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iOS 26 brings a host of powerful new features and enhancements designed to elevate the iPhone experience. From smarter on-device capabilities to redesigned apps and deeper personalization, the update marks a major leap forward. However, not all features are available across every device.
Many of the most advanced tools, especially those powered by Apple Intelligence, require newer iPhone models to function. This reflects Apple’s continued focus on integrating AI and machine learning more deeply into iOS, while also leveraging the hardware capabilities of its latest devices. Here’s a closer look at what’s new and what you’ll need to take full advantage.
1. Visual Intelligence With Screenshots
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iOS 26 brings a powerful new feature called Visual Intelligence with Screenshots, designed to make your iPhone smarter and more context-aware. By leveraging Apple Intelligence, this feature analyzes the content of your screenshots and offers intelligent, real-time actions. Whether you capture a product listing, a text conversation, travel itinerary, or a recipe, your iPhone can now recognize important details like names, dates, locations, links, and even visual elements like logos or app interfaces.
Once identified, it suggests actions like saving events to your calendar, opening links in Safari, translating text, summarizing information, copying data to Notes, or even sharing it via Messages. You can also ask your iPhone questions about what’s in the screenshot, like “What’s the address here?”, without scanning through the image yourself.
All of this happens securely on-device, ensuring your data remains private. However, since this feature relies on Apple Intelligence, it requires the latest hardware. Visual Intelligence with Screenshots is only available on iPhone 15 Pro and newer versions, which are powered by the A17 Pro chip, as well as M-series iPads and Macs. This marks another step toward deeply integrating AI into everyday iPhone tasks, making your device not just reactive, but proactive.
2. Live Translation in Messages, Facetime, Phone
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iOS 26 introduces Live Translation, a breakthrough feature that enables real-time language translation during text conversations, voice calls, and FaceTime. Powered by Apple Intelligence, Live Translation can detect when two people are communicating in different languages and instantly provide live, on-screen translations without the need to switch apps or copy/paste text. Whether you’re chatting in Messages, making a voice call in the Phone app, or having a video call on FaceTime, translations happen seamlessly as you speak or type.
This feature supports multiple languages at launch and is particularly helpful for international travelers, multilingual families, and global teams. It also preserves conversation context, making translations more accurate and natural. In FaceTime, translated captions appear in real time beneath the video feed, while in phone calls, they show as live text. In Messages, both original and translated texts are displayed together for clarity.
Compatibility is limited to iPhone 15 Pro and newer versions, as it requires advanced neural processing capabilities. All translation happens on-device, keeping your conversations private and secure.
3. Lock Screen 3D Effect
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iOS 26 debuts a visually stunning Lock Screen 3D Effect that brings depth, motion, and realism to your iPhone’s lock screen. This feature uses machine learning and advanced rendering to separate the subject of your wallpaper from the background, creating a layered, parallax-like experience that responds dynamically as you tilt your phone or unlock it. The effect adds a sense of depth and fluidity to photos, making lock screens feel more alive and interactive than ever before.
Whether it’s a portrait, a pet, or a scenic shot, the system intelligently identifies the foreground and enhances it with shadows, lighting effects, and subtle animations. It also integrates seamlessly with widgets and the clock, ensuring visual clarity while maintaining the 3D illusion.
This immersive experience is made possible by the hardware and neural processing power in Apple’s latest devices. The Lock Screen 3D effect in iOS 26, also known as Spatial Scenes, is compatible with iPhone 12 and newer models. With this update, your iPhone becomes not just a tool, but a dynamic canvas.
4. Shortcuts Actions With AI Powers
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iOS 26 brings powerful upgrades to the Shortcuts app with new AI-powered actions, enabled by Apple Intelligence. Users can now create automations that go beyond predefined commands, like summarizing articles, rewriting text in different tones, generating images, or pulling smart suggestions from content on your screen. These AI-enhanced shortcuts open up new levels of personalization and productivity, allowing tasks to adapt based on context, input, or even natural language prompts.
For example, you can build a shortcut that drafts an email from bullet points, creates a social caption from a photo, or translates content before sending. All processing is done securely on-device, ensuring user privacy.
These AI-powered shortcuts are exclusive to the iPhone 15 Pro and later models as they require Apple Intelligence.
5. Reminder Apps Suggestions and Organization
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In iOS 26, the Reminders app gets a smart upgrade with new AI-powered suggestions and organization tools. Apple Intelligence now helps users automatically sort tasks into categories like work, personal, or errands, and can even suggest reminders based on context, such as upcoming calendar events, locations, or conversations in Messages. It can recognize when you’re planning something and proactively offer to create a reminder, saving you time and effort.
Reminders are also easier to manage, with intelligent grouping, prioritization, and quick actions like rescheduling or marking as complete through natural language. The result is a more organized and intuitive to-do experience, tailored to your day-to-day life. These enhanced capabilities are compatible with iPhone 15 Pro and newer versions.
6. Apple Wallet Upgrades
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In iOS 26, Apple Wallet introduces intelligent upgrades powered by Apple Intelligence, enhancing user convenience and organization. The standout feature is AI-driven order tracking, which automatically scans your emails for shipping confirmations and delivery updates. This information is then summarized and displayed within Wallet, providing a centralized view of your purchases without the need for manual input or merchant participation.
Additionally, Apple Pay now offers expanded flexibility by allowing users to pay with rewards and installments during in-store purchases. Users can view and utilize rewards, as well as access installment loan offers from eligible credit or debit cards, directly through Apple Pay.
These upgrades to the Apple Wallet are compatible with iPhone 15 Pro and newer versions. All processing occurs on-device, ensuring user privacy and data security.
7. New Genmoji and Image Playground Upgrades
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In iOS 26, Apple introduces significant enhancements to Genmoji and Image Playground, offering users more creative tools for personalized expression.
Genmoji now allows users to combine multiple emojis or use text prompts to create unique, customizable characters. Adjustments can be made to facial expressions, hairstyles, accessories like glasses, and facial hair, enabling the creation of personalized avatars that reflect individual styles. These Genmoji can be used across various apps, including Messages and Notes.
Animation, Illustration, Sketch, Vector, and Watercolor are among the new ChatGPT-powered styles that have been added to Image Playground. The addition of an “Any Style” option allows users to input free-form text prompts, enabling the generation of images in virtually any artistic style. This expansion facilitates the creation of bespoke visuals for events, social media, or personal projects.
This upgrade is a part of Apple Intelligence and requires iPhone 15 Pro or newer. With this, iOS 26 empowers users to express themselves more vividly and creatively, leveraging advanced AI tools for personalized digital experiences.
