iPhone users are gradually discovering new features Apple offers with iOS 26. The update aims to improve customization and usability, with changes receiving mixed reactions from users.
What is iOS 26?
iOS 26 is Apple’s latest update for iPhones, released earlier this year. It introduced changes to the iPhone lock screen, home screen, messaging features, and a variety of different apps.
“There are people who always like the latest and greatest, and I think for them, the updates are fantastic because they love doing new things with their phone,” Digital Art Teacher Wendy Connelly said.
New Features
One of the biggest changes on the iPhone is a new visual style called liquid glass that creates a translucent effect on apps and controls.
“I think from a design point, I really like the transparent element. I think it looks really cool. And some of them actually kind of look drop-shadowed. I like that as well,” Connelly said.
The new look was familiar and simple, making the change easier for some users to accept.
“I think that the new iOS update for iOS 26 is more visually appealing. And I really like the fact that you can sort of blend in your background into your apps,” Technology Student Association president Leela Mallya (‘26) said.
With the new update, users can customize their phones in more ways. They can now tint apps a specific color and add backgrounds to iMessages.
“I think the update is very good because I can make all the apps pink,” Cadence Hotta (‘28) said.
Mixed Reactions From Users
Before iOS 26 dropped, iOS 18 was Apple’s last biggest update, being released in September 2024. iOS 18 featured Home Screen customization limited in comparison to iOS 26. Additionally, Apple released a redesigned Photos app and introduced Apple Intelligence for models that supported it.
“No matter how different [an update] might be, I think automatically we’ll start getting adjusted to it because we use our devices so frequently anyway,” Mallya said.
With every new update comes the time to adapt to new changes—the more extreme the changes, the more difficult it is to get used to.
“The update was annoying at first. But now I think it makes it look more techy,” Addy Jenkins (‘28) said.
Another downside of the update is the amount of storage users need to download it. iOS 26 takes around 6-12 GB, and even more free space for the phone to process the update, requiring more storage from users.
“I will say I think at least a third of my storage is just going to software updates…So I would love for those software updates to not take up so much storage,” Mallya said.
