iOS 26

Apple’s Messages app got a lot of new features last year, but iOS 26 continues the trend of big upgrades, including a handy solution for all those unwanted spam texts you keep getting.

iPhones and Android smartphones started to play more nicely together after Apple finally opted to support the Rich Communication Services (RCS) standard. Prior to this, messages between the two platforms had to use the ancient and insecure text messaging service.

Not all RCS features are supported as yet, with the all-important strong encryption waiting for RCS 3.0 support in iOS 26. Another RCS 3.0 feature is the ability to edit outgoing messages after sending them, and that one has started a limited one-way rollout …

iOS 26 is a packed update for iPhone users thanks to the new Liquid Glass design and major updates for Messages, Wallet, CarPlay, and more. But another new feature was just discovered in the iOS 26 beta: FaceTime will now freeze your call’s video and audio if someone starts undressing.

Apple has a new Liquid Glass design coming to iOS 26, macOS 26, and every other software platform. And whether you love it, hate it, or are indifferent, Apple’s new design seems like a major win in several key ways.

Earlier this month Apple unveiled iOS 26 and the host of changes it introduces. But now the company has confirmed that, due to regulatory concerns, iOS 26 will ship without certain features enabled for EU users.

According to the Power On newsletter from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, Apple still has a few more iOS 26 features in the pipeline. These features weren’t announced at WWDC, though they were heavily rumored, and they should still arrive in the coming months.

HomePod and HomePod mini may not have achieved the success Apple hoped for, but they nonetheless continue being actively developed, and iOS 26 will bring two new features to the smart speakers.

iOS 26 is a major software release not only for iPhone, but also adjacent platforms like CarPlay and AirPods. And there’s one AirPods feature in particular that could very well be Apple’s preparation for AirPods Pro 3 gaining cameras.

Apple was quick to address what was by far one of the biggest complaints from the first iOS 26 developer beta: Control Center contrast. With beta 2, released earlier today, Apple seems to have tweaked it for better visibility.

Apple just released iOS 26 beta 2, bringing additional refinements and changes to the forthcoming software update. Among various design enhancements and tweaks, beta 2 adds a new Apple Music widget for Live Radio, the third new widget so far in iOS 26.

iOS 26 beta 2 is out now for iPhones on the developer beta. Below we’re collecting everything that has changed between the original and latest beta.

Apple has released iOS 26 beta 2. The update replaces iOS 26 beta 1 which arrived on June 9 (followed by an updated build for iPhone 15 and iPhone 16 on June 13).

The second version of the pre-release iPhone software update is available now for developer beta testers. Apple will expand iOS 26 beta testing in July when it adds the major new version to its public beta channel too.

Apple’s tight grip on local wireless sharing is finally loosening, even if rather reactively. With iOS 26, developers are getting a new API that allows third-party apps to discover and connect nearby devices over Wi-Fi, without needing an internet connection. Here’s how it’ll work.

Apple unveiled iOS 26 last week at WWDC 2025. While Liquid Glass and iPadOS certainly stole the show, there’s a number of smaller features for iPhone users that I think a lot of people will still enjoy, and I’ll be diving into them here.

CarPlay’s evolution has in several ways been a disappointment since the “next generation” of CarPlay was first previewed in 2022. But all of a sudden, in the span of a mere month, CarPlay’s future looks brighter than it has in years—in part because of a redefinition of what that future will be.

We are now in 2025, and there are so many MagSafe battery packs out there. Some are multifunctional, others have software touches, some can charge your phone fast, and they all have differentiators to help you decide. But sometimes you just want a beautiful-looking MagSafe battery pack that does all the main things great, while also looking slim, sleek, and stylish. That is precisely what Pitaka was able to do with their new aramid fiber magnetic power bank. Here is what you should know.

Apple Intelligence doesn’t (yet) offer an official chatbot mode, but in iOS 26 Apple will let power users get a chatbot-style experience via the Shortcuts app. Here’s how it works.

iOS 26 is full of new features for the Music app, including more expansive animated album art, in-app support for Apple Music Replay, and new pinning options.

Perhaps the most impressive new Apple Music feature of all, however, is a new AutoMix. Here’s how it works.

One of the stylish visual changes to the iPhone on iOS 26 is a new layout for the lock screen when music is playing. Artwork can now be animated and shown full-screen on the iPhone display, with playback controls resting on a platter of a liquid glass.

You can try this out right now with Apple Music. Play a song that has animated album art, and lock the phone. But users of third-party music streaming apps like Spotify will also be pleased to know that Apple is opening up this capability as an API, so third-party developers can also adopt it.

After months of rumors, Apple has officially unveiled its big iOS 26 ‘Liquid Glass’ redesign, and already the new design has made me want the forthcoming iPhone 17 Air more than ever. Here’s why.