iOS 26.4 Release Imminent: New Features and What to Expect

Apple is on the verge of releasing iOS 26.4 to the public, likely next week, following the release of the Release Candidate (RC) build to beta testers. This update paves the way for iOS 26.5, which will introduce the first Gemini-powered Siri and Apple Intelligence features. IOS 26.4 delivers 13 enhancements to your iPhone, focusing on Apple Music, accessibility and overall system improvements.

What’s New in iOS 26.4?

Apple Music Enhancements

• Playlist Playground (beta): This new feature allows users to generate playlists based on text descriptions, including a title, description, and tracklist.
• Concerts: Users can now discover nearby live shows from artists in their Apple Music library, with recommendations for new artists based on listening habits.
• Offline Music Recognize: This feature identifies songs without an internet connection and automatically delivers results when connectivity is restored.
• Ambient Music Widget: Curated playlists for Sleep, Chill, Productivity, and Wellbeing are now available as widgets on the Home Screen.
• Full Screen Backgrounds: Album and playlist pages now offer a more immersive experience with full-screen backgrounds.

Accessibility Improvements

• Reduce Bright Effects: A new setting minimizes bright flashes when interacting with elements like buttons.
• Simplified Subtitle Settings: Subtitle and caption settings are now accessible directly from the captions icon even as viewing media, making customization and previewing easier.
• Improved Reduce Motion: The Reduce Motion setting more reliably reduces animations for users sensitive to screen motion.

Additional Enhancements

• New Emoji: iOS 26.4 introduces eight new emoji, including an orca, trombone, landslide, ballet dancer, and distorted face.
• Freeform Updates: The Freeform app gains advanced image creation and editing tools, along with access to a premium content library through Apple Creator Studio.
• Urgent Reminders: Users can now mark reminders as urgent from the Quick Toolbar or by touch and hold, with the ability to filter for urgent reminders in Smart Lists.
• Purchase Sharing: Family Sharing groups can now allow adult members to use their own payment methods for purchases, eliminating reliance on the family organizer.
• Keyboard Accuracy: Improved keyboard accuracy when typing quickly.

iOS 26.4 is currently available as a Release Candidate build for beta testers. The official public release is expected to follow next week.