I’ve been trying out an iPhone 17 Pro Max for several days now, and I’m finding iOS 26 inferior to iOS 18 for my needs.
One of the first things I noticed is the display scaling. Display Zoom seems to give me two extremes: Zoomed is way too large, while Standard is too small (normal/expected behavior for standard zoom mode). Comparing the 17 Pro Max with my XS Max running iOS 18, the same 6.7-inch screen has a noticeably different UI density. On iOS 26, even Standard feels like there is more padding, spacing and wasted screen real estate throughout the interface.
The other thing I noticed is how much OS storage AI takes. I wish there was a way to uninstall AI and free up more space. The camera bump is also a concern too and seems the phone is prone to scratching the lens.
I’ve seen similar complaints on Reddit and Apple support forums about the UI being oversized, excessive padding, and the lack of a display scaling option somewhere between the two extremes.
There are also some Accessibility regressions that are a much bigger issue for me. I use AssistiveTouch frequently, and under Customize Top Level Menu, several actions that I regularly use are now missing:
• Apple Pay
• Mute
• Restart
I don't understand why these options were removed from the customizable AssistiveTouch menu when they were available previously. For someone who relies on AssistiveTouch, removing frequently used actions is a significant regression.
Another smaller but irritating change is the time display. The font appears more faded/light rather than the more solid font treatment I have on iOS 18, and there doesn't appear to be any way to change it.
These are just a few things I've noticed after having the 17 Pro Max for several days. I'm sure there are other changes I haven't come across yet.
I'm not sure whether iOS 27 will bring back any of the missing AssistiveTouch functionality or address the UI scaling issue. Given the other problems I've been having with my XS Max, I'm undecided whether to move forward with the 17 Pro Max, wait for the iPhone 18, or possibly ditch Apple altogether.
At this point, I'm likely going to return the 17 and wait for the iPhone 18 despite the extra price and take it for a test drive before deciding. I may just switch to Samsung. Not sure if anyone else over the last year or whenever the Custom Top Level Menu first got neutered noticed.
One of the first things I noticed is the display scaling. Display Zoom seems to give me two extremes: Zoomed is way too large, while Standard is too small (normal/expected behavior for standard zoom mode). Comparing the 17 Pro Max with my XS Max running iOS 18, the same 6.7-inch screen has a noticeably different UI density. On iOS 26, even Standard feels like there is more padding, spacing and wasted screen real estate throughout the interface.
The other thing I noticed is how much OS storage AI takes. I wish there was a way to uninstall AI and free up more space. The camera bump is also a concern too and seems the phone is prone to scratching the lens.
I’ve seen similar complaints on Reddit and Apple support forums about the UI being oversized, excessive padding, and the lack of a display scaling option somewhere between the two extremes.
There are also some Accessibility regressions that are a much bigger issue for me. I use AssistiveTouch frequently, and under Customize Top Level Menu, several actions that I regularly use are now missing:
• Apple Pay
• Mute
• Restart
I don't understand why these options were removed from the customizable AssistiveTouch menu when they were available previously. For someone who relies on AssistiveTouch, removing frequently used actions is a significant regression.
Another smaller but irritating change is the time display. The font appears more faded/light rather than the more solid font treatment I have on iOS 18, and there doesn't appear to be any way to change it.
These are just a few things I've noticed after having the 17 Pro Max for several days. I'm sure there are other changes I haven't come across yet.
I'm not sure whether iOS 27 will bring back any of the missing AssistiveTouch functionality or address the UI scaling issue. Given the other problems I've been having with my XS Max, I'm undecided whether to move forward with the 17 Pro Max, wait for the iPhone 18, or possibly ditch Apple altogether.
At this point, I'm likely going to return the 17 and wait for the iPhone 18 despite the extra price and take it for a test drive before deciding. I may just switch to Samsung. Not sure if anyone else over the last year or whenever the Custom Top Level Menu first got neutered noticed.