Apple’s iOS 26 has entered beta with a striking new “Liquid Glass” visual overhaul that is generating intense discussion among users, designers, and developers. The sweeping design change—Apple’s boldest since iOS 7—has prompted debate about aesthetics, usability, and the future of iPhone interfaces.
Apple’s Most Dramatic iOS Redesign in Years
The new “Liquid Glass” aesthetic replaces much of iOS’s flat design with shimmering, translucent layers, rich gradients, and animated highlights. Apple explains that the update is intended to make iPhones feel more dynamic and immersive, leveraging GPU advances for real-time glassy effects.
Controls, toolbars, and navigation within apps have been redesigned. Previously configured for rectangular displays, they now fit perfectly concentric with the rounded corners of modern hardware and app windows — establishing greater harmony between hardware, software, and content. Controls are crafted out of Liquid Glass and act as a distinct functional layer that sits above apps. They give way to content and dynamically morph as users need more options or move between different parts of an app.
Early visuals show pronounced reflections, edge highlights, and interactive elements that ripple when touched.
Beta Reactions: Excitement and Skepticism
Reactions to the beta have been highly polarized. Design enthusiasts praise Apple’s return to skeuomorphic cues in a contemporary form, seeing it as a way to reenergize the iOS brand and inspire app design. Critics, however, describe it as visually noisy, potentially distracting, and a break from recent usability-focused refinements. Accessibility advocates have also raised concerns about increased glare, contrast issues, and the suitability for users with visual sensitivities. And with all the GPU resources used for the animations, critics insist battery life will be impacted.
Critic reactions
Here are some initial reactions:
“It is a readability nightmare. The translucent effect looks great but low contrast and blur make it hard to read.”
“When you unveil liquid glass in an event… it looks kind of clean and minimal. But once you throw all of these reflective and refractive [elements] on your big iPhone screen … it’s overstimulating. It’s just too much, it starts to get hard to look at.”
Positive reactions are plenty
Not all is gloom and doom however, There are plenty of positive reactions to the design change.
“Apple’s icons look beautiful in their new glassy style… the effects involving morphing buttons are impressive. Moving Liquid Glass overlays… blurs and stretches icons as if an actual piece of glass were being pulled over top.”
“Apple’s new Liquid Glass design achieves four things. It’s fresh and fun, still very familiar, unifies cross-platform experience, and preps for future hardware.”
Let us know what you think in the comments below.
