Apple releases Liquid Glass: iOS 26 & Co available for download
Update round at Apple: iPhone, iPad, Mac and Watch users can update their device. This brings a new design and more functions.
(Image: heise medien)
When the iPhone suddenly looks entirely different: Apple's new Liquid Glass design faces a multimillion audience with the release of iOS 26. After a good three-month beta phase, the operating system upgrade has been available for the general public to download since Monday evening. Upgrades for iPadOS, macOS, watchOS, tvOS and visionOS are available at the same time, all of which have the uniform version number 26.
Liquid Glass: problems with readability
The biggest and most immediately eye-catching innovation is a new user interface based on the "Liquid Glass" design –, which is being introduced in all systems. The major redesign announced in June focuses on transparent control elements through which background content shines through. Overall, the system has a much more airy design and Apple has also emphasized buttons more clearly.
For the iPhone and iPad in particular, the manufacturer is allowing even more personalization, for example on the lock screen and for the app icons, which can now be displayed uniformly and colourlessly in a glass look. Liquid Glass already caused countless heated discussions during the beta. There were many complaints about legibility in particular. The company made several improvements and is likely to make further adjustments in the coming weeks and months. Numerous developers have used the summer to adapt their apps to Liquid Glass – Numerous updates have already been released, and many more are likely to follow.
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Many new functions
Apple is delivering a range of new functions for the system and its own apps. This year, iPadOS 26 in particular benefits from this, which now comes with a free window system and adopts familiar Mac elements such as the menu bar. In macOS 26 Tahoe, the Spotlight search has been significantly expanded and serves as a command center for executing shortcuts and app actions, among other things. Apps can also use Apple's local AI model for the first time, which is installed on devices with Apple Intelligence.
The company is providing enhanced spam filters and translation functions for the phone and messaging app. At the same time, Apple also released new health functions on Monday: The Health app now creates a sleep index and reminds you to measure your blood pressure on request. Newer Apple Watches (from Series 9, Ultra 2 and SE 3) can warn if the wearer may have high blood pressure.
iOS 26 mit neuem Liquid-Glass-Design (8 Bilder)
iOS 26 & Co run on these devices
The iPhone 11 is the new minimum requirement for iOS 26; the update cannot be installed on the iPhone XS (Max) and iPhone XR. Among the iPads that support iPadOS 18, only the iPad 7 (2019) is excluded this time.
The manufacturer continues to sort out Intel Macs: The MacBook Air (early 2020), the MacBook Pro 13" with two ports (2018, 2019 and early 2020), the MacBook Pro 15" (2018, 2019), the Mac mini 2018, the iMac 2019 and the iMac Pro cannot install macOS 26 Tahoe. watchOS 26 runs – just like its predecessor watchOS 11 – on all Apple Watches from Series 6 and SE 2.
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