Recently, foreign media reported that Apple's first major update to the iOS 26 operating system—iOS 26.1—has entered the final testing phase and is likely to be officially released to all compatible iPhone users next Monday (November 3rd) or Tuesday (November 4th).
According to foreign media reports, this update focuses heavily on visual improvements. Users can now find a liquid glass transparency switch in "Settings" - "Display & Brightness," allowing them to switch between "Clarity" and "Hue" to customize the transparency and contrast of interface elements. Furthermore, the text in the Settings app and home screen folder names has been changed from centered to left-aligned, resulting in a significant visual change. Even the dial pad numbers in the Phone app have been updated with a liquid glass design, and the built-in iOS 26 theme wallpapers have also been updated.
Regarding interaction logic, Apple has made significant adjustments to the lock screen interaction. Users can now disable the "Slide to open camera from lock screen" function in camera settings. The alarm and timer now turn off by swiping instead of tapping, while the "Remind Later" feature still retains the tap option, greatly reducing the embarrassment of accidentally turning off the alarm while asleep. In Apple Music, you can now quickly switch songs by swiping left or right in the song title area, making it more convenient.
Apple Intelligence and AirPods Real-Time Translation support has been expanded to include Danish, Dutch, Norwegian, Swedish, Turkish, Portuguese (Portuguese), Traditional Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Italian. The Fitness app now supports creating more personalized custom workouts, allowing you to set the activity type, estimated calories, intensity, duration, and start time. The Photos app's video playback progress bar and bottom navigation bar have been tweaked, and the layout of the management menu after selecting multiple photos is more logical. The Safari browser's bottom tab bar width has been adjusted for a more visually harmonious look.
Regarding accessibility, users can replace the old "Button Shape" feature with a new "Show Borders" switch in "Accessibility" - "Display & Text Size" settings, allowing you to add borders to all buttons. The new "Local Capture" setting allows users to specify the storage location for audio and video recordings during calls. Furthermore, the background security update mechanism has been revamped, replacing the previous "Fast Security Response" feature with a new toggle option.
In addition, iPadOS 26.1 will also arrive simultaneously, including most of the above features and bringing unique improvements specifically for the iPad.
