5 impactful iOS 26 changes you may have missed during Apple’s WWDC keynote

At WWDC 2025, Apple unveiled its new iOS replace arriving later this yr: iOS 26.

That is proper, the rumors have been true. Apple is renaming all its working programs to be primarily based on the yr as an alternative of by model quantity. Nonetheless, the brand new naming scheme is not what stole the present. It was Liquid Glass, the overarching central theme of iOS 26, which provides a brand new glass-like translucent impact to a lot of the iPhone’s consumer interface parts.

Liquid Glass serves to unify the design of all Apple’s working programs, together with iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, and watchOS. With Liquid Glass, Apple is introducing the most important redesign of iOS since iOS 7 in 2013. Apple touts Liquid Glass as “bringing larger focus to content material, and delivering a brand new stage of vitality throughout controls, navigation, app icons, widgets, and extra.” It additionally appears so much like Microsoft’s ill-fated Windows Vista-era Aero design language.

Along with the brand new Liquid Glass design for iOS 26 (which you’ll be able to see within the picture above), Apple launched tons of latest options that its varied apps will obtain, all geared toward making utilizing the iPhone each day higher. Listed below are 5 impactful iOS 26 changes you’ll have missed throughout Apple’s hour-and-a-half-long WWDC keynote.

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5

Redesigned Telephone app

Calling your folks is even simpler with iOS 26

Apple

The Telephone app is without doubt one of the necessary apps on the iPhone, and with iOS 26, Apple is giving it a much-needed redesign together with new options that will help you display screen calls and handle being on maintain. To start out, the Telephone app has a brand new “unified” design structure, combining your favourite contacts and up to date calls all on one web page. It is possible for you to to see all of your pinned contacts proper on the high, so should you’re attempting to make a name rapidly, you’ll be able to faucet one in all your contacts on the high of the display screen to succeed in them quicker. Beneath that, you will discover all of your latest calls and voicemails with readouts.

Along with its redesign, Apple launched two brand-new options for the Telephone app: Name Screening and Maintain Help. Name Screening routinely solutions calls from unknown numbers and screens the decision so that you can decide if it is value answering.

Maintain Help routinely detects when you find yourself on maintain along with your iPhone, by recognizing maintain music that performs when you wait. Maintain Help retains your place in line when you anticipate a reside agent to turn into out there. When you join with an agent, Maintain Help will provide you with a warning to return to the decision. I’ve spent hours on maintain with buyer assist earlier than, so Maintain Help may simply be one in all iOS 26’s most useful new additions.

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4

CarPlay is extra seamless with iOS 26

Receiving cellphone calls will now not take up your complete display screen

Apple

With iOS 26, Apple CarPlay is present process a big makeover, including new options that improve ease of use. Firstly, my favourite new addition to CarPlay is a compact design for cellphone calls. At the moment, whenever you obtain a name, CarPlay occupies your entire display screen when you wait to reply or decline. Now, with iOS 26, cellphone calls seem as notifications on the backside of the display screen, permitting you to nonetheless see content material on the show, resembling your map and instructions.

Subsequent, messages in CarPlay will now show your pinned conversations, letting you simply hear or reply to them with Siri. Widgets are additionally being launched to CarPlay, enabling you to test the climate, view your calendar, management good house options, and extra immediately out of your automobile’s dashboard. All the data is designed to be glanceable, minimizing distractions whereas driving. Stay actions are additionally being built-in into CarPlay, enabling you to view your flight standing or your favourite crew’s rating immediately out of your automobile’s display screen. All these adjustments may even be out there on CarPlay Extremely with iOS 26.

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3

Enhanced expertise within the Messages app

Texting your group chat will look completely different with iOS 26

Apple

Apple did not overlook in regards to the Messages app with iOS 26, and it is including a few new options to make it extra aggressive with different messaging apps like WhatsApp and Snapchat. Firstly, it’s introducing a brand new backgrounds characteristic for Messages, permitting you and a contact to set a picture because the background to your dialog. Do you usually discuss to your pal a couple of sure film or artist? Now you can set a picture associated to that as your messaging background whereas discussing it. Backgrounds work for each one-on-one conversations and group chats.

Talking of group chats, Apple is including a brand new polling characteristic that permits you to survey your folks on concepts in group chats. So should you’re attempting to find out which night time works finest for everybody to hang around, or which restaurant to go to, now you can ship a ballot to your group chat and rapidly hear again from your folks to see what fits everybody. Anybody within the group also can contribute new concepts to the ballot.

Typing indicators are additionally coming to group chats, permitting you to see who’s typing a response. Lastly, Apple is introducing a brand new screening software for messages to filter out spam textual content messages from unknown senders within the Messages app.

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2

Stay Translation is coming to interrupt down language limitations

iOS 26 enables you to translate calls, messages, and FaceTime in real-time

Apple

When you usually talk with individuals who do not share the identical first language as you, significantly whereas working or finding out overseas, Apple’s new Stay Translation characteristic in iOS 26 goals to interrupt down language limitations. Stay Translation is built-in into the Telephone app, Messages, and FaceTime. In Messages, it routinely interprets texts you ship and obtain into your contact’s most well-liked language. After they reply, it is immediately translated, permitting you to learn their responses in your most well-liked language.

In FaceTime, Stay Translation gives real-time captions, enabling you to learn a translation of what your pal or member of the family is saying in a distinct language instantly. Lastly, within the Telephone app throughout a name, Stay Translation interprets your speech in real-time and vocalizes it for the recipient within the chosen translated language. For instance, should you’re calling a resort whereas vacationing in France, you’ll be able to communicate in English, and Stay Translation will translate your phrases and articulate them in French for you. Stay Translation is run fully on the system utilizing Apple’s fashions, so all of your conversations will stay safe and personal.

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1

Visible Intelligence is getting an improve

You’ll seek for content material in your display screen with Visible Intelligence

Apple

Apple did not have a lot to say about Apple Intelligence at WWDC, which is not any shock given the delays we have been listening to about for months. Nonetheless, Apple did unveil a brand new performance for Visual Intelligence, extending its capabilities to your iPhone’s display screen. At the moment out there in iOS 18, Visible Intelligence permits you to find out about objects and locations in the true world by pointing your digicam at them and urgent the Motion Button or Digital camera Management Button.

With iOS 26, Visible Intelligence will allow you to do the identical with content material in your cellphone’s display screen. See one thing you want whereas scrolling by way of social media? Like a jacket or lamp? While you take a screenshot, you will be offered with new choices, permitting you to ask ChatGPT about what you see within the picture or discover comparable pictures on Google. This carefully resembles Google’s Circle to Search, however is Apple’s personal take utilizing Visible Intelligence.

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