The buzz around iOS 26 has been going since WWDC 2025. The major visual revamp, known as Liquid Glass, is the highlight, but Apple has stuffed all kinds of goodies in with it, and those goodies are being slowly filtered into the beta release, which people can try right now.
The first beta made its rounds the same day iOS 26 was announced, and Apple has officially launched beta 2 with some improvements and enhancements. As with most beta releases, Apple is working mostly on stability and bug fixes, but has tossed in a few changes and extras here and there that you might not find unless you know where to look.
So, without burying the lede too much, here is everything that Apple included with the iOS 26 beta 2 release. If you have access to the beta program already, you should be able to update your phone to the beta right now.
Liquid Glass changes
Apple’s primary focus on iOS 26 beta 2 was fixing some Liquid Glass complaints. The primary one was the Control Center. In the first beta, the transparency caused the Control Center’s various buttons and sliders to blend in with the content behind it, making it often difficult to see what you were trying to do. As we predicted, beta 2 fixes this problem with a stronger blur effect.
This also applies to the notifications, as the glassy appearance could also make them difficult to read. The changes here are subtle and will likely require some additional tweaking, especially on light backgrounds. However, they are a little clearer than before.
There were some other minor changes to the UI. Here is a brief list:
Dock – Apps are now left-aligned instead of center-aligned when fewer than four apps are present.
Parallax effect – This feature was announced at WWDC 2025 but left out of beta 1. It is now available in beta 2. Parallax effect is a 3D display feature that creates a subtle sense of depth when you tilt the phone. It affects your iPhone’s wallpaper, notifications, and app icons.
High Contrast Mode – Adds a border to Liquid Glass elements to make them easier to see. You can see what they look like on this Reddit post.
New ringtone and notification badge
We’ll group these two together since they deal in the same arena. First, Apple included a new ringtone called Alt 1. It’s a different take on the Reflection ringtone, and is filed under it in the ringtone menu. The default version still exists in the menu as well. You can listen to the new ringtone here.
Mashable Light Speed
Additionally, there is a new blue notification badge. This badge only shows up if you get a notification from an unknown sender. Regular notifications still deliver red badges.
Credit: Apple
Myriad app tweaks
For the iOS 26 beta 2, Apple made a lot of minor changes to the iPhone’s core apps. Here’s a brief rundown:
Safari – Apple moved the new tab button to the bottom left corner instead of the top left corner. The More Menu has been reorganized as well.
App Store – There is a new Accessibility page available on product pages. Developers can provide information about which accessibility features are compatible with their apps.
Wallet – Apple announced an order tracking feature at WWDC 2025. It is now present in the Wallet app in beta 2.
Apple Music – There is a new Live Radio widget available if you just want to listen to quick tunes and don’t mind letting Apple Music make the selections for you.
Save Call Transcripts – Apple changed the name of its Transcribe Calls feature to Save Call Transcripts. The description is also updated to let the user know that the other caller will be warned that they’re being recorded.
Siri – Siri now shows ChatGPT usage limits and offers a Plus subscription upgrade to remove those limits.
Low Power Mode clarification
Beta 2 brings a new description for Apple’s Low Power Mode. The feature is designed to use less system resources to help squeak out as much battery as possible without dramatically impacting phone use. Since Apple is so adept at stuff like this, it results in a pretty big battery increase, but it does make the phone slightly more sluggish for more intensive tasks.
In any case, here’s what the new description says.
“iPhone will temporarily reduce some background activities, processing speed, display refresh rate and brightness, and limit certain features such as 5G, iCloud syncing, mail fetch, and more.”
Tons of bug fixes and new features for developers
Apple posted its changelog for iOS 26 beta, and it includes a lot more stuff. Some big issues from beta 1 were resolved, including iPhone 15 and 16 devices showing a low battery symbol and refusing to start up. There are also plenty of new things added to Apple’s SDKs for developers to play around with. Fair warning, the changelog is rather long.
The iOS 26 beta 2 is definitely an improvement over beta 1. It’s also nice to see Cupertino listening to feedback, like with the Control Center transparency issue. If you’re on beta 1 and are wondering if you should proceed to beta 2, the answer is a resounding yes. For everyone else, we still recommend waiting for the full release later this year with the next iPhone launch.
