iOS 26.1 Update: Reclaim Your iPhone Alarm Button

Alarms are often unwelcome, even when you set them yourself. Quickly dismissing an alarm is crucial to avoid disturbing others. With the release of iOS 26.1 in November, Apple introduced a new slider to disable alarms, which some users find cumbersome. Fortunately, you can revert to the traditional tap-to-stop functionality with a simple setting adjustment.

Why the Change?

The new slider was designed to prevent accidental alarm dismissals when reaching for your phone. Yet, the slider can be frustrating, especially when requiring multiple attempts to deactivate, potentially causing unwanted noise and disturbance.

How to Restore the Original Alarm Button

If you prefer the original alarm dismissal method, follow these steps:

1. Tap Settings.
2. Tap Accessibility.
3. Tap Touch.
4. Enable the toggle for Prefer Single-Touch Actions near the bottom of the menu.

Enabling this toggle restores the single-tap functionality for stopping alarms. It doesn’t appear to affect other iPhone features, but this could change in future updates.

Reverting to the Slider

To re-enable the alarm slider, simply follow the same steps and disable the Prefer Single-Touch Actions toggle.

What Else is New in iOS 26.1?

The iOS 26.1 update includes more than just the alarm change. Apple rolled out iOS 26.1 and iPadOS 26.1 on November 3, bringing several improvements. Key updates include:

• A new “Tinted” option for Liquid Glass, allowing for a more opaque interface.
• Support for 8 new languages in Apple Intelligence: Chinese (traditional), Danish, Dutch, Norwegian, Portuguese (Portugal), Swedish, Turkish, and Vietnamese.
• AirPods Live Translation support for 5 additional languages: Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Italian, Japanese, and Korean.
• A new swipe gesture in Apple Music for quick song switching.
• Significant security enhancements, with 56 security fixes included in the update.

For more information on iOS 26 and its features, see Apple’s support page on iOS 26 Updates and the MacRumors coverage of iOS 26.1.