The Tiny Ios 26 Update That Made A Big Difference For Me

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ZDNET's cardinal takeaways

• Apple accrued nan size of its timer and siren buttons connected iOS 26.
• The update makes it easier to disregard them. 
• Not each package update needs to beryllium flashy to beryllium helpful. 

I'm waking up astatine nan ace of dawn, aft a shoddy nighttime of sleep. My iPhone siren and its ever-strong siren opus blare arsenic it shakes maine from my slumber. At this point, I'll do thing to move that wretched sound disconnected arsenic quickly arsenic possible. 

The 1 point that gets successful my way? The iPhone's disregard fastener for its siren is excessively small. In my half-asleep state, I don't ever deed and disregard it nan first time. 

For context, this is what nan erstwhile Alarm surface looked for illustration connected iPhone. 

Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNET

The smallest and, perhaps, subtlest feature update of iOS 26 solves a problem for me. The dismissal buttons connected Apple's latest package update are, thankfully, bigger, removing a symptom constituent I've had pinch its timers and alarms connected Apple's Clock app, 1 of my most-used autochthonal apps. 

Also: 5 features that made updating to iOS 26 worthy it

The Clock app and its Alarm characteristic brushwood users astatine their astir groggy, disrupting their ineffable sleep. Most group aren't happy to beryllium woken up. When an Apple siren goes disconnected -- and, pinch it, that signature, bone-chilling ringtone -- I instantly activate conflict aliases flight. Turning those tunes disconnected quickly feels imperative, and thing that gets successful nan measurement is simply a awesome disturbance astatine champion and a day-ruiner astatine worst. 

There's not ace reliable information connected this metric, but surveys show that astir Americans usage their smartphone arsenic their siren clock, pinch usage increasing importantly among younger Americans. Unless you are 1 of nan fewer fortunate sleepers who wakes up each time without an siren astatine nan correct time, chances are you're utilizing your smartphone astir days of nan week to get retired of bed. 

I'm delighted that Apple yet updated this functionality successful an app utilized regular by galore iPhone owners, including me. 

Also: Your Apple Watch is getting a large upgrade for free

When considering meaningful package changes, it's easy to attraction connected much precocious updates, specified arsenic AI-powered assistants aliases voice-translation features, which tin beryllium catchy and flashy. However, nan updates that are astir appreciated by nan largest group of group are elemental creation changes, for illustration maximizing nan dismissal fastener connected a timer aliases alarm. 

I've noticed larger buttons successful different apps arsenic well, specified arsenic connected nan Apple Watch Workout app, where, alternatively of a workout-like elliptical taking up a information of nan screen, nan workout activation takes up nan full screen. 

Before updating to WatchOS 26, I'd sometimes neglect to click connected nan Start fastener because of its smaller size. The fastener size rumor was only exacerbated erstwhile I was connected nan move, specified arsenic moving aliases opening an elliptical workout. 

Also: If these iPhone 17 Air rumors are real, my aged telephone is astir to beryllium retired

Apple's September iPhone event takes spot successful Cupertino adjacent week, and nan tech elephantine will unveil its latest lineup of shiny caller tech. It could uncover thinner iPhones aliases Apple Watches pinch humor pressure-measuring functionalities.

Surely AI will infuse its measurement into each these products, and, while I'll beryllium eager to study astir each nan latest eye-catching and earth-shattering hardware and package features, I besides dream Apple continues to amended nan elemental features, too, small by little.