WWDC 2025: iPhone's "Liquid Glass" Redesign, iOS 26 Features, and iPad Enhancements

iOS 26: A New Look and Feel

• 💡 Apple is introducing a fresh visual overhaul for iPhones called "Liquid Glass", featuring smooth, rounded corners and transparent layers.
• ✨ This new aesthetic will be applied cohesively across the entire Apple ecosystem, aiming for a clean and clear user experience.
• 📅 Software updates, including iOS 26, iPadOS 26, and watchOS 26, will be named after the year and launch in the fall alongside new iPhones.

Enhanced iPhone Functionality

• 📞 The Phone app will feature a combined screen for recent voicemails and favorites, alongside improved filtering for messages from unknown senders.
• 🎧 A new feature will allow the iPhone to listen for hold music and wait for you when you're on hold.
• 📸 The Photos app is reverting to separate tabs for Library and Collections, addressing user feedback on a previous redesign.
• 💬 Live translation is being integrated into Messages, FaceTime, and the Phone app, with privacy-focused, on-device processing.

AI and Smart Features

• 🧠 While a smarter AI-powered Siri is still in development, Apple is incorporating AI enhancements across its devices.
• 🏋️ An AI-enhanced workout buddy is introduced to provide motivation for users.
• 🔍 Users can now take a screenshot and visually look up items on the Apple Watch.

iPadOS 26: Desktop-Like Experience

• 💻 For the first time, iPadOS 26 will allow users to move and resize windows, transforming the iPad into a more desktop-like computing experience.
• 📂 This update brings multitasking, a file system, and other features long requested by users, making the iPad function more like a laptop.
• 📱 These new features will be available on a wide range of iPads, from the Mini to the Pro models.

Update Compatibility

• 📱 To receive the iOS 26 update, users will need an iPhone 11 or newer, or an iPhone SE 2 or later.