Here's Everything New in iOS 26.1
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It seems like iOS 26 just dropped, and yet, Apple is back at it with another update. The company dropped the first beta for iOS 26.1 on Monday, Sept. 22. Ever since, developers and public testers have been able to try out Apple's next update early. Now, they have another beta version to try: iOS 26.1 beta 2 is officially here.
"Point updates" like iOS 26.1 are never as feature-filled as the main releases, though 26.1 seems particularly small in scope. Apple seems to have done most of what it planned to do with iOS 26, saving just smaller changes for this upcoming update. Still, there are some interesting new additions in this latest beta, and more could come in subsequent releases. Here's what's new.
Alarms are harder to accidentally dismissThis is a feature new to the second iOS 26.1 beta. As of this version, Apple now makes it harder to dismiss a ringing alarm, which means the risk you'll accidentally oversleep goes down.
You still have the same "Snooze" button as you do on the official iOS 26 build: If all you want is another nine minutes of sleep, this button is as easy to tap as ever. However, to dismiss the alarm entirely, you can't simply tap a button anymore. Instead, you need to slide to stop the alarm. You might remember this gesture from the iPhone's early days, when you needed to "Slide to Unlock" your phone.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.Apple Music gestures
If you want to skip a song in Apple Music, you hit the forward button. If you want to get back to the previous song, or restart the current song, you hit the back button. With iOS 26.1, however, you'll have the option to swipe to switch between songs.
In the current beta, you can swipe right and left on the Now Playing bar to switch back and forth through your queue. With it, Apple has removed the skip forward button from the Now Playing bar. (The back button wasn't present.) It's a small but cool feature, but one that might take a little time to get used to.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.Video playback bar
In the current version of iOS 26, the video playback bar in the Photos app is flush with the UI. You might love or hate it, but it can be a bit difficult to make it out, depending on the video in question. The play button and mute button, for example, can disappear when iOS can't change their colors to stand out from the background.
iOS 26.1 beta 1, however, introduces a new video playback bar that is separate from the UI. It looks good, and is easy to see at all times. Again, a small change, but a smart one.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.Live Translation languages
Live Translation for AirPods is a fantastic new feature that automatically translates conversations you're having with someone who speaks a language you don't understand. So long as you have an iPhone 15 Pro or newer, as well as AirPods Pro 2, AirPods Pro 3, or AirPods 5 with Active Noise Cancellation, you've been able to try it out since iOS 26's launch.
Apple initially rolled out support for French, German, Portuguese (Brazil), and Spanish (Spain), but plans to expand the list in the future. With iOS 26.1, it adds four new options, including:
Chinese (Mandarin, simplified)
Chinese (Mandarin, traditional)
Italian
Japanese
Korean
Users with an iPhone 15 Pro and newer, listen up: Apple Intelligence supports eight new languages in iOS 26.1. As of this first beta, that includes the following:
Chinese (traditional)
Danish
Dutch
Norwegian
Portuguese (Portugal)
Swedish
Turkish
Vietnamese
Liquid Glass, Apple's new design language, isn't everywhere in iOS 26. While much of the UI now has a glassy look, some elements still look like iOS 18 and earlier. The Phone app's keypad was one such example: While the app itself is very much changed with this update, switch to the keypad, and it looks the same as ever.
That changes with iOS 26.1. The beta brings Liquid Glass to the keypad, which, while consistent with most of iOS 26's design, does reduce the visibility of the keys a bit, especially in light mode. I wouldn't be surprised to see Apple workshop this one a bit.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.Transparent navigation buttons in the Photos app
Similarly, with beta 2, Apple brought back transparent navigation buttons in the Photos app. These had been present earlier on in iOS 26's beta testing, but Apple made the buttons more opaque for the official release. Now, you'll be able to see what's behind each button as you move around the app.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.Color-coded calendar list
Whenever you have Calendar in List view in iOS 26.1, you'll see your daily events color-coded by their respective calendars, rather than simply listed against the same white background.
References to third-party smartwatch supportIf you have an iPhone, you know the only smartwatch that really works well with it is the Apple Watch. Some watches offer notification support, but most simply don't jive well with iOS.
That might be changing in the future. Code within the iOS 26.1 beta references a new "Notification Forwarding" feature, that might allow you to choose a third-party device to send your iPhone alerts to. In addition, an unfinished "AccessoryExtension" option might be the framework that lets you pair a third-party watch to your iPhone.
These are just references in code, not something that you can actively test out in the 26.1 beta, but it's worth noting. Apple is experimenting with supporting third-party watches on iOS, though it could just be to appease the EU's "Digital Markets Act."
Apple brings back Slide Over multitasking (iPadOS)If you're running the second iPadOS 26.1 beta on your iPad, you'll notice a familiar feature: Slide Over. Slide Over is a multitasking feature that lets you open and hide an iOS-like window on the side of your iPad. This window is overlaid on top of your other active windows, and is meant to offer an at-a-glance view of another app, without needing to take up a dedicated space on-screen.
This feature was especially useful when the iPad's multitasking was in its infancy. It seems Apple thought Slide Over's days were done, however, as the company removed the feature with iOS 26. Instead, you get an improved macOS-like windows management system. It's not clear why Apple brought the feature back with beta 2, and it's possible it could disappear again before iPadOS 26.1's official release. But for now, you can take advantage of the new multitasking system and Slide Over with this newest beta.