The next version of iPhone software is iOS 26 — and no, that’s not a typo. Apple announced the new name and new Liquid Glass look at WWDC 2025 earlier this week. The update to iOS 26 comes with a lot of features and improvements that I’ve wanted for some time, including call screening.
Last year, we got Apple Intelligence, and the year before that, the company unveiled the Vision Pro. This year, Apple renamed all of its software and made it look more unified. It might not sound as big a deal as previous WWDCs, but if you hoped Apple would talk more about software and less about AI, then this was your year. Instead of getting iOS 19, Apple released iOS 26. Typically, a new version of iOS comes out in the fall, but it can receive smaller updates through the following spring and summer. So iOS 26 is a reference to the fact that it will get minor updates through 2026.
The biggest update wasn’t the iOS name change. It was Liquid Glass, a design overhaul that adds transparency and is aimed at reducing distraction. However, some people’s instant reaction was less than favorable to the new look. I am fascinated by what I saw with Liquid Glass and look forward to testing it as part of the iOS 26 beta version. But Liquid Glass didn’t get me as hyped as some of the other features Apple included in iOS 26, like the Camera app redesign.
The theme at this year’s WWDC is consistency — consistency in terms of the overall experience an Apple device owner has. iOS 26 is a great example of this because it brings a sophisticated and contemporary feel to the iPhone’s software.
Check out my iOS 26 video above, in which I walk you through all the big features in the new iOS and show you a couple of smaller ones (some might find them mundane) that I’m excited about.
iOS 26 will launch this fall and is available now as a developer beta. The public beta version will be available in July. You need an iPhone 11 or newer to use iOS 26. If you want to give it a spin before it’s released, I recommend waiting for the public beta version and even then not running it on your main iPhone.
