole design language. The entire concept of “liquid glass” should have been rejected at the concept phase. The concept itself is irrational for a small flat screen that’s already trying to do too much.

So, I want to know from the people who love it, what specifically is it you love and how do you feel about the larger issue of usability? Because I honestly think you’re either lying to us or to yourself.

 

[klasma]

A lot of the comments shared when iOS 7 came out mirror the comments we're seeing now about Liquid Glass.

I bet they don’t refract them though.

 

[steve333]

What would Steve Jobs say?
That is the metric.
I think he would fire Tim Cook

 

[jwolf6589]

It's been two days since iOS 26 was released, and Apple's new Liquid Glass design is even more divisive than expected.

Any major design change can create controversy as people get used to the new look, but the MacRumors forums, Reddit, Apple Support Communities, and social media sites seem to feature more criticism than praise as people discuss the update.

Complaints

There are a long list of complaints about Liquid Glass, from the impact on readability to lag caused by animations. Here are some of the main critiques:

• Animations run slow, and the interface feels sluggish on older iPhones.
  
• The constantly changing colors, shapes, and shading are distracting.
  
• The animations make no sense.
  
• It looks like a Barbie phone with battery wasting features.
  
• Basic actions require too many taps.
  
• The bubbles and floaty icons are cartoony.
  
• The contrast is awful.
  
• Some app icons look blurry.
  
• The design is inconsistent, and some things are flat while some are glass.
  
• Highlights on UI elements are inconsistent.
  
• It's hard to read things like notifications.
  
• The effects are too subtle for the system overhead costs.

Some People Like It

On the MacRumors forums, complaints about Liquid Glass are interspersed with responses from people who have been using it during beta, and the consensus is "you'll get used to it."

It does always take time to get used to a new look, and Liquid Glass will become less jarring as people become accustomed to the new animations and the behavior of buttons and other interface elements.

Not everyone hates Liquid Glass, and there are also many positive comments from people who prefer the new design. Some of that sentiment:

• It makes the iPhone feel faster.
  
• It feels modern and clean, and makes a boring smartphone a little more fun.
  
• It's bright, bouncy, and just plain cool to use.
  
• Getting notifications is satisfying, and the Lock Screen keypad is like bubbles.
  
• It's fresh and easy to get accustomed to.
  
• iOS 18's flat UI was depressing, so iOS 26 is an improvement.
  
• It's technologically impressive with the light refraction and diffusion of chromatic aberration.
  
• The icons are slick and it harkens back to the OG Apple UI design.

Media Complaints

• The unbearable sameness of Liquid Glass
  
• Liquid Glass Could Be One of Apple's Most Divisive System Designs Yet
  
• This Liquid Glass Optical Illusion on iOS 26 Is Driving Me Insane
  
• Apple's Liquid Glass: The liquid works, but the glass is broken

iOS 7

Everyone remembers iOS 7, because it was the first big design change that Apple made to iOS. Apple did away with skeuomorphism in favor of a "flat" design, and it was not a change that people were prepared for. A lot of the comments shared when iOS 7 came out mirror the comments we're seeing now about Liquid Glass.

• iOS 7 Interface Design is so UGLY!
  
• The real problem with iOS 7 Design
  
• Does anyone dislike IOS 7 as much as I do?
  
• iOS 7 Bugs: Will They Ever be Fixed
  
• The biggest complaints about iOS 7 so far
  
• The design of iOS 7: simply confusing

Despite the complaints about iOS 7, Apple stuck with it. There were ongoing refinements to fix bugs and to tweak the overall design, but Apple didn't reverse course. Design updates in iOS 8, iOS 9, and iOS 10 didn't change the fundamentals, but it got better and bette... Click here to read rest of article

Article Link: iOS 26's Liquid Glass Design Draws Criticism From Users

I like it!!! But there are DEFINITELY bugs that need to be fixed on all devices. Yes I remember the change to IOS 7 back in 2012 and the multitude of people that complained about it at first.

 

[canadianreader]

Of course it would! There's no functional reason to make things transparent. Sure it might look nice, but it's worse in function.

There's a reason why books and computer screens aren't transparent, except in movies.

It's the first time every I've opted for the Accessibility features to reduce transparency.

A lot of those who like the liquid glass design seem overly aggressive and condescending if you disagree. Reminds me of when Apple announced the notch on macbooks.

 

[Tomhauber]

I think the new UI looks really good. It makes using my phone more enjoyable just because it's so pretty to look at. I hope they don't listen to the criticism much.

That unfortunately is all I am seeing in favor of it are subjective comments. Nothing like works faster or improves productivity. Something that can be measured.

 

[GrumpyOldGuy52]

As a minimalist iPhone user, the UI is crap, no doubt.

I've installed it because there are changes to health monitoring that I want, and the live in-person translation will be a killer app for my job. Those were the only reasons I had to upgrade but were functionally enough to make me do it.

I've been able to tweak things back to usable and minimal, but the UI looks horrible in grayscale (again, I'm a minimalist iPhone user). My other issues are that "Reduce Transparency" and "Reduce Motion" really should have a full-fledged off mode for each—the reductions make it even more distracting, sadly.

I've been an Apple user for over 30 years, so I understand the argument that we just have to wait and get used to it. However, I've also been an Apple user long enough to know that when they don't listen to their users, they tend to fall flat on their face. I submitted more tickets during the beta than I have in all the others combined, mostly because the glass effects are truly gimmicky—glass simply doesn't work the way the UI thinks it does. Sure, there's the "liquid" effect, but that's where the gimmick comes into play.

Had they adopted elements from visionOS, I would have understood that it was to fulfill a need for a more common design language across the platforms. But adopting the VR UX (that's cosplaying as an AR UX) onto non-VR or -AR devices is not understanding the platforms the operating systems are for. This is a classic example of form over substance.

Jobs said the real art was knowing what to leave out. Apple's missing that essential point here.