Technology

Here are hints and answers for the NYT Strands puzzle No. 464 for June 10.

Here are hints and the answer for today's Wordle No. 1,452 for June 10.

Liquid Glass, Liquid Glass, Liquid Glass, and oh, did we mention Liquid Glass?

• Apple has revealed iPadOS 26
• The new software update brings a new look, new apps, and vastly improved multitasking capabilities to iPad
• Apple is calling it the "biggest iPadOS release ever"

Apple has revealed iPadOS 26, one of the most expansive iPadOS updates of all time.

New features include a totally overhauled design, new windowing tools for multitasking, the addition of the Preview app, Genmoji, and Image Playground, and a revamped Files app.

In an official press release, Apple’s senior vice president of software engineering Craig Federighi said: “iPadOS 26 is our biggest iPadOS release ever, with powerful features that take the experience to the next level and transform what users can do on iPad”

With this year’s WWDC – which we’re still covering via our WWDC 2025 live blog – Apple has taken a step towards giving the iPad the software power it needs to make the most of its fantastic hardware. We expect iPadOS 26 to release in September 2025 based on the release pattern of previous versions.

As an iPad user myself, I’m glad to see Apple pushing the tablet’s capabilities. Without further ado, here are the new iPadOS features we’re most excited for.

A new name

(Image credit: Apple)

The rumors were true – Apple has officially revealed that the successor to iPadOS 18 will be called iPadOS 26, instead of iPadOS 19.

If you’re wondering what happened to the seven version numbers between iPadOS 18 and iPadOS 26, Apple has decided to change the naming convention of all of its operating systems to reflect their year, rather than their version number.

However, Apple seems to be going the route of high fashion and automotive naming conventions by naming each version after the following year – iPadOS 26 is still expected to fully release in September 2025.

A new look

(Image credit: Apple / Future)

iPadOS 26 is getting a full-on visual overhaul, which is perhaps the most immediately exciting change coming to iPad.

Alongside iOS 26 and macOS 26, iPadOS 26 brings a new visionOS-inspired look to the iPad’s UI and software experience, constructed with a digital material called Liquid Glass.

Expect translucent textures, rounded corners, and bubbly icons both on the homescreen and within first-party apps, as well as a new ‘clear’ theme to sit alongside light mode, dark mode, and the color tint options.

Windows and multitasking

(Image credit: Lance Ulanoff / Future)

iPadOS 26 brings better, more flexible window management that improves on the limited windowed view offer by Stage Manager.

This is a heavy hitter of a new feature that also pushes the iPad further into Mac territory – proper window management.

iPadOS 26 offers the ability to resize and rearrange windowed apps to any size or position on screen. When you close and reopen an app, it appears in the same position and at the same size you last opened it.

For years, iPad users have been left wanting when it comes to window management – the addition of Stage Manager in 2022 added a kind of multitasking to iPad, but it’s never really felt as smooth as a Mac desktop or something like Samsung DeX. That could be about to change.

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The new windowing system also includes the new Exposé view, reminiscent of macOS’ mission control, and the mouse pointer has been updated to be, well, an actual pointier.

The WWDC keynote confirmed that this new window system, with support for up to six simultaneous windows, will come to all currently available iPads.

Menu bar

(Image credit: Apple)

iPadOS 26 also adds a menu bar to the new windowed mode, accessible by bringing the mouse to the top of the screen.

The new menu bar is reminiscent – but not identical – to the menu bar on macOS, with specific options based on the currently opened app.

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(Image credit: Apple)

Preview – Apple’s dedicated PDF app – comes to iPad with iPadOS 26, making it much easier to read, edit, and export PDFs.

The app’s features include the ability to open PDFs from the Files app, create empty pages and use Apple Pencil to draw or write, and use Apple’s AutoFill system to fill in forms and documents.

As an iPad user I’ve often been frustrated by the tablet’s limited options for working with PDFs – I’m glad to see Apple implementing Preview.

Apple Games

(Image credit: Apple)

iPadOS 26 brings a dedicated gaming app to the iPad. The new Apple Games app is a spiritual successor to the Game Center app that was removed from iPadOS and iOS in 2016, and brings together all of your games in one place.

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Apple Games also replaces Game Center’s more recent function as the gaming-focused aspect of a user’s Apple ID. The new Game Overlay enables users to call friends or invite them to games, check out updates, and access settings.

The new app is also coming to iPhone via iOS 26.

Apple Intelligence updates

(Image credit: Apple)

iPadOS brings a number of Apple Intelligence features and improvements to Apple’s tablet platform.

Genmoji and Image Playground make their way to iPad for the first time, offering users the ability to create custom-made emoji and images.

Siri has also got an upgrade, remaining aware of the context of prior requests and benefiting from a large database of Apple product knowledge.

Furthermore, Live Translation comes to FaceTime and Messages on iPad and iPhone, making communication across language barriers easier.

Background tasks

(Image credit: Lance Ulanoff / Future)

iPads are the most powerful tablets you can buy, and with iPadOS 26 users can now access that power with tasks in the background.

For example, you’ll now be able to export a video with Final Cut for iPad while using other apps. The export progress will appear as a live activity.

This is another feature that adds flexibility to the astounding hardware power of M-series equipped iPads, and opens doors for more professional creative workflows.

Journal

(Image credit: Apple)

The Journal app, previously exclusive to iPhone, makes its way to iPad with iPadOS 26. Journal pretty much does what it says on the tin – it’s a place to write about and store memories, photos, and events.

Journal on iPad supports Apple Pencil, which ostensibly means there’ll be space to write and draw in each entry.

Better audio recording

(Image credit: Apple)

The iPad's audio recording powers have expanded with iPadOS 26. As well as the ability to choose different microphone inputs for different apps, the iPad's Voice Memos app now supports Voice Isolation, which blocks out background noise.

Additionally, users with compatible AirPods models (AirPods 4, AirPods 4 with ANC, AirPods Pro 2) can benefit from what Apple calls 'studio quality audio recording'.

Other app updates

(Image credit: Apple)

As for other iPadOS 26 app updates, the Files App has recieved some key improvements. List view now shows more detail and a preview of each document, while folders can be added to the dock.

The Messages app gets themed backgrounds, polls, and a refreshed UI, while Notes and Calculator get advanced 3D graphing in both the Calculator itself and Math Notes.

Also, the pen toolkit accessible in apps like Notes gets a new reed pen, designed for calligraphy.

Let us know which of these iPad features you’re looking forward to most in the comments below. There’s plenty more to explore from this year’s WWDC – be sure to check out our WWDC 2025 live blog for a blow-by-blow rundown off all the updates and announcements.

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For 15 years, I've waited to see the iPad reach its potential. For 15 years, I've hoped that Apple's best-selling tablet would become more than just a "big iPhone". And now, it seems like my prayers have been answered.

Every year, in June, I wait patiently to see the next iteration of iPadOS. You see, I've always loved the iPad, ever since I saved up to purchase the big chonky tablet in 2010. But every year the tablet's software is merely an afterthought at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference. Every year until now.

For the first time ever, Apple gave iPad the spotlight at WWDC, and now it looks like the upcoming iPadOS 26 will finally give the incredible hardware found in the best iPads a platform to shine.

Now it's the iPad's time to shine

During my time in college, as a young student working at my local Apple Store, I opted for an iPad over a Mac to help me get through my studies.

At the time, over five years ago now, the iPad Pro was a powerful device with an operating system that was completely holding it back.

Not only was everything clunky and mobile-based, but there was a lack of proper file management and an inability to quickly manage windows.

Over the years, some of my iPadOS qualms have been squashed, but to this day, my iPad Pro M2, which is more powerful than the Mac I'm writing this article from, has been underclocked by Apple's obsession with making iPadOS the same as iOS.

At WWDC 2025, that all changed thanks to what Apple calls "An entirely new powerful and intuitive windowing system."

Windows on iPad

(Image credit: Apple)

In iPadOS 26 (yes, Apple decided to rename iPadOS 19), users can now easily switch between app windows and organize them like never before.

In Apple's demonstration during the keynote, six apps stacked on top of each other, similar to a Mac, showcased the new ability that completely transforms the capabilities of an iPad.

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Even better, Apple has made the new window management tool work seamlessly with Stage Manager so you can connect your iPad to an external display and reap the benefits of the new OS without being limited to mirroring what's on your tablet's display.

A menu bar, finally

(Image credit: Apple)

If this new iPad window management was the only announcement at WWDC, it would've been enough to tempt me to switch back to an iPad as my primary computing device. Amazingly, there's even more, including the arrival of a menu bar on iPad for the first time ever.

Yep, the iPad now functions more like a Mac than an iPhone, and I'm genuinely over the moon. Now iPad users will be able to quickly access functional tools by simply dragging down from the top of their iPad's display. Great job, Apple.

And even more Mac-like powers

(Image credit: Apple)

Window management, a menu bar, and... Proper file management combined with Preview.

Apple seriously decided to completely reestablish the iPad as a machine for getting things done, and finally, the high price tag of the iPad Pro seems justified.

Time and time again, I've written about the iPad's crux being its software, but Apple seems to have listened to the millions of tablet users clamoring for efficiency and decided to give the iPad every bit of attention it deserves.

In iPadOS 26, compatible devices will now have access to Preview, one of the Mac's best features which allows you to quickly access (you guessed it) a preview of your files.

Preview will be housed in a new Files app that looks more like Finder on Mac than ever before, emphasizing this next chapter in the iPad's story.

The iPad just won WWDC

(Image credit: Lance Ulanoff / Future)

WWDC has now been and gone, and while I come to terms with all the major announcements from the event, I can't help but smile at the fact that for the first time ever, it feels like Apple listened to its loyal, patient iPad users.

WWDC 2025 will go down as a major landmark event in the history of the iPad; it's the event where Apple made a decision to push the iPad to new heights.

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Now, after all these years, we finally have an answer to Apple's iconic "What's a computer?" ad. Back then, the Cupertino-based company wanted you to say "An iPad", but deep down, we all knew it really wasn't. Now, however, an iPad is definitely a computer, and I can't contain my excitement.

Commentary: I'm glad my inbox will be less cluttered with pesky scam texts.

Commentary: Thanks to Apple, I may never have to hire a DJ again.

Apple has just revealed macOS Tahoe 26 at WWDC 2025 and as well as taking the wraps off the next incarnation of its desktop OS – known as Tahoe – the company gave us the scoop on hardware compatibility.

In other words, we now know which Macs will be good to run macOS Tahoe, and which Apple laptops and computers will be left out in the cold, stuck on the current version which is macOS Sequioa.

And as you might expect, continuing the trend set last year, more of Apple’s Macs with Intel CPUs are going to be barred from entry with macOS Tahoe.

So, which Macs will be compatible with macOS 26? Here’s the full list for the various models of Apple’s computers:

• MacBook Air M1 or later
• MacBook Pro 16-inch 2019 or later
• MacBook Pro 2020 or later
• MacBook Pro 13-inch 2020 with four Thunderbolt 3 ports
• iMac 2020 or later
• Mac mini 2020 or later
• Mac Pro 2019 or later
• Mac Studio 2022 and later

(Image credit: Future)Newer hardware that’s out of luck

As you might realize, this leaves some relatively new Mac hardware languishing in the land of macOS 15, never being able to make the leap to macOS 26.

Most notably, that includes a laptop from 2020 – the MacBook Air with an Intel CPU, as only the MacBook Air with M1 from that year is supported by macOS Tahoe.

While that’s the worst offender in terms of being prematurely shuffled off the support coil, those who own a MacBook Pro from 2018 are also left in the lurch, as are Mac mini 2018 owners for that matter.

All of those are still pretty recent machines – you could argue the iMac Pro 2017 is, as well – and none of them will be able to upgrade to macOS 26. Boo, hiss and so forth…

That doesn’t mean these Macs are suddenly rendered unusable, though. Even though Tahoe isn’t an option for them, Apple will continue to provide security updates for macOS 15 Sequoia going forward. So, it’ll remain a perfectly good operating system for as long as that happens (which should be a couple of years of updates, typically).

You just won’t get the new features that macOS 26 delivers (and you can read more about them here).

If your Mac is compatible and you want to try out macOS Tahoe 26 right now, then we show you how to download the macOS 26 Tahoe developer beta.

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• Apple has announced tvOS 26 for Apple TV 4K and Apple TV HD (2015)
• New features include a 'Liquid Glass' interface design
• Other new features enhance Apple TV 4K's profiles, FaceTime interface and Sing Karaoke feature

Today, Apple dropped news of the new tvOS26 at WWDC 2025. We covered that announcement in our WWDC 2025 liveblog, but a more complete breakdown of the new features coming in tvOS26 that Apple TV 4K users should expect soon can be found below.

The leap from the current tvOS 18 to tvOS 26 adheres with Apple’s new naming convention, which seeks to align all operating systems under the same version umbrella: iOS 26, iPadOS 26, MacOS 26, etc.

Along with getting the same version number, all Mac devices, including the Apple TV 4K, will now share a unified "Liquid Glass" interface. This takes its visual cues from the “floating” interface used by visionOS on the Apple Vision Pro headset, where icons appear suspended in 3D space over motion backgrounds.

The good news for Apple TV fans is that tvOS 26 will be available as an update for the full range of Apple TV 4K players going back to 2017, along with the Apple TV HD (2015). Here’s the complete list of supported players:

• Apple TV HD (2015)
• Apple TV 4K (1st generation, 2017)
• Apple TV 4K (2nd generation, 2021)
• Apple TV 4K (3rd generation, 2022)

1. Liquid Glass interface

Apple’s new Liquid Glass design will show up in tvOS 26 as transparent playback control icons that let you see the action onscreen rather than obscuring it. The same level of transparency will extend to Control Center, which will have a transparent quality when making adjustments to audio, sleep timer, or other options.

2. Poster art

(Image credit: Apple)

The Apple TV app is also getting the Liquid Glass treatment, with a new Poster Art design with an expanded number of show recommendations that pop out on the screen as you navigate through them.

3. Display profiles

(Image credit: Apple)

In tvOS 26, viewers can choose to see display profiles when their Apple TV wakes, letting them easily access a custom list of personalized viewing recommendations, along with their custom watchlists in both the Apple TV app and in Apple Music. Apple is also adding a new API for developers to link logins for apps to your Apple account, making it easy to sign in using an iPhone.

4. iPhone becomes a microphone

(Image credit: Apple )

The Sing feature in Apple Music, which shows scrolling song lyrics when listening, is getting a big enhancement with tvOS 26’s ability to transform your iPhone – and also the iPhones of your guests – into a microphone. Your voice will be amplified through the TV’s speakers when singing along, and you can also react to songs with onscreen emojis and add visual effects.

5. More personalized FaceTime

New in tvOS 26 is a personalized FaceTime experience that shows a contact’s custom photo and name when you start a FaceTime call on Apple TV. Live caption options have been expanded to include French, German, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, and Spanish, and Apple TV will be able to display Live Captions for FaceTime conversations.

Other features

Other features Apple announced today as coming to Apple TV include a new set of aerial screen savers with scenes from India, including Goa and Kerala, along with a personalized screen saver option that lets you choose between specific Cityscape, Earth, Landscape, or Underwater Aerials.

Apple TV users will also be able to choose a specific AirPlay-enabled speaker as the permanent speaker for their Apple TV box.

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A new docking station has emerged for the Apple Mac Mini M4 blending retro design with modern functionality.

Wokyis has unveiled the Retro Workstation for Mac Mini M4, now available for pre-order on the crowdfunding platform Prelaunch.

At first glance, it’s hard not to be captivated by its helmet-like silhouette, clearly inspired by the original Macintosh. But as with many products that trade heavily on nostalgia, questions around real-world utility and value inevitably arise.

A throwback form factor with modern ambitions

The dock mimics the shape of the original Macintosh, featuring a matte casing and a 5-inch HD LCD screen (1280 x 720) embedded where the vintage monitor would have been.

It accepts the Mac Mini M4 or M4 Pro by sitting over the device, essentially transforming Apple’s compact computer into the brain of a retro-styled workstation.

Measuring 145 x 131 x 154.3 mm and weighing 750g, it’s compact, but its added height may not appeal to those aiming for a minimalist setup.

Functionally, the unit aims to deliver more than just visual homage. Wokyis promotes it as a “13-in-1 Workstation,” describing it as “a versatile hub for daily tasks, content creation, and storage expansion.”

The device includes an M.2 NVMe SSD slot supporting up to 8TB, along with a USB 3.2 Gen 2 port offering up to 10Gbps transfer speeds. It also features USB-C connectivity, SD 4.0 and microSD slots (UHS-II compatible), HDMI input, and even a 3.5mm headphone jack.

The inclusion of the LCD screen might raise some eyebrows. While technically functional, its limited resolution and lack of touch input suggest it's more decorative than essential.

Similarly, though the unit includes ventilation, the concept of enclosing a Mac Mini, which already has integrated thermal management, inside another structure could prove counterproductive.

The Retro Workstation is priced at $199, or $99 for a slower version limited to 10Gbps performance.

That said, it's unclear whether the performance justifies the cost, especially when compared to the best USB hubs, many of which offer similar speeds and port availability without borrowing their aesthetic from 1984.

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Apple is bringing all of the traditional phone features that are available on your iPhone to your Mac screen.

• watchOS 12 – or as it's henceforth to be known, watchOS 26 – has been revealed at this year's WWDC conference
• New features include an AI Workout Buddy, an improved Smart Stack and the new Liquid Glass visual language
• It also gets a Notes app!

We made it! watchOS 26 – formerly and never-again referred to as watchOS 12 – has been revealed at this year's WWDC 2025 developer's conference at Apple Park.

You can catch all the action live as Tim Cook's keynote speech wraps up and the post-game unfolds, and you can check out what's new with iOS 26 and macOS 26 Tahoe too.

However, this is the Apple Watch's time to shine, and the presentation didn't disappoint when it came to features for the best Apple watches. Without gilding the lily and with no more ado, here's everything announced so far for the current crop of Apple Watches.

1. Liquid Glass

Liquid Glass is the new cross-hardware operating system design from Apple. Essentially, Apple has changed the way all its operating systems look, from watches and phones to tablets and computers, to ensure they're unified in design and pleasant to navigate.

With material that 'dynamically morphs' to ensure your experience becomes more intuitive, elements that were solid-color rectangles in the old design become transparent, and change shape as you move through them.

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The Liquid Glass design is across all Apple's ecosystem. In watchOS 26, it ensures widgets expand and contract almost automatically to make use of the small screen space, and elements like the music playback widget share the transparent look of its bigger siblings, instead of being a solid white block. Apple also emphasizes that you'll be able to see more of your photos on-watch.

2. Redesigned workout app

The workout app has been redesigned with Liquid Glass in mind, and it's got in-built media playback from Apple Music automatically recommended based on your listening history. Four new customizable buttons allow you to front-load your most-used features.

3. Workout buddy

(Image credit: Jacob Krol / Future)

We were wondering how Apple Intelligence was going to manifest on the watch in a meaningful way, and here we are. Described as a "first-of-its-kind" fitness experience by Apple which accesses the user's fitness, health and workout history, a little like the AI-powered training insights from Strava and Garmin Connect+. It's designed to "motivate you in a new and unique way" taking into account Training Load, Elevation, Heart Rate... anything in your fitness history.

Some of it seems not all that useful, such as telling us "so far this year, you've run 200 miles", but the short-term stuff, such as telling us "you're 18 minutes away from closing your Activity Ring" will likely get some use. It can also summarize your recent workouts, telling you how you've fared when it comes to pace and distance against your recent milestones.

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The feature mimics the vocal tones of Apple Fitness+ trainers, so the voice is designed to be energetic and uplifting, and you can choose multiple voices. I hope the feature will get more sophisticated and be able to automatically detect, assign and adjust heart rate zones as your fitness improves, but I don't think Workout Buddy is that intuitive. Yet.

4. Live translation

(Image credit: Apple)

The iPhone presentation made much of Apple Intelligence's Live Translation feature, and Apple Watch gets in on the action with Apple Intelligence translation for Messages, translating into a user's preferred language on-wrist.

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Apple Intelligence also suggests relevant actions on-wrist, like opening CashApp when a friend asks for a contribution to a gift or dinner.

4. Notes on wrist

(Image credit: Apple)

Requested by many on forums in the run-up to this year's WWDC, the Notes app is coming to the Apple Watch in an almost blink-and-you'll-miss-it mention.

5. Wrist flick

Along with the Double Tap gesture, Apple Watch can now make use of a simple Wrist Flick to dismiss a notification, silence a timer or alarm, or close the Smart Stack.

6. A better Smart Stack

(Image credit: Apple)

Speaking of the Smart Stack, some changes are coming to the popular widget stacking overlay. The Smart Stack gets hints, which are actionable prompts appearing as an unobtrusive notification at the bottom of your Apple Watch's display.

Tapping on the hint provides contextual information and actions. The example provided was when you arrive at your favorite pilates studio at your usual time, a hint will appear to start a pilates workout. This is the kind of small Apple Intelligence addition that really offers personal assistant capability.

Smart Stack has also received an updated algorithm, reordering itself based on contextual data.

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Apple has outlined the changes coming to its Apple TV software, including profiles and an enhanced design.

A new Apple Watch feature will provide AI-powered verbal encouragement during workouts and real-time analysis.

• Apple Music will get 3 notable new perks with iOS 26
• The updates will roll out alongside Apple Music Sing upgrades on tvOS
• Apple made the announcement at WWDC 25, on June 9

Liquid Glass, aka Apple's new glass-like redesign for its software platforms, is a clear headline grabber at WWDC. But what is iOS 26 bringing to Apple Music?

A few things, actually: Apple Music is getting Lyrics Translation, Lyrics Pronunciation, AutoMix for creating beat-perfect playlists and sets, plus Music Pins to put your favorite artists and albums right to the top of your home screen.

Meanwhile, Apple's Liquid Glass will level up what you see while a song is playing, because it'll provide more glass-like depth – and elements within a track's artwork will move with a more three-dimensional quality; in and out of focus, as it were.

(Image credit: Apple)AutoMix is here – finally!

What exactly is AutoMix? Think seamless mixing of your songs into one continuous playlist, for a stream of music without any annoying gaps between tracks. It'll be similar to what a DJ does, but carried out automatically by Apple Music via Apple Intelligence's AI brain. Outstanding!

One of the other biggest perks of today's Apple WWDC 2025 event in the audio sphere? The knowledge that buying either a shiny new set of AirPods 4, AirPods 4 with Noise Cancelling or AirPods Pro 2 is a smart and future-proof thing to do: Apple has announced studio-quality audio recording and camera remote is coming to these models – and as luck would have it, both are also currently on sale too.

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Of course, AirPods, Apple Music and iPhones all play especially nice together (it's the way Apple wants you to listen): think personalized spatial audio with Dolby Atmos, plus dynamic head-tracking that uses your iPhone or iPad as a source device to ping the soundscape all around your head as you turn it.

And then there's Live Translation. I've just finished working on a French opera, namely Gounod's Faust, and I think it might be a huge plus for me in Apple Music.

(Image credit: Apple)Your iPhone can now become a mic in Apple Music Sing, with tvOS

And we're not done! With tvOS 26, karaoke sessions can reach new levels of fun. How? Users will be able to transform their iPhone into a handheld mic for Apple TV and have their voice amplified as they belt out their very best go at TayTay's Eyes Open.

Everyone in your sing-along session will be able to jump in using their own iPhone to cue up tracks, too, or even react with an onscreen emoji.

Along with the aforementioned Lyrics Translation and Pronunciation updates, plus visual effects to light up the main screen, Sing in Apple Music will be more advanced and engaging than ever, allowing you to sing along even if you don't speak the language fluently (which is music to my ears).

I cannot wait to try it out. For now though, I'm gonna keep on dancin' at the Pink Pony Club… with all my iPhone-toting, Apple Music-streaming friends.

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Apple has revealed the first all-new design of iOS since 2013, as it looks to introduce a brand new look and feel across its devices – and that also means new features for CarPlay.

Alongside a multitude of new features for iPhone, iPad and Mac, the tech behemoth also announced that this fresh new look will also make its way into vehicles via Apple CarPlay – the smartphone mirroring service that allows drivers to safely take advantage of applications while behind the wheel.

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Although not the complete overhaul that Apple CarPlay Ultra introduces, which sees CarPlay extend well beyond the central infotainment display and effectively take over all screens within a vehicle, the upcoming update to regular ol' CarPlay still brings with it some useful features.

1. Easy on the eye, easier to use

(Image credit: Apple)

The introduction of iOS 26 will usher in a new ‘Liquid Glass’ design ethos that the company describes as a "translucent material that reflects and refracts its surroundings".

In plain speak, the UX acts like small magnifying glass that highlights content when a user interacts with it.

The look will be carried across to Apple CarPlay, so we will no longer have the very basic two or three rows of static, 2D app icons and instead have emblems that appear to pop out of the screen.

There’s also a navigation bar to the left or right of the main screen that allows easy hopping between the most-used or favorite applications.

2. Compact view reduces interruptions

(Image credit: Apple)

Currently, receiving a call while using CarPlay can be frustrating, as the incoming call notification butts into entertainment and gets in the way of navigation.

Apple’s iOS 26 will get rid of this, as it will introduce a compact view that delivers pop-up overlay whenever a call comes in.

This makes it a lot simpler to see who is calling and choose to either answer or reject, without missing an important upcoming turn.

What’s more, Apple will also introduce Tapbacks and pinned conversations to the messaging app, making it a lot easier to reply to messages with simple emojis and keep track of conversations without taking eyes off the road to read reams of text.

3. Widgets are welcome

(Image credit: Apple)

It looks like Apple will address some of the key concerns with current CarPlay, including the requirement to constantly juggle and swipe between the numerous screens when interacting with various apps.

The introduction of widgets, which is one of the key components of Apple CarPlay Ultra and a feature that Android Auto users have been able to enjoy for a long time, allows multiple apps to effectively be open on a single screen.

For example, Apple Maps can take up the majority of an infotainment display, while widgets at the side can indicate an estimated arrival time, a condensed icon of the current track that’s playing (as well as the ability to skip songs) and even a live flight tracker.

4. Take back control of calls

(Image credit: Apple)

Several new iPhone-based iOS 26 features that have been designed to minimize distractions will also make their way into the vehicle, with Call Screening building on the current Live Voicemail feature by gathering information on the caller and delivering this in the form of a notification.

The driver (or anyone in the car with an iPhone, for that matter) can then look at this information and decide whether or not they can be bothered to pick up. It’s a handy feature for screening the numerous fraudulent calls and irritating sales pitches that nobody has time for, especially when driving.

Hold Assist also streamlines productivity in so much that it detects hold music and asks the user if they would like their place in the queue to be automatically held. The iPhone will then call the user back when an operator becomes free.

This reduces the amount of time spent listening to annoying hold music, rather than enjoying a radio station, podcast or Spotify playlist when attempting to keep on top of life admin when on the road.

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