.jpg&w=35&h=35&q=70&c=1)
It took Apple more than a decade to redesign its core business which centres around iOS. From iOS 7 to iOS26, we’ve gone from flat to layered, from 2D to Liquid Glass and yet when I enquired about the sole surviving app icon harking back to the days of skeuomorphism, I was most politely educated that the glassy effect on the camera lens blends perfectly with the intended look of the design overhaul. Hmm.
Opinion: Apple’s WWDC25 a gap year?
Apple’s gap year
WWDC25 was in essence, a flurry of such moments that oscillated between “was this really necessary” and “finally they made it happen”. From refracted light on virtual buttons to a powerful new Spotlight search on MacOS Tahoe, WWDC25 literally spewed out a new feature every minute during its hour and a half runtime that left most with mixed emotions at the end. Optically, it’s Liquid Glass that will emerge as the poster boy of the event though since it is the easiest to market and demo. At Least on iOS and iPadOS. But step back a couple of years and if you put the Apple Vision Pro headset under the same (liquid glass) lens and it’s easy to connect the dots. Having been inspired by the VisionOS is only half the story here as Apple prepares us all for a future that is obviously going to be behind some sort of a wearable that requires us to adapt to translucent overlays of augmented information on top of the real world. So a Vision Pro 2 is likely to come sooner than we think, with a more competitive form factor to make it street-worthy.
Looking beyond the glassy and glossy bits of the unified design overhaul though, there were a few standouts that will fundamentally change the way we use our Apple devices. iPadOS26 in particular saw the single biggest upgrade with new multitasking options that finally make it a viable alternative to a MacBook Air. Multiple windows in assorted sizes, living in harmony one behind the other or even side by side was something only John Lenon would have imagined, until now. Even Preview, until now only limited to MacOS comes to the iPadOS26, making it easier than ever to work with PDF files, compress images for official docs and scan your will. We still don’t get the full fledged Mac Finder, but the iPadOS26 Files app does offer more utility and customisation than before, letting it off the hook for now.
Apple is never going to give us the touchscreen MacBook nor ever make an iPad that kills the MacBook, and we must learn to live behind this LoC. Meanwhile, the MacOS26 Tahoe is itself getting a big upgrade with AI-infused Spotlight that can now help you perform tasks using syntax and screen awareness without even opening another app. Continuity gets a boost with the Phone app, including call screening and hold coming to the Mac as well, as long as your iPhone is in proximity.
Live Widgets on your Mac and CarPlay are other great additions, enabled by wireless iPhone mirroring, as is the Phone app on the Mac. Apple's idea of unification goes beyond just the design language and builds on their core strength of hardware/software integration. Two of the brightest examples of this tight-knit family is the new Sing-Along karaoke feature that uses your iPhone mic to connect to the Apple TV’s Music app so you can hear your own voice through your hi-fi system! The other clever trick is to use the computational audio and touch controls on your AirPods Pro to trigger the camera app on the iPhone and even let you record studio-quality audio using voice isolation and computational audio enhancements.
Other announcements like live translate, visual intelligence with highlights, group chats with poll, call screening…all feel like deja vu from a Google I/O from previous years. Yet, little things like AirDrop and exporting files now being handled as background tasks on the iPad make me giddy. The biggest takeaway with WWDC25 was Apple’s focused intent on making its ecosystem even more coherent in its aesthetic, functionality and even naming convention. So while they may have taken this year to consolidate, with the exception of Liquid Glass polish across the line-up, there wasn’t a singular big moment of life-changing tech. And Apple is OK with that.
Their pervasive AI (Apple Intelligence) campaign is being deferred to 2026 with an all-new architecture, which further corroborates speculation one might have about a possible wearable device. In the meantime, come September and you will be able to see, feel and interact with your iPhone and iPad in a whole new way that has the potential to put a smile on your face. It’s Apple doing what it does best - adding layers of lacquer on its already proven software.