If you own one of the following iPhones and haven’t yet upgraded to the latest software cycle, iOS 26, due to the new design, you should upgrade now because Liquid Glass is here to stay, says a new report.
Apple iPhone 16
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Which iPhones are affected?
There are a lot of iPhones that support iOS 26. All models starting from the iPhone 11 series and ending with the iPhone 16 series are included. This also means second- and third-generation iPhone SE. The latest iPhone 17 series and iPhone Air are not affected as they came with iOS 26 installed at launch.
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Apple introduced a controversial new design when it launched iOS 26 in September 2025. But adoption was slow at first, in part because the new liquid glass designs weren’t universally popular.
In the UK this might be known as “a bit of Marmite”, referring to the yeast extract spread that people either love or hate. (So you know, it’s actually delicious, and the people who hate it are totally wrong.)
The future of iPhone software design
With liquid glass, some people find that the new design hinders clarity or makes items less legible. But the latest Power On newsletter written by Mark Gurman for Bloomberg describes what’s going on. “The reaction hasn’t been all positive. Apple software updates always draw complaints – this is the most high-profile overhaul of the iPhone and iPad operating systems in more than a decade,” he said.
But in late 2025, Apple’s head of human interface Alan Dye left the company, meaning some thought things would change and Liquid Glass could be abandoned.
“Dey oversaw development and launched the interface, and some wondered whether Apple would still be committed to it. Dey’s successor, Steve Lemay, has also been increasingly praised both inside and outside Apple, with some even seeing him as some kind of savior who would lead Apple in a new direction,” Gurman continued. “But the reality is that liquid glass is not going away anytime soon. This interface is the result of years of work… Any major reversal of liquid glass will likely take years to achieve because of the timing involved.”
Risks of continuing to use iOS 18
While adoption of iOS 26 has accelerated significantly after a slow start, there are still millions of iPhones running iOS 18 that can handle iOS 26. Since these phones listed above are no longer seeing updates to iOS 18, all of these iPhones are less secure.
If in doubt, update now: the latest version, iOS 26.3.1, looks very different from the first version of iOS 26, with cosmetic improvements recently added.
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