The upcoming iOS 26.1 makes it easy to disable Liquid Glass, the translucent, glasslike user interface recently added to the iPhone (and Apple’s other devices). But judging from the results of a poll of Cult of Mac newsletter readers, a large majority of users are quite happy with Liquid Glass.
There’ve been plenty of complaints about the new look, but it seems these are coming from a vocal minority.
Liquid Glass: Apple’s controversial iPhone UI revamp
Liquid Glass is a translucent and fluid new interface in iOS 26 and the latest operating system upgrades for Apple’s other devices. Many elements of the UI go semi-transparent, while clever effects make it seem like users are looking through glass at objects shown on the screen behind the Dock, Control Center and pop-up windows.
Expressive. Delightful. But still instantly familiar.
Introducing our new software design with Liquid Glass. pic.twitter.com/8hA0q2aCTf
— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) June 9, 2025
The new look generated plenty of controversy and very negative posts on social media. Here are just a few examples.
“The glossy bubbles with highlights and shadows bouncing around all over my screen at every touch is not only nauseating to look at, but also impossible to use intuitively,” reads a post on Reddit.
“The new Liquid Glass looks abysmal and is a perfect example of focusing on form/prettiness/design over of functionality/readability/practicality,” said an X user.
And another X user wrote, “Just updated to Liquid Glass and it is genuinely 100x worse than I imagined.”
Apple’s Liquid Glass gets plenty love from Cult of Mac readers
Chart: Cult of Mac
Judging from a recent poll of Cult of Mac Today readers, the criticism isn’t indicative of widespread dislike of Liquid Glass. After the latest iOS 26.1 beta added an option to easily toggle off the new look, the Cult of Mac daily newsletter asked its readers a simple question: “Will you be turning off Liquid Glass?”
The winner with 74.3% of the vote was, “Heck no, I love it !”
In contrast, a mere 10.9% of respondents checked, “Yes, it’s an abomination.”
Obviously, this isn’t a scientific poll, and therefore can’t indicate exactly how iPhone users feel about Liquid Glass. But it does indicate that there’s plenty of love for the new look out there.
Criticism gets overrepresented
Reading about iOS 26 on Reddit, X and other social media platforms, one might get the impression that almost everyone hates Liquid Glass. There is certainly plenty of criticism of it. But that actually says more about human nature than Apple’s user interface.
Negative experiences trigger stronger emotional reactions than positive ones, motivating people to seek an outlet for their frustration. So people who don’t like Liquid Glass go online and vent.
In contrast, satisfied customers often take their positive experiences for granted. Apple designed a beautiful new iOS version, which is exactly what many people expected, so fans of Liquid Glass feel no urgency to share their feelings.
Apple isn’t ignoring the critics
While those who can’t stand Liquid Glass are apparently a minority, Apple isn’t ignoring their opinion. As mentioned, iOS 26.1 will soon let users turn off the new look with a single toggle.
And it’s already possible to deactivate it in the current iOS 26 version. The switch isn’t quite as easy to find, but we can walk you through the process.
