You know how sometimes you accidentally swipe your lock screen and BAM, the camera opens? Super boring, right? Or maybe that transparent “Liquid Glass” look on iOS 26 makes things a little hard to read sometimes? Well, it seems Apple has heard us.
They just sent the final test version (the RC) of iOS 26.1which means it’ll probably be hitting everyone’s phones next week. And it contains fixes for exactly these kinds of headaches.
First of all, that glassy look. They added a new switch in Settings > Display & Brightness. You can now choose between the usual “Clear” look or a new “Tinted” option. “Tinted” makes menus and notification backgrounds less transparent and increases contrast, making items much easier to read. Good! It looks like people complained during testing and Apple actually listened.
And the biggest one for me? You can finally disable swipe left to open the camera on the lock screen! Seriously, how long have we been asking this? No more accidental photos from inside your pocket. You’ll find this magic toggle under Settings > Camera. Thanks, Apple!
It’s not just about resolving inconveniences. They also make the phone smarter. Apple Intelligence (their AI hardware) learns a bunch of new languages like Turkish, Dutch, and Vietnamese. And if you’re using AirPods for live translations, they’ve added Mandarin, Italian, Japanese, and Korean – pretty cool if you’re traveling or chatting with people abroad.
There are also a few other little goodies hidden in there. You can now swipe to stop alarms and timers, which is pretty nice. There’s a new setting for screen recordings called “Local Capture,” a new way to switch between songs in the Music app, and the Apple TV app has a new icon (they removed the “+”).
So should I ring the party bells to get the best iOS update yet?
Honestly, this update isn’t trying to wow you with crazy new features. It’s more like Apple is tweaking things and fixing the little things that drive us crazy. You could say they’re just fixing their own designs, but hey, it makes the phone easier to use on a daily basis. It feels like they really pay attention to the little details, and that’s always a good thing. Solid update, I’d say.
