Weekly poll results: iOS 26 is a mixed bag, new features liked better than the new look

Apple has divided opinions with its new iOS 26 – it introduced new features, but is also a part of a wider effort to unify the user experience across all Apple products. As we noted in last week’s poll, the new OS version is only available as a developer beta – an open beta should be out in a few weeks, the stable release will likely coincide with the arrival of the iPhone 17 series.

What does the poll show? Around half of voters have found something to like in the iOS 26 update. That said, that was mostly due to the new features introduced in this version.

As for Liquid Glass, the new unifying design language, that has its fans too, but they are in the minority. Positive impressions include better-quality glass visuals than Vista ever delivered and extended customization options.

Negative opinions see this as just a skin at best rather than an actual major change to the UI. The computational requirements (more battery drain and more heat) of the new UI are also drawing ire. And, of course, legibility remains a concern – the good news on that front is that the Accessibility settings offer a toggle to reduce the transparency of the UI.

The effects of the “Reduce Transparency” toggle (image source)

There is also a large group of voters who is not happy with either the new features or the new look – but part of that group just has a general anti-Apple sentiment. Not everyone, though, some long-time Apple users see this as a bad direction for UI.

The “wait and see” group isn’t as big but Apple still has time to tweak details between now and Q4 when iOS 26 will be made available to the public at large. Subsequent versions will continue iterating on the design too.