Just as we thought the wait for iOS 26.2 was going to continue into next week, Apple has dropped the latest iPhone update on Friday afternoon, along with the requisite updates for iPad, Mac, Apple Watch and tvOS.
The updates for iPhone and iPad users doesn’t offer any big signature features but does include a few useful tweaks across the operating system.
Those include changes some further tweaks to Liquid Glass (after iOS 26.1 allowed users to done down the effect), CarPlay, Games and Apple Music. Some of the handier features include automatically generated chapters for Podcasts and offline lyrics for downloaded songs.Apple is also adding filters in the game library that’ll let you sort them by category, size, while third-party controllers from Backbone and Razer will enjoy better support.
Apple is also adding Alarms for Reminders and AirDrop codes designed to offer safer transfers between unknown contacts. There’s also a near Apple Home feature that makes it easy to pair things accessories solid as multipacks with a single code. Apple is also offering a new lock screen customisation option that enables users to further adjust the opacity of the Liquid Glass effect.
iOS 26.2 can be downloaded from Settings > General > Software Update now. On my iPhone 16 Pro Max it’s a whopping 11.26 GB download.
The official release notes detailing all the changes are below:
Apple Music
- Favorite Songs playlist appears in Top Picks on the home tab
- Offline lyrics for downloaded songs so you can view them without an internet connection
Podcasts
- Automatically generated chapters make it easier to navigate episodes
- Links to mentioned podcasts let you see and follow other podcasts mentioned in the episode you’re listening to directly from the player and transcript
Games
- Filters in the Games library let you find games by category, size, and more
- In-game challenge score banners provide real-time updates when someone new has taken the lead
- Improved support for connected controllers such as Backbone and Razer
This update also includes the following enhancements and bug fixes:
- Additional Lock Screen time customization option lets you further adjust its appearance, giving the Liquid Glass material more or less opacity
- Enhanced Safety Alerts can inform you about imminent threats such as floods, natural disasters, and other emergencies, with rich information like a map of affected areas and links to additional safety guidance (available in the U.S.)
- Alarms for Reminders help you stay on top of urgent tasks, and provide snooze and Live Activity support if you’re not ready to check the reminder off
- AirDrop codes offer an additional layer of verification when using AirDrop with unknown contacts by providing a code on the receiver’s device that the sender must enter to complete the transfer
- Apple News Section links at the top of the Today feed offer easy navigation to popular topics like Sports, Politics, Business, and Food
- Multipack accessory pairing in the Home app lets you use the same setup code to easily enroll multiple accessories when sold together
- Flash for alerts in Accessibility Settings offers the additional option to have the device screen flash when you receive a notification
- Tables in Freeform can hold text, images, documents, and drawings, with cells that intelligently resize to fit, bringing structure to the infinite canvas
- Fixes an issue where pre-release albums in the Apple Music library were not immediately playable at their release timeFixes an issue where a Privacy and Security setting may incorrectly be marked as managed by an enterprise organization.
