iPhone
While Apple's new line of smartphones won't be available until Friday, the latest version of its mobile operating system iOS is dropping today. With iOS 26, hundreds of millions of iPhone users will get to experience their devices in an entirely new look, as it marks the biggest re-design since iOS 7 brought a minimalist, flat design to the iPhone in 2013. Centered around what Apple calls "Liquid Glass", iOS 26 brings a lot of translucency to the iPhone's user interface. And while the new design, which Apple is bringing to all of its platforms, does come with some beautiful visual effects, accessibility experts have criticized it for being hard to use, especially for people with low vision. As always, the new operating system will also come with a bunch of new features, only few of which will be limited to the new iPhone 17, 17 Pro or iPhone Air.
Unlike last year, when all devices compatible with iOS 17 also made the cut for iOS 18, some users will be left behind this time, as iOS 26 will no longer support the iPhone XS and XR, both released in 2018.the latest update. As our chart shows, Apple has done a good job over the years of keeping older devices in the loop for a long time. While the original iPhone and the iPhone 3G received two major iOS updates, later models have typically gotten software updates for five to six years. Having been shipped with iOS 12, the iPhone XS and XR saw seven different iOS versions, before being dropped from the list of compatible devices this year. Meanwhile, iPhone 11 users should enjoy this year's update, as it may well be their last one.
