New emoji, Liquid Glass changes, and more. By Alex Perry on March 19, 2026.
Apple’s next big-ish iOS update is purportedly just days away, and we finally have a good idea of what it will contain.
The update, officially called iOS 26.4, is expected to launch next week, per 9to5mac. Accordingly, Apple has released the latest beta with a list of new features you can expect. A lot of them are small and not particularly exciting, but here are the three that stood out to us the most.
See also: iOS 27 update: Liquid Glass haters should prepare for disappointment
New emoji
Easily the most exciting new part of iOS 26.4 is the addition of several new emoji. These include a trombone, a funny distorted face that I’m sure will get used a lot online, a ballet dancer, an orca, and a sasquatch. I’m a big fan of the sasquatch, personally, but all of them are very good and will be welcome additions to the emoji portfolio.
Apple Music enhancements
Apple made some enticing changes to Apple Music for iOS 26.4. First off, a new Concerts feature will help you find nearby shows for artists you listen to on a regular basis. Sure, you could also just Google that, but hey, might as well cut out the middleman.
There are also new automatically generated playlists based on user descriptions, as well as new full screen backgrounds for album and playlist pages. This isn’t a massive overhaul for Apple Music by any means, but it should make the app better overall.
See also: Here’s how the MacBook Neo compares to older MacBook Airs
Another change to Liquid Glass
Lastly, there’s a small but hopefully helpful setting for Liquid Glass called “Reduce Motion.” This will, naturally, reduce the intensity of UI animations for people who are sensitive to that sort of thing. This isn’t a revolutionary change, but considering how many people still don’t like Liquid Glass for a variety of reasons, this should hopefully give them some peace of mind.
Alex Perry is a tech reporter at Mashable who primarily covers video games and consumer tech. Alex has spent most of the last decade reviewing games, smartphones, headphones, and laptops, and he doesn’t plan on stopping anytime soon. He is also a Pisces, a cat lover, and a Kansas City sports fan. Alex can be found on Bluesky at yelix.bsky.social.