Close Menu
Technology Mag

    Subscribe to Updates

    Get the latest creative news from FooBar about art, design and business.

    What's Hot

    US Government Seeks Medical Records of Trans Youth

    August 29, 2025

    Leak suggests new Philips Hue lights will have direct Matter support

    August 29, 2025

    Microsoft’s next annual update for Windows 11 is in Release Preview testing

    August 29, 2025
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram
    Subscribe
    Technology Mag
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube
    • Home
    • News
    • Business
    • Games
    • Gear
    • Reviews
    • Science
    • Security
    • Trending
    • Press Release
    Technology Mag
    Home » ‘Beautiful’ and ‘Hard to Read’: Designers React to Apple’s Liquid Glass Update
    Gear

    ‘Beautiful’ and ‘Hard to Read’: Designers React to Apple’s Liquid Glass Update

    News RoomBy News RoomJune 10, 20253 Mins Read
    Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Reddit WhatsApp Email

    Apple’s translucent design update for iOS 26, called Liquid Glass, is now available to developers, with a public beta scheduled for next month. The refresh—Apple’s first major interface overhaul in 10 years—makes app icons, buttons, menus, and pop-ups look like they are made of frosted glass, with blurred background colors peeking through.

    The sweeping software changes are not just for iPhones. This glassy look—inspired by the operating system in the Vision Pro headset—will eventually roll out to the entire suite of Apple devices, from smartwatches to iPads.

    Courtesy of Apple

    After the WWDC 2025 keynote concluded on Monday, many design-focused developers WIRED spoke with were impressed by the major update but had lingering questions about how this translucent look could impact readability for users.

    “It’s hard to read some of it,” says Allan Yu, a product designer currently building the workplace messaging app Output. “Mainly because I think they made it too transparent.” Yu suggests bumping up the blurring or adjusting the backgrounds to make onscreen designs more readable.

    “Similar to the first beta for iOS 7, what we’ve seen so far is rough on the edges and potentially veers into distracting or challenging to read, especially for users with visual impairments,” says Josh Puckett, cofounder of Iteration, which helps startups with designs. Still, Puckett is optimistic, based on Apple’s past accessibility features, that readability will improve over time.

    Controls and navigation transform as you interact with the user interface.

    Courtesy of Apple

    Serhii Popov, a design-first software engineer at MacPaw, the company behind the CleanMyMac app, is curious to see how the new operating system will look on Macs in bright light situations, where glare already impacts visibility. But overall, Popov is enamored with this “really fresh” look from Apple. “I think it will make everything look bigger and allow you to read or interact with the UI with more comfort,” says Popov. For him, the new design and updates look especially sleek on iPads.

    Beyond readability concerns, the first impression from some designers is that this new look could be unnecessarily distracting for users.

    “From a technical perspective, it’s a very impressive effect. I applaud the time and effort it must have taken to mimic refraction and dispersion of light to such a high degree,” says Adam Whitcroft, a designer at Owner.com, which makes apps and websites for restaurants. “But, sadly I haven’t seen a single example of where it’s pulled off in a way that’s complementary to the broader context it’s presented in.” Whitcroft points to the dispersion and refraction of layers beneath the apps as visually distracting, especially as the user interface is changing layouts. “If you’ve designed a UI that draws the attention of the eye away from the wider context, you’ve gone down the wrong path,” he says.

    Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn WhatsApp Reddit Email
    Previous ArticleHang on, did the iPad just become a computer?
    Next Article Microsoft is moving its Build conference out of Seattle for 2026

    Related Posts

    If You Like Surround Sound, the Sonos Era 300 Is 20 Percent Off Right Now

    August 26, 2025

    Read This Before Buying a Window Air Conditioner

    August 26, 2025

    The Lenovo IdeaPad 5i 2-in-1 Is a Budget 16-Inch Laptop That Barely Squeaks By

    August 26, 2025

    Matter Is Finally Ready to Deliver the Smart Home It Promised

    August 26, 2025

    US EV Sales Are Booming—for Now

    August 26, 2025

    WIRED Might Have Found a New Best Bag in the World

    August 26, 2025
    Our Picks

    Leak suggests new Philips Hue lights will have direct Matter support

    August 29, 2025

    Microsoft’s next annual update for Windows 11 is in Release Preview testing

    August 29, 2025

    TikTok is now letting everyone DM each other with voice memos and pictures

    August 29, 2025

    Hisense’s take on the Samsung Frame TV is $300 off

    August 29, 2025
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Pinterest
    • Instagram
    • YouTube
    • Vimeo
    Don't Miss
    News

    Framework actually did it: I upgraded a laptop’s entire GPU in just three minutes

    By News RoomAugust 29, 2025

    Today, I can confirm the system actually works. I traveled to Framework’s San Francisco offices…

    The future of AI hardware isn’t one device — it’s an entire ecosystem

    August 29, 2025

    What’s really happening with the hires at Meta Superintelligence Labs

    August 29, 2025

    Lenovo leaks show concept laptop with rotating display

    August 29, 2025
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram Pinterest
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms of use
    • Advertise
    • Contact
    © 2025 Technology Mag. All Rights Reserved.

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.