"Liquid Glass" is the name of the design signature for iOS 26 and all other Apple operating systems. The key word is transparency, with translucent icons, dialog boxes, and windows that reveal the screen's background. All interface elements are actually covered, starting with the lock screen and the home screen—with the feeling of holding a transparent device, like in science fiction movies.
A little glass for the road
Apple has called upon iOS 7, which in 2013 completely shook up the iPhone's interface fundamentals, for better or for worse. Liquid Glass isn't as radical, since it retains a very clear family resemblance with iOS 18 and previous versions. Better yet, this design language brings back some of the skeuomorphism that iOS was missing.
With iOS 26, the lock screen is also able to display photos with a striking 3D effect, reminiscent of a similar feature in visionOS. The Camera app also benefits from a lot of simplification work; a good part of the settings are done through a sort of hamburger menu, while you can switch from taking photos to recording videos via a slider.
Safari also integrates a new interface that "floats" over web pages. How will this new design be received? It's hard to say, given that Apple's previous attempts were rejected by users.
Liquid Metal is changing the little habits in all Apple apps, and of course third-party developer apps. We'll see how this all evolves over the summer betas, but Apple seems pretty sure of its plan—now it just needs to convince users!
0 Comments