Apple released iOS 26.2 late yesterday, along with updates for most of its devices. While not a major update, it adds a number of useful features that make using your device better and more enjoyable. Let's take a look at some of the changes included in this new update.
Alarms for app reminders
The Reminders app now allows you to set an alarm for your reminder. Simply activate the "Urgent" option when creating a new reminder, and the alarm will sound when the time is right.
When the alarm goes off, you'll find the option to snooze or dismiss it by swiping down the screen. If you snooze it, a countdown timer appears on the lock screen, allowing you to complete or reschedule the reminder. To distinguish these reminders from regular watch alarms, Apple added a special blue color.
Lock screen
A new feature on the lock screen and more control over the "liquid glass" effect allows you to customize the appearance of the time. You can adjust its transparency to make it clear or slightly matte, depending on your preference. There's also a "solid" option that restores the traditional look of the time without the liquid glass effect, and you can choose colors to match the time.
Liquid glass settings
When you select the “Colored Glass” mode, which reduces transparency, a warning appears stating that this mode cannot be used with accessibility settings such as “Reduce Transparency” or “Increase Contrast.” A new feature makes this easier: these settings are automatically disabled when Colored Glass mode is activated.
AirDrop
The security of AirDrop file sharing has been enhanced. Now, when sending to unknown recipients, you need to enter a code generated on the recipient's device to accept the transfer. This code is valid for 30 days. You can manage the people you've shared codes with in your AirDrop settings.
Apple Music app
Now you can view song lyrics on Apple Music even when you're offline. Your favorite songs also appear among the recommendations on the home page.
Sleep quality scale
With iOS 26.2 and watchOS 26.2, Apple revised its Sleep Quality Scale to better reflect how people feel after a good night's sleep. The scale rates sleep from 0 to 100 based on sleep duration, sleep timing, and number of awakenings. This rating helps you understand and improve your sleep habits.
Podcasts app
The Podcasts app now offers three new features, including automatic chapter generation for episodes, the ability to see references to other podcasts from the text and player, and access to links mentioned in the episode directly from the episode page.
Password management
In the password settings, there is now an option to manage websites that do not want to save passwords when logging in, for better control over your passwords.
Freeform application
The Freeform app now supports tables that can contain text, images, documents, and graphics. Table cells are automatically resized to fit the content neatly and attractively.
Apple News app update
The Apple News app has been redesigned with quick buttons at the top for accessing sections like sports, puzzles, politics, business, and food. There's also a separate tab for what you follow, distinct from search.
Home . app
The Home app now supports adding multiple smart devices with the same setup code if sold together as a multi-pack, to make setup easier.
Flash alert feature
The screen flash for notifications feature, located in the usability section, now allows the screen to flash color when a new notification is received, instead of relying solely on the LED flash on the back of the device. You can choose to use only one or both.
Enhanced safety alerts
A dedicated section for safety alerts allows you to manage earthquake and nearby threat alerts, improving alert accuracy by using location to provide information such as a map of affected areas and links to safety tips. This feature is only available in the United States.
Measure app
The liquid glass design was added to the balance application, so that liquid glass bubbles appear instead of the traditional white circles.
Games app
You can now sort games in your game library by size, as well as by name or newest. Challenge score updates appear live during gameplay, and there's improved support for controllers like Backbone and Razer.
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Drivers can turn off the display of pinned messages in the Messages app to get the old classic view that was available before iOS 26.2.
Menu movements throughout the system
Perhaps this is what will catch your attention the most after the update: improved side menu opening animations that are faster and more dynamic, as Apple showcased at the WWDC developers conference.
Privacy
When you log into your Apple account for the first time after the update, you will see a notification that better explains how Apple collects and uses personal information, to enhance your understanding of privacy.
Live translation on AirPods in Europe
The live translation feature on AirPods has now arrived in the European Union. This feature works with AirPods Pro 3, AirPods Pro 2, and AirPods 4 with noise cancellation. Translations are supported in several languages, including English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean.
Changes to the iPhone in Japan
Replace Siri
Apple is introducing a new option in Japan for iPhone users to choose a different voice assistant instead of the default Siri. The new voice assistant can be activated by long-pressing the side button, and this feature is currently only available to Japanese Apple accounts.
Choosing a search engine
After the update, iPhone users in Japan are prompted to choose a preferred search engine such as Bing, Google, DuckDuckGo, Yahoo, or Ecosia. In several other countries, Google is the default and this prompt is not displayed.
Alternative app stores
This update will allow iPhone users in Japan to install app stores other than the Apple Store, just as is the case in the European Union.
Changes to the Texas App Store
Apple is adding new tools to help app developers comply with Texas's App Store Responsibility Act, which begins in 2026. Texas users will be required to confirm they are over 18, and if they have children, parents must approve app downloads and in-app purchases.
Additional feature: Multitasking in iPadOS 26.2
In iPadOS 26.2, apps can be dragged from the App Library, Dock, and Search to be used in floating or split windows, restoring some functionality that was removed in the move to iPadOS 26.
Bug fixes and security updates
Two important issues were fixed: one that prevented unreleased albums from playing at their release time on Apple Music, and the other that caused privacy and security settings to be incorrectly displayed as being managed by companies.
The update includes fixes for over 20 security vulnerabilities, including two WebKit vulnerabilities that were already being exploited. These vulnerabilities could have allowed malicious website content to execute malicious code or cause memory errors. Other vulnerabilities in the app store, images, and passwords were also fixed.
Compatibility
The iOS 26.2 update is available for all iPhones that support iOS 26.
What's next?
Apple is expected to release the first beta version of the upcoming iOS 26.3 update next week.
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