My personal approach is to wait for a few days after a major update as there will always be a fix or two and iOS 26.01 could save some headaches. Let others jump on the bandwagon and find the bugs.
Available to devices back to iPhone 11 the OS Overview - Stunning design. Stellar experiences. is Apple’s current web page with details about what to expect. Lots of hype about Liquid Glass visual interface elements. Interesting changes for multitasking on iPad with a “windowing system” where more than one app is on screen. Other items that caught my attention are:
- Polls in Messages app - looks promising for small groups
- Spotlight Search is now on steroids
- Files app is “supercharged”
- Preview app is new on iPad and iPhone for marking up PDFs
- Photos interface has updates and changes
Read Tom’s Guide - I’ve been using the new iOS 26 Camera app — and it finally addresses my biggest annoyance for details on the essential app for this class. Here are a few hints:
- Controls and preferences are now in the Camera app instead of the Settings app
- Simplified interface for shooting Photo or Video
- Liquid Glass visual interface elements
- New icons reveal mode controls
- Swipe horizontally or vertically for additional controls
- Restoring full iPhone 16 Pro Camera Control side button, Settings > General > Camera Adjustments
The Apple Camera app still lacks manual adjustments to ISO, shutter speed and focus so the third party camera apps we’ve been using are still very much in play.
9-12-25 Update
The new user interface called Liquid Glass has hit nerves. Some like it, some don’t. This is what liquid glass looks like on iOS 26 – and how you can turn it off if you’re not a fan is an article by Tom Morgan-Freelander for Stuff. Make a few screenshots of your favorite apps before updating to iOS 26 and then make more screenshots so you can compare the interface “improvements” for yourself. Want to reduce the effect? Consider another round of screenshots, Tom offers a way “… open the Settings app, then Accessibility, then Display & Text Size. Enable the toggle for “reduced transparency”. That’ll cut out most of the flashier animations, making the control centre in particular a lot more legible.”
