iOS 26 was released last month, but the software train never stops and beta testing of iOS 26.1 is already underway. So far, iOS 26.1 makes Apple Intelligence and Live Translation on compatible AirPods available in additional languages, and includes a few other minor changes to Apple’s Music, Calendar, Photos, Clock, and Safari apps.
More features and changes will follow in future releases, ranging from later beta versions of iOS 26.1 to iOS 26.4. These are just the features known so far, and many more will surely be added over the next year.
Digital passport
iOS 26 will eventually let you add a digital version of your U.S. passport to Apple’s Wallet app.
The feature will be available later this year, according to the fine print on Apple’s website. Apple initially said a software update would be required, but it no longer mentions it, so perhaps the feature can be enabled with a server-side update.
After creating a digital ID in the Wallet app, you will be able to present it in person at TSA checkpoints at select U.S. airports for identity verification purposes during domestic travel. However, Apple says it is not a replacement for a physical passport and cannot be used for international travel and border crossing purposes.
Apple says the feature is secure, private, and REAL ID compliant.
It will also be possible to use the digital ID feature to verify age and identity in apps, online and in stores, according to Apple.
RCS Upgrades
Earlier this year, Apple announced plans to add support for end-to-end encrypted RCS messages to the Messages app in future iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and watchOS software updates, and we’re still waiting for that to happen. However, the upgrade has not yet been implemented on iPhones running iOS 26, nor in the iOS 26.1 betas released so far.
End-to-end encryption for RCS was announced in March, as part of version 3.0 of the RCS Universal Profilea global standard for RCS features and specifications. This means that Apple has indirectly confirmed that it will support RCS Universal Profile 3.0, which not only includes end-to-end encryption for RCS, but several other iMessage-like enhancements for RCS that were originally introduced in RCS Universal Profile 2.7.
Apple also has to wait for carriers to implement RCS Universal Profile 3.0, so it’s understandable why the process is taking time.
Here are five new features to expect for RCS conversations on iPhone, iPad, and Mac, once Apple rolls out support for RCS Universal Profile 3.0:
- End-to-end encryption, which will prevent Apple and any other third parties from being able to read messages and attachments as they are sent between devices, as has always been the case with iMessage
- Online answers
- Edit posts
- Cancel sending messages
- Full Tapback support for RCS messages, with no special workarounds
RCS support as a whole was added to iPhone with iOS 18, which supports RCS Universal Profile 2.4. It is actually a modernized version of the SMS standard, which remains available as a fallback option for text messages over a cellular network.
RCS will catch up with iMessage in several ways. iMessage conversations with blue bubbles already support end-to-end encryption by default since iOS 5. Additionally, iMessage supports inline replies since iOS 14, while options to edit and unsend iMessages were introduced with iOS 16.
It seems likely that Apple will roll out these RCS upgrades at some point during the iOS 26, iPadOS 26, macOS 26, and watchOS 26 software cycle.
Custom Siri
In late July, Apple CEO Tim Cook said his company was making “good progress” on a more personalized version of Siri, and he reiterated that the features were on track to launch next year. BloombergMark Gurman expects the new Siri to launch in the US in spring 2026, so Apple is likely aiming for the iOS 26.4 launch.
Apple first announced Siri’s custom features during its WWDC 2024 keynote, but in March it announced that they had been delayed. New features will include better understanding of a user’s personal context, screen awareness, and deeper per-app controls. For example, Apple showed an iPhone user asking Siri about her mother’s flight booking and lunch plans, based on information from the Mail and Messages apps.
Satellite Weather
Earlier this year, MacRumors donor Aaron Perris discovered references to a previously unreleased “Weather via Satellite” feature in the code of the first iOS 26 developer beta. However, the feature has not yet been released or even announced by Apple, so it is unclear whether it is still available or has been discontinued. It could still be launched eventually.
The feature would allow you to view forecasts and other weather information in the Weather app, in supported areas without Wi-Fi or cellular range. Other Apple satellite features include Satellite Emergency SOS, Satellite Messages, Satellite Find My, and Satellite Roadside Assistance, with availability varying by country.
Apple has not yet charged a fee for any of its satellite features. Last month, the company announced that it would offer existing iPhone 14 and iPhone 15 users an additional year of free access to all of those devices’ satellite features.
New emoji
iOS 26.4 will likely add new built-in emoji to the iPhone.
To celebrate World Emoji Day on July 17, the Unicode Consortium previewed some of the new emoji that are part of Unicode 17.0.
Here are some of the new emoji:
- Trombone
- Treasure Chest
- Distorted face
- Hairy creature (Bigfoot/Sasquatch)
- Fight the cloud
- Apple core
- Orca
- Ballet dancers
- Landslide
Notably, Distorted Face is a popular emoji on Discord servers. It’s basically a distorted version of the embarrassed face emoji, also known as the Flushed Face.
It usually takes several months for Apple to design new emoji in its own style, so the emoji listed above will likely be added to the iPhone in iOS 26.4.
Apple recently added new emoji to the iPhone with iOS 18.4, an update released in late March. iOS 17.4, iOS 16.4, and iOS 15.4 have also introduced new emoji over the years, so the timing has become predictable at this point if it holds up.
