Arriving today, September 15, 2025, iOS 26: Apple’s new operating system and one of the most important updates of recent years for those who use iPhone. The new operating system is already available from this evening (from 19:00 Italian) and brings with it three key elements: a new interface redesigned with the “Liquid Glass” material, that is, a visual effect that makes the screens translucent and dynamic; The deepest integration of Apple Intelligence, the artificial intelligence platform designed to work directly on the device without sending data to the servers; And a long series of improvements to daily apps such as messages, telephone, photos and music. The update can be downloaded and installed in the usual way by the iPhone settings and, in this article, we will explain in detail how to do it.
The new iOS 26 of Apple for iPhone: what time comes out and the characteristics
The first aspect that can be seen by updating iPhone to iOS 26 from 19.00 Italians on Monday 15 September concerns the graphic interface, which did not suffer such an important restyling since the time of iOS 7 (announced on June 10, 2013), when Apple abandoned the iconic design based on the shielding in favor of a more “clean”, flat and minimalist graphics. The new graphics of iOS 26 introduced the concept of Liquid Glass, a sort of liquid glass that refracts and reflects the contents of the screen, giving transparencies and light plays that make icons, widgets and more dynamic and captivating controls. The clock in the lock screen adapts to the background, while the icons of the apps can be customized with transparent colors, methods and light or dark styles. It is an approach that Android has been offering for some time, but here Apple inserts it uniformly throughout its ecosystem (and which therefore also characterizes iPados 26, macOS 26, Watchos 26 and all the other operating systems of the products of the “MoSicata Apple”). You can appreciate part of the new graphic experience of iOS 26 in the following demonstrative video produced by Apple.
On the functional front, the main novelty is the strengthening of Apple Intelligence. It is a series of tools based on artificial intelligence that operate directly on the iPhone, protecting the confidentiality of the data. Among the most interesting functions there is the real -time translation of texts, calls and video calls, even if the Italian is not yet supported. In messages you can automatically filter the unknown senders, create polls to organize group activities or generate personalized backgrounds with the Image Playground app. The so -called “genmoji” allow you to combine more emojis or text descriptions to create unique symbols, expanding visual language in chats.
The telephone app also receives a substantial update: the new call screening function shows in real time who calls you and what it says, allowing you to decide whether to respond or not. With Hold Assist, however, the iPhone warns you when an operator is finally available while waiting. Unfortunately, these two functions are not yet available in Italian.
Apple Music adds the translation of the texts and the Automix mode that fades the songs as a DJ would do. The Wallet app is enriched with installment payments via Apple Pay and with boarding cards updated in real time. News also for those traveling: integration with maps and where it helps to better manage flights and luggage. Video games will find the new Apple Games app, designed to collect titles, events and updates in a single space, including Apple Arcade.
From the technical point of view, Adaptive Power arrive, which automatically optimizes consumption to prolong the battery, and new audio controls that allow you to choose different microphones control center depending on the app in use. Attention to accessibility grows with Braille Access (a new interface for Apple smartphones connected to a Braille display) and Accessibility Reader (which offers a personalized reading level at the system level).
What are the compatible devices with iOS 26 and minimum requirements necessary
As for the minimum requirements to be met to be able to install iOS 26, we list below all the compatible models.
- iPhone 17, 17 Pro, 17 Pro Max
- iPhone Air
- iPhone 16e, 16 and 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, 16 Pro Max
- iPhone 15, 15 Plus, 15 Pro, 15 Pro Max
- iPhone 14, 14 Plus, 14 Pro, 14 Pro Max
- iPhone 13, 13 mini, 13 Pro, 13 Pro Max
- iPhone 12, 12 Mini, 12 Pro, 12 Pro Max
- iPhone 11, 11 Pro, 11 Pro Max
- iPhone Se (2nd generation) and subsequent
As pointed out by Apple, «The functions of Apple Intelligence described require compatible devices, which include all the models iPhone 16, iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max (…) and subsequent versions with Apple Intelligence qualified and Siri and the language of the device set on the same supported language: English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese (Brazil), Spanish, Japanese, Korean or Chinese (always)».
The update to iOS 26 by the iPhones mentioned above is free, but before proceeding with its download, make sure you have enough free space (we recommend that you have at least 10 free GB).
How to download iOS 26 from iPhone: update the operating system
To download the update to iOS 26 you can proceed directly from iPhone, using the so -called via Ota update (Over the Air). Before proceeding, make sure you have at least 50% battery, to be connected to a stable Wi-Fi network and have made a backup of data on iCloud.
After 19:00 today, just enter the settings, select General Voices> Software Update (or a software update is available, if you have received the notification of the availability of the update). At that point the item will appear to update to iOS 26: Touch it, enter the release code, take care of the terms and the iPhone will download the necessary files. The download can take several minutes, but in the meantime the device remains usable. When ready, you can choose whether to install the update immediately (update now) or postpone (update tonight). During the installation, the iPhone will restart several times, showing an advance bar. At the end, few confirmations will be asked to activate the new functions.
