Apple OS 26 Update Notes
Apple pushed out the latest OS updates for all of their device and for a change, all devices have the OS 26 naming protocol. I honestly find this helpful as I have a number of devices and it’s just easier to make sure things are updated.
It’s a big visual update across the board and I’m a fan of the look and changes to the control and UI structure. I find most everything is where I want it to be and hovering towards the bottom of the screen. It’s borrowed heavily from the AppleVision OS look & feel IMHO which works well. If you're NOT a fan there are ways to change it to pre “glass” if desired. The think the Photos app on iOS26 is a welcomed change and many 3rd party app developers are shifting quickly to the bottom centered paradigm.
Of all the devices, I think the most desired has been on the iPad and AppleVision. The iPad now have a more Mac like windowing system that allows for a bit more flexibility while working/playing. It will take some time to fully get use to the UI to manage windows but it’s a welcome feature.
The biggest feature I’ve been looking forward to however is the persistent windows/widgets for the AppleVision. Spatial computing has been tossed out heavily since the beginning of the AV but the actual use has been difficult due to the lack of “set and forget” window placement. I can set up a room with digital screens, walk around them and enjoy the experience but as soon as I turn it off, everything was re-set. OS26 now gives fully support for persistent windowing and it’s made all the difference in how I use the product. I can now have the digital calendar hang on the wall in the kitchen, a photo of Robyn and I in the living room, and my todo list next to the back door. Slip on the AV 3 days later and everything still hangs where I left them. Perfect! It stores any window in ANY space so this works at work, and other spaces I use the Vision.
I elected to not run many of the betas this round so I’m still unpacking many of the new features myself. I’m finding the Proper Honest Tech channel to be useful for a number of refreshers on most of the devices OS updates. He’s got a great production setup and speaks well allowing a 1.5x modifier for a bit quicker viewing. Most critically he’s got great chapter markers to allow scrubbing to sections that might be of more interest. I’ve listed the ones I found useful below…
iPhone - iOS 26 is AMAZING! Do these 10 things FIRST!
Apple Watch - watchOS 26 is AMAZING! Try these 10 things FIRST!
iPad - iPadOS 26 is AMAZING! Do these 8 things FIRST!
Mac - macOS Tahoe (26) is AMAZING! Do these 10 things FIRST!
For a few of the less used items these videos might be helpful…
CarPlay - NEW Apple CarPlay Features You HAVE To Try Now in iOS 26
AppleTV - Apple tvOS 26 is Epic. Hands On First Look at 15+ New Features & Changes
AppleVision - Justin Ryan has a nice video he released a few months ago on the features during the beta process. I still don’t think this tech is ready for all users but these are great steps to make things useful for many early adaptors.
I’ll be continuing to use and will update the blog with anything I’m finding more useful. Lots to unpack! You have a fav feature? Leave it in the comments!