iOS 26 May Be Apple’s Riskiest Redesign But

It’s official, Apple’s massive software program redesign is right here, and your entire gadgets are about to look rather a lot totally different. At WWDC 2025 Apple unveiled “Liquid Glass,” which is its personal Apple manner of claiming, “Your iPhone is getting much more bubbly.” The large visible overhaul modifications the look of the UI inside Apple gadgets throughout the board, together with your iPhone, MacBook, Apple Watch, and even your Apple TV 4K streaming field.

And whereas the complete gamut of Apple merchandise is affected by the visible vibe shift, it’s iOS that may most likely catch essentially the most consideration—and for good motive. For one, tons and tons of individuals use iPhones in America, and even the slightest tweak to the UI can have an effect on folks on a mass scale. Secondly, from what I can inform with out seeing the redesign for myself, iOS appears to be essentially the most closely impacted by the brand new design. I imply, severely, examine this out:

Right now, we’re asserting our most lovely software program design change but with Liquid Glass. And for the very first time, it’s coming to iOS 26, iPadOS 26, macOS 26, watchOS 26, and tvOS 26 without delay! pic.twitter.com/p8pr8o1EmM

— Greg Joswiak (@gregjoz) June 9, 2025

Whereas Apple doesn’t state it explicitly, the redesign appears to be closely influenced by what some designers would possibly name “glassmorphism,” which is a visible fashion in UI that includes numerous opaque menus and, in contrast to Apple’s present flat “neumorphic” design, provides a little bit of form to icons that have been beforehand form of 2D. See (mockingly) different working techniques from, *cough, cough* Microsoft, if you’d like one other instance of what glassmorphism would possibly manifest as. Somebody extra educated than I might most likely nerd out over the brand new look with a couple of thousand phrases, however a design maven I’m not. Once I have a look at Liquid Glass, I see issues in an easier mild. I see largely one factor: threat.

On one hand, that threat is thrilling. I feel Apple’s UI is due for an replace. By Apple’s personal estimation, the last visual overhaul was way back in iOS 7, when iPhones nonetheless had a bodily house button and “Obamacare” was nonetheless a subject of political dialogue. Not solely that, however Apple, for good motive, has been accused rather a lot lately of not making an attempt to push the boundaries prefer it as soon as did below the management of Steve Jobs and Jony Ive. A great way to point out folks you’re not afraid to strive one thing new is to, properly, strive one thing new. That’s precisely what Apple did; it took a threat on a redesign that modifications some fairly core parts of your iPhone’s UI—icons, menus, you title it.

However similar to any daring new endeavor, there are going to be some tradeoffs. A type of tradeoffs, on this case, could also be accessibility. As lots of you’ve got already famous, there are some visible quirks to Apple’s glassmorphic period, and legibility could also be at stake.

Say fucking goodbye to accessibility #WWDC25 pic.twitter.com/CKCIwv2sns

— Ilya · イリア (@ilyamiskov) June 9, 2025

As a lot as I really just like the look aesthetically of Apple’s new Liquid Glass overhaul, I feel there are going to be some massive haters, and I can’t precisely blame them. Having clear home windows could look future-forward, however when that design encounters, say, I don’t know, textual content on a web page, issues can get somewhat messy. What you get, at instances, is a visually muddled menu that conflicts with different parts on a web page. I’m not leaping to any conclusions but since I haven’t actually seen the redesign for myself or the way it interacts with internet pages or apps, however objectively, it looks as if there isn’t as a lot distinction as Apple’s earlier look. One factor I’ve undoubtedly seen to this point is that delicate variations in the place a menu lands in an app or internet web page could make a huge effect. As an illustration, try this image.

apple simply launched “Liquid Glass” design in iOS.

it is lovely, futuristic… and utterly unreadable.

what are we doing right here? 😵‍💫 pic.twitter.com/ybw8SIxtqh

— Kalash (@amikalash) June 9, 2025

I don’t find out about you, however what I see is a blurry, visible catastrophe. However, in the event you try the video this screenshot is pulled from, only a second makes all of the distinction. Right here’s the identical visible demonstration, however the menu is offset simply barely on the textual content beneath.

I really feel like there’s a fairly large distinction in legibility right here. It’s not good by any means, and I definitely wouldn’t name it accessible, but it surely seems to be rather a lot higher. That is all to say that I feel there will probably be delicate variations that decide whether or not you’re seeing one thing clear, pleasing, and visually distinct or in the event you’re a garbled glassmorphic mess. From what I can inform, there may even be totally different Liquid Glass types to select from, which can have an effect on the accessibility of menus. There’s additionally the truth that this redesign doesn’t formally launch till the autumn, so something might change.

How you’re feeling about Liquid Glass is clearly up for debate, however one factor is evident (pun meant), and that’s that no matter Apple is doing with the iOS redesign and Liquid Glass writ giant is certainly a much bigger threat than previous overhauls. To threat accessibility or legibility on a platform as massive as iOS takes some actual imaginative and prescient—whether or not good or unhealthy. Let’s simply hope that the imaginative and prescient, for the sake of everybody on the market with an iPhone, isn’t fairly as blurry or illegible as a few of these early seems to be would possibly counsel.