Apple unveiled significant refinements to Liquid Glass at WWDC 2026, addressing user feedback from last year's initial rollout. The translucent design language now handles complex background content more effectively, with improved diffusion that makes text more readable throughout the system. Apple added darkened edges and brighter specular highlights to create better visual separation between interface elements.

A major user-facing change arrives via a new transparency slider in Settings, letting users dial Liquid Glass anywhere from ultra-clear to fully tinted. Unlike simple on/off toggles, this granular control lets people customize how much of the glass effect appears across their device. Existing apps using Liquid Glass automatically inherit these improvements on iOS 27 without requiring developer updates.

Apple also fixed scrolling behavior under floating bars, automatically displaying uniform toolbars that maintain text legibility. Icon rendering received substantial updates too, with sharper, more defined app icons featuring selective refraction effects. Developers can now build multi-layer Liquid Glass icons using the updated Icon Composer tool.

These iterative improvements show Apple is listening to user concerns about the polarizing design language. By giving users more control and fixing readability issues, iOS 27 makes Liquid Glass more practical for daily use while maintaining its distinctive aesthetic.