Overview
- Apple released the 26.4 software cycle on Tuesday as an over‑the‑air update for iOS, iPadOS, macOS Tahoe, watchOS, tvOS and visionOS after weeks of public and developer betas.
- iOS and iPadOS add Playlist Playground to Apple Music to create playlists from text prompts, eight new emoji, a fix for fast‑typing keyboard errors, HLS video podcast playback and a Purchase Sharing change that lets adult family members use their own payment method.
- macOS Tahoe 26.4 introduces a Charge Limit slider to cap battery at 80–100 percent and restores Safari’s compact tab bar, while tvOS adds a Genius Browse section in the Apple TV app and removes the separate iTunes Movies and iTunes TV Shows apps.
- watchOS speeds starting a workout with a one‑tap Workout type and gains the new emoji set, and visionOS improves Spatial Audio startup in familiar rooms and adds support for AirPods Max 2.
- The widely expected generative Siri overhaul is absent after reports of delays, and features tried in beta such as RCS end‑to‑end encryption testing did not ship in the final builds.