Apple’s iOS 26 public beta just dropped. And not just iOS—everything got a beta today. iPadOS 26, watchOS 26, tvOS 26, macOS Tahoe (yes, that’s really the name), even HomePod software. It’s all part of the company’s latest effort to… keep everything numbered the same? Honestly, the “26” thing doesn’t make a ton of sense unless you’re deep in Apple’s calendar brain. But hey, it’s clean, and the version numbers line up now, which we’ve been asking for.
Anyway, the big deal here is the design. Apple’s gone full transparency with something it’s calling Liquid Glass, and it’s already dividing testers. Some folks are into it. Others—not so much.
Liquid Glass: Sleek, Slick, and Slightly Unreadable?
So here’s the pitch: Liquid Glass is Apple’s new design language across the entire OS family. Think glassy layers, blurred backgrounds, a kind of hyper-clean aesthetic. Honestly, it reminds me a little of Windows Vista’s Aero. Not in a bad way necessarily, just… familiar. Like Apple rediscovered the concept of “depth” and decided to run with it.
The catch? It looks great in press images, but in real use—especially on smaller screens—it can get hard to read. Some elements blend too much. Text floats awkwardly. And if your background is busy? Good luck.
To Apple’s credit, they’ve already pulled back a bit on the transparency levels since the first developer beta. So maybe they’re listening. Or maybe they just realized no one could read the Control Center. Either way, it’s a work in progress.
(Also: can we talk about how much this feels like Apple flexing design muscle for the sake of having something “new”? Like, performance tweaks are great, but UI is what gets headlines—and complaints.)
Should You Install the Beta?
If you’re curious about the new look and you’ve got a secondary device lying around, go for it. It’s stable enough, but bugs are still a thing. Some apps are glitchy. Battery life is inconsistent. That’s the nature of beta software.
Don’t put this on your daily phone unless you enjoy chaos. And definitely don’t forget to back up first—seriously, don’t skip that step. You will regret it.
Final Thought
Honestly, I’m still stuck on the naming. macOS Tahoe feels like someone on the software team got really into hiking. Or maybe just really likes lakes? Either way, I’m curious to see what that brings, because so far, the Mac side of things hasn’t seen as much flair as iOS.
Expect a proper public release across all platforms sometime in September. For now, this is Apple’s yearly reminder that it still knows how to shake up the interface—even if not everyone asked for it.
