Apple launches iOS 26, boosts iPhone experience: 5 things to know

Apple on Monday unveiled iOS 26 at its flagship developer conference in Cupertino, California. A major update that brings a beautiful new design, intelligent experiences, and improvements to the apps users rely on every day. The new design provides a more expressive and delightful experience across the system while maintaining the instant familiarity of iOS. The new design extends to the Home Screen and Lock Screen, making them more personal and expressive than ever.

5 things to know

1. With iOS 26, updates to the Phone and Messages apps help users stay connected while eliminating distractions like unwanted calls.

2. iOS 26 also introduces new features in CarPlay, Apple Music, Maps, and Wallet, as well as Apple Games, a brand-new app that gives players a single destination for all their games.

3. “iOS 26 shines with the gorgeous new design and meaningful improvements to the features users rely on every day, making iPhone even more helpful,” said Craig Federighi, Apple's senior vice president of Software Engineering at the 'WWDC 2025' event.

4. It's crafted with Liquid Glass — 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.

5. In Apple Music, News, and Podcasts, the tab bar is redesigned to float above users' content, dynamically shrink when users are browsing to put content front and centre, and then expand when they scroll back up, said Apple.

READ | WWDC 2025: Apple unveils new software design 'Liquid Glass' for iOS, macOS and others; check here

“Experiences are more expressive and personal, from the Lock Screen and Home Screen, to new capabilities across Phone and Messages that help users focus on the connections that matter most. And with powerful new Apple Intelligence capabilities integrated across the system, users can get things done easier than ever,” he told the gathering. The new design makes apps and system experiences more expressive and delightful, while keeping iOS instantly familiar.

Liquid Glass also brings new customisation options to app icons and widgets, including a stunning clear look. On the Lock Screen, the time fluidly adapts to the available space in an image, and spatial scenes bring wallpapers to life with a 3D effect when users move iPhone. Updated design elements also deliver fresh experiences in apps.

Camera and Safari

A simplified, streamlined Camera layout helps users keep their attention on the moment they're capturing, and the Photos app is updated to feature separate tabs for Library and Collections views. In Safari, web pages flow from the top edge to the bottom of the screen, enabling users to see more of the page while maintaining access to frequently used actions like refresh and search.

WatchOS 26

The tech giant showcased watchOS 26, offering a beautiful new look and even more intelligence for a more personalised experience, to support users in staying active, healthy, and connected. A new design with Liquid Glass makes features like the Smart Stack, Control Center, the Photos watch face, and in-app navigation and controls more expressive, while maintaining the instant familiarity of watchOS.

Apple Intelligence enhances the fitness experience with Workout Buddy, which provides personalised, spoken motivation. The Workout app features a new layout, and offers music to listen to based on a user's tastes and the workout type. watchOS 26 makes everyday interactions even more convenient with Smart Stack hints and updates to Messages.

iPadOS 26

The company also previewed iPadOS 26, the biggest iPadOS release ever, taking a huge leap forward and pushing the unique capabilities and versatility of iPad even further. A beautiful design brings a new look to iPad, making the experience even more expressive and delightful. While maintaining the simplicity of iPad, iPadOS 26 introduces an entirely new powerful and intuitive windowing system with new features that help users control, organise, and switch between apps.

“iPadOS 26 is our biggest iPadOS release ever, with powerful features that take the experience to the next level and transform what users can do on iPad,” said Federighi. Apple also showcased visionOS 26, an expansive update packed with groundbreaking spatial experiences and new features for Apple Vision Pro.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by DNA staff and is published from IANS)