Adam’s saying that call screening is useful, and that he’s annoyed that it is only available if he upgrades to iOS 26 and Liquid Glass.
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OK, that makes sense since call screening is a new feature. Just remember, no more new features in older iOS versions before v26. Only security and maybe a few non-security (can’t remember any that got fixed recently though) fixes for iPhones that can’t run v26.
What do you want out of your portable device: a phone, a camera, email, messaging, computer, music player, etc.? I think the goal posts moved and we haven’t come to terms with that. Figure out what you want and then look at options. Face recognitions removes a lot of friction. And depending on on what system you used before, maybe an iPhone isn’t the answer. But since you’re on Tidbits you’re probably in the Apple world. Apple stores offer lots of classes too. Does dictation work for you? Doesn’t for me, but many friends use it. What is the equivalent of a stick shift for your phone?
An Otter case may be an overkill. My wife and I have used silicone and plastic cases since about iPhone 3 and have each cracked a screen. An Otter case probably would have prevented those disasters but not worth the bulk and inconvenience.
Can you answer a call with Siri? I don’t know if that works or not. And other’s suggestions of investigating Accessibility options.
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What do I want in a portable device? An easy-to-use phone that answers when you pick it up (like a dumb phone), a camera, and messaging (the latter primarily for getting six-digit codes). My vision don’t do tiny type on a tiny iPhone screen. So a dumb phone would suffice but when the last one died my wife had a extra iPhone that I decided to try.
What do other people want me to have? Right now, I need a social security Benefit Verification Letter to satisfy another bureaucracy, and that requires a secure government login, which requires getting my iPhone to take a photo of me and a copy of my secure ID and deliver them to the government login bureaucracy which is on a web site – and so far the web and the phone won’t talk to each other. This kind of thing becomes a problem. I’m hoping there is some way to make the connection, but so far no luck. Maybe I need to take the Otter off the iPhone so it can recognize my fingerprint, which I can’t do when it’s wearing the Otter.
What annoys me is that people want me to use a mobile device to do things which are much easier and more efficient to do on a Mac hooked to a 27-inch screen in my office. That’s really just a different type of Accessibility option.
I can’t dictate. I learned that the hard way in college when I almost failed the technical presentation course require for engineering students to graduate. Later PowerPoint saved allowed to make presentations successfully. That’s why I never bothered trying to learn to use Siri; I can type coherently because I can edit as I type, but I meander when talking, and that is confusing.
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Jeff, you sound almost like me since I can’t dictate and also hear well due to my disabilities. I rarely talk on phones due to my impediments, but I do text chats a lot, e-mails, forums, newsgroups, etc. I prefer seeing and typing on a computer with big screens. I also can’t hold phones well related to my disabilities. I rarely used my dumb phone like Motorola Razr 3. iPhones were better to me even though I am not a fan of touch screens. Smartphones are nice to be portalbe and light to take with you outside without computers. I rarely go out so I prefer computers with big screens, clicky keyboards, etc.
My sympathies on your disabilities. I don’t consider myself particularly disabled because I can get around most problems. I did have myopia so serious that I failed the draft physical, but during the Vietnam war that was a feature rather than a bug. Fortunately, cataract surgery combined with reading glasses largely cured that problem.
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Coincidentally, I was driving through New Jersey today listening to the radio when the radio show’s host started sharing her regrets about upgrading her iPhone to iOS 26. It wasn’t a tech show at all, so it was striking that she spent so much time on the subject. It also was interesting to listen to a non-technical user’s frustrations with upgrades.
The gist of it was that she uses her phone for a few key tasks and how thoroughly disoriented the “dancing bubbles” (or something like that) in the new OS made her feel. She said that some of her apps weren’t working any more and how she couldn’t figure out how to do routine tasks with the Photos app, IIRC.
I’m sure that most of her issues would be straightforward to resolve for most TidBITS readers and probably have been discussed here already, but it was informative to hear the perspective of someone who uses her phone as a tool and is not at all interested in marketing flash or superficial tech refreshes.
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I wonder how many users complained to Apple directly about v26. I did with Feedbacks. :/ Maybe Apple already knows how bad it is to reshuffle their managements? I really hope they will fix this mess in v27.
BTW, now that iPhone mirroring is included with macOS Tahoe, you can simply use your phone via your Mac, no matter how small iOS controls actually are. At least, while you are around your Mac, the problem might be solved this way.
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We learn many things by repetition and once we master a task it become easy and safe. Riding a bicycle is a good example, starting with training wheels, going to two wheels and mastering the balance for things like turning. Balancing is essential and I do it quickly and automatically without conscious thought. The first and only time I tried riding a Segway I automatically started trying to balance it like a bike and almost immediately realized that doing that would make me fall off and stopped. Minor changes, like a new keyboard, can slow down your typing. When the city changes traffic patterns accidents can result because drivers are used to one pattern, which can cause accidents.
In practice, it means that changes intended to improve things instead break them. That is something Apple tends to ignore.
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Still in iOS18. All the comments about glass and other problems discourage me.
Also, a number of replies to this query mention aging and trouble seeing or typing. I’m 77 and in declining good shape. Dictation on the iPhone is very good. I only type to make corrections and edits. I can dictate for multiple paragraphs with barely anymore mistakes than I usually discover editing my writing. Give it a try. Collect yourself, speak clearly, and consider what you intend to communicate before beginning to speak.
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I am at 18 on my iPhone and can’t upgrade. I am diabetic and use a glucose monitor, sort of an electronic chip that sticks to my arm, which reports data by bluetooth to an iPhone app. The vendor of the monitor system cannot give me a date when they will update their app, which is not guaranteed to work with 26. Apple does not support security upgrades for 18 any longer so I am forced to choose between my phone security and my own health, possibly a life or death choice. I have contacted support at both Apple and the monitor company with no satisfaction, each points at the other, of course. …Like others here, I have been using Macs almost since year 1, and at this point I am not excited about interface and style changes; I just want products that will work and receive good support. Apple has been more and more disappointing in recent years.
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Monitor company really needs to support iOS v26 since it had been out for months especially with its public testings. :(
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I agree, but their support phone told me they could not predict when.
He assured me “People are trying it and it seems to be OK.”
But did you test it? No. Do you have a date to complete testing? No.
How about a new version? I can’t say.
That’s not really reassuring for a medical device but that’s the way it is.
Thanks….
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I don’t often find myself sticking up for medical device manufacturers, who can be mighty sleazy in lots of ways, but it is likely that your glucose monitor is a medical device under FDA regulations. Thus any change to the driving software (including the app) requires FDA approval. The regulatory approval process isn’t one that was designed to move at the speed of tech.
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Thanks, good information.
LL
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I have it scheduled to be done in late August 2026. I ALWAYS wait until August of each year.
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Dennis, even though you won’t get new iOS security fixes until then? :(
I did exactly the same thing, for the same reason. I’m quite happy to accept the slightly greater security risk. I’m also staying on Sequoia.
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MacRumors is reporting among their site visitors they’re seeing 3.5x fewer iOS 26 adopters compared to same time last year iOS 18 adopters.
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