We are excited to tell you about all of the new features available in Apple’s latest optional update, iOS 26.
Although this update is not required as of yet, it will eventually be the standard on all up to date iPhones.
Main overview
This update has a lot of significant changes in the areas of appearance, intelligence, translations and even more advanced call screening.
They have transformed the operating system to display their liquid glass effects, and have integrated even more Apple intelligence functionalities into the system.
The live translation options are also helping bridge language barriers in the world, making it easy to speak with people in other languages.
Apple has also decided to change their OS versions to yearly releases. This means iOS 26 will remain all through 2026, then it will release iOS 27.
It is also important to remember that Apple Intelligence only works on iPhone 15 and above. A lot of their new features utilize this to function. This means anyone using an iPhone 14 or earlier, may not have access to all the features they are adding.
Keep in mind it is a fairly new update and may have a few bugs for now. In fact iOS 26.1 has just been released.
How will iOS 26 change how my device looks?
Liquid Glass
The first feature we will talk about is Liquid Glass. This is a new appearance theme that is built into the operating system. This adds a transparency effect to a lot of buttons and menus. You can even choose to display your app icons into glass window like appearances.
For users who don’t like the transparency, there is an accessibility setting where it can be disabled for most parts of the user interface (UI). This is done under Settings>Accessibility>Display & Text Size>Reduce Transparency. This will make a lot of the UI have a darker, more visible background.
Lock Screen & Home Changes
The lock screen has received a few new features including improvements on the depth effect feature, when the photo is capable of it.
Some new features for the lock screen are:
- Adjustable clock size that interacts with depth effects
- Spatial Scenes where images can appear to be 3D. It looks similar to a holographic trading or sports card.
- Widgets on bottom of screen
Some new features for the home screen are:
- Liquid Glass app icons
- Tinted transparent icons
- Light and Dark icons (these were already accessible through iOS 18)
The lock screen edits are accessible by holding down on the screen when locked and then allowing the Face ID to unlock the phone. It will zoom out a bit and you can choose to edit an existing one, or make a new one.
The home screen edits are accessible by holding down on any blank space to make the apps wiggle, choosing edit in the top right, and then choosing customize.
Home and UI Features
In iOS 26 Apple expanded their customized icon features and now allow for clear, clear dark, and tinted options. All of the icon customization from earlier iOS updates still exists.
They have also added disappearing navigation bars in apps like Safari to show more on the screen, as well as widget flexibility especially within/on the lock screen.
AI Improvements
Apple AI has added a live translation feature to phone calls, messages, and Facetime.
Genmojis have also been updated, allowing for editing of expressions. You can also combine or remix them.
They are also adding a feature within their screenshot functionality that allows the user to ask questions about it, translate text, or even consult ChatGPT for questions about certain parts of an image.
They also have added background generation features within their photo editing, as well as the Preview app for even more editing beyond the photos app.
Phone Calls/Spam Screening
iOS 26 has added a call screening feature where it will use AI to ask for information about who is calling.
This will then appear as transcript you can read before you accept it. They also added a spam filter that prevents ringing and voicemails from known spam callers.
They have also added a feature called “Hold Assist.” This feature monitors hold music and can detect when a person comes on the line.
This allows you to do something else while on hold without having to worry about missing the representative.
The feature can even transcribe any text you have missed when they answer the phone.
Tombstone calling is another cool new feature. You can swipe on a missed call to activate a call back reminder alerting you to make the call at some point in the future.
This is next to the trash button displayed as a white clock in a blue bubble.
Accessibility and Assistive Features
One of the coolest new features in iOS 26 is Braille Access.
This expands the older “Braille Screen Input” and “VoiceOver Braille” features.
This allows use of the phone through a braille display without needing to switch between different accessibility modes.
They have also added a setting called “Vehicle Motion Cues”.
If you experience discomfort when you use iPhone while riding as a passenger in a car or other on-road vehicle, you can turn on Vehicle Motion Cues—onscreen cues that may help reduce motion sickness. Vehicle Motion Cues appear as animated dots on the edges of the screen that represent how the vehicle is moving without interfering with what you’re doing on iPhone.
Apple Support
Other features include audio equalization, head tracking, facial gestures and more.
For more in depth information on these features, as well as all features of the new OS, check out the Official Apple PDF.
Other Features and Core App Improvements
Camera and Media
The camera app has been redesigned a bit to make the photo/video option accessible quicker down the bottom.
The other photo/video features are also just a quick swipe to the sides they are just hidden initially.
Other features have been added as well such as audio input selection, HDR options and screenshot options.
Preview App
The preview app is a photo and pdf viewing and editing tool that originally was only on MacOS.
iOS 26 gives iPhone users access to this app now which unlocks a lot of useful features like viewing, editing, markup, and even scanning features.
Clock Features
This lets you choose from either 1-15 minutes.
Alarms now have a customizable snooze duration.
Battery and Power
Apple has added a feature that utilizes Apple Intelligence to reduce battery usage allowing the charge to last longer.
They have also added the time until fully charged on the lock screen and made usage statistics more user friendly and easy to read within the battery settings.
Messaging
You are now able to copy a part of a text message instead of their previous copy function that only let you copy the entire message.
Other useful features are a drafts folder, spam filtering, and chat customization with things like backgrounds and polls.
For all information about the new changes, check out Apples Official Features List.
If you have questions about iOS 26, or our other services, please call or email. We’re happy to assist you! Feel free to use our contact form to send us a message. Thank you!
