Apple OS 26: the new stuff that actually matters

The company revealed many software features besides Liquid Glass, these are the ones people will be using the most

The Apple OS 26 batch will be mostly remembered for the introduction of the company’s Liquid Glass visual user interface, sure, but there was still some noteworthy stuff added to the operating systems themselves. The big winner this year? The iPad. (Image: Apple)

Apple’s yearly keynote focused on its OS software is all wrapped up and what was expected to emerge as the most important software announcement for 2025 turned out to be precisely that: the new visual user interface its latest operating systems will be based on, Liquid Glass. That does not mean there are no new features offered by macOS, iOS, iPadOS, tvOS or watchOS, though — in fact, given how much attention Liquid Glass predictably attracted, there’s more new in the Apple OS 26 batch than what the company actually needed for a good software year. In terms of implementation quality it’s all still up in the air… but new features we definitely got.

Not all of the the Apple OS 26 features are noteworthy or even interesting, though, so here’s a quick rundown of the ones that actually matter: the ones that can and probably will make a difference in the way we use our iPhones, Apple Watches, Macs and iPads going forward.