You probably just downloaded iOS 26.1 – and if you haven't already, a feature-rich update should be waiting for you now, but iOS 26.2 beta is out now, revealing a host of new features you can expect to see soon.
We don't recommend downloading the beta, as it will be unfinished and likely to have bugs – although if you want, here's how to download beta versions of iOS. However, it gives us a good idea of what you can expect from your iPhone when iOS 26.2 is released.
Below, we've detailed nine new features coming to your iPhone soon.
1. Liquid Glass lock screen slider.
In iOS 26.2, the lock screen becomes even more customizable because, according to McRumors – there is now a slider that allows you to customize the appearance of the clock.
As now, you can choose whether you want the watch to appear “solid” or “glass,” but in iOS 26.2, if you choose the latter, you also get a slider that lets you adjust the amount of transparency.
2. Alarm reminders
If you find yourself ignoring reminders, there's a feature in iOS 26.2 you might like: If you toggle the Urgent option when setting a reminder, you'll also now be able to set an alarm to accompany it.
Then, when it's time to remind you of that thing, an alarm will sound instead of a short alert, with the option to snooze by tapping or sliding to stop it. If you snooze a reminder, you'll see a countdown on your lock screen, along with options to end or reschedule the reminder.
Additionally, you can toggle a setting in the Reminders app to replace the snooze button with a button you can tap to mark the reminder as completed.
3. Enhanced Security Alerts
If you go to Notifications > Settings in iOS 26.2, then – as noted 9to5Mac – You will now find a new option called “Advanced Security Alerts”. Tap it and you'll be taken to a screen where you can turn earthquake alerts and imminent threat alerts on or off.
We'd recommend leaving these turned on, but there's also a toggle for “Improve Alert Delivery” that you might want to turn on, as this will broadcast your approximate location Apple to “improve the timeliness and reliability of enhanced security alerts.”
4. Improvements in the Podcasts application.
In iOS 26.2, the Apple Podcasts app is getting several new features, the biggest of which is automatic chapter creation, so if a podcast creator doesn't break an episode down into chapters, the app will do so automatically, making it easier for listeners to navigate through them—though creators will be able to turn off this feature if for some reason they don't want their podcasts to have chapters.
Another new feature is that if an episode mentions other podcasts, you will be able to view and follow those podcasts from the transcript and player.
Finally, you'll also now be able to “quickly access links published in the podcast on the episode page,” which should make it easier to access sites mentioned in the episode.
5. Flash for alerts
It's a niche feature, but it's sure to be very useful for some – if you head to Settings > Accessibility in iOS 26.2, you'll find a new Alert Flash section that gives you the option to flash the screen when you receive an alert.
Previously, the only accessibility option in this regard was to have the camera LED flash on the back of the phone, but now you can choose whether the screen flashes instead or along with it.
6. More accurate sleep assessments
It's to the same extent Apple Watch The feature is similar to the iPhone's, but we included it here because you can view your sleep score in the Health app, and with iOS 26.2, those scores should better reflect how you're actually feeling.
This is achieved by adjusting the rating ranges of Very Low, Low, OK, High and Very High. For example, a score of 0-40 is now considered “Very Low”, whereas previously it was 0-29, and a score of 96 or higher is now required to achieve a “Very High” rating, whereas previously a score of 90 or higher was required. Similar changes were made to the interim ratings.
Less importantly, “Very High” itself represents a new formulation, replacing “Excellent” as previously indicated by the top ratings.
7. New password feature.
Go to the Settings section of the Passwords app in iOS 26.2 and you will now see an option to “Show excluded websites.” Tap this and you'll see a list of websites you've excluded from the app—in other words, those whose passwords aren't saved when you log in.
From here you can remove any or all of these exceptions, giving you an easy way to change your mind.
8. Freeform Tables
In iOS 26.2 Free form The application has support for tables, the size of which can be easily changed by dragging corners, or adding rows and columns using the corresponding “+” buttons.
This will likely be a niche feature, but for those who actually use Freeform—or would if it supported tables—it could make a big difference.
9. Shortcuts in Apple News
Finally, if you use Apple News, you'll find that in iOS 26.2, there are now shortcuts at the top of the app for things like sports, politics, business, puzzles, and food.
Based on first impressions from the beta, these shortcuts may be dependent on your activity in the app. In other words, the specific shortcuts you see may vary depending on which sections you visit most often.
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