Ryan Haines / Android Authority
TL;DR
- iOS 26 is out now for iPhone users, and many have been reporting problems with Liquid Glass dark mode icons looking crooked.
- The system renders these icons with a highlight around the edge, and at the wrong angle, an illusion can make them appear tilted.
- In motion, the effect should be far less noticeable, but screenshots can still look very off.
There’s plenty of ribbing back-and-forth, some of it good-natured, some of it not, between Android and iOS users. Passionate fans on both sides of the fence love talking about how their preferred platform is making great strides with intuitive design and effortless usability — and often can’t help but feel a little bit of smug satisfaction when things go spectacularly wrong for the other guys. Apple’s Liquid Glass design for iOS 26 has been controversial since almost day one, and with the update now widely out, users have spotted one decision that’s leaving them feeling a little off-balance.
Don’t want to miss the best from Android Authority?
We’re looking at how app icons are rendered in dark mode with Liquid Glass in iOS 26, as highlighted here on Reddit’s iOS sub by user tantunidevourer (via AppleInsider):
It might not immediately hit you, but once it does, the effect is hard to ignore. While all your icons stay the same shape in dark mode, the lighting effect Apple now uses can cast a highlight on the upper-left corner that creates an optical illusion making the entire tile look slightly askew.
Users who aren’t in low-power mode will see those specular highlights shift around as they move their iPhone, so this is probably a worst-case scenario like we’re seeing here — and in motion, it’s arguably a lot less objectionable. But we’re also seeing a whole lot of vocally displeased users who recently upgraded and are regretting Apple’s choices.
To be fair, Android is far from perfect when it comes to working with icons — how are we only just now sorting out universal icon color theming? But at least those missteps haven’t left us feeling like we needed to sit down for a moment and catch our balance like this one is doing.
Does Apple need to include some Dramamine with its iOS 26 update? Are you just not seeing the problem here? Defend Liquid Glass or get into some of that good-natured ribbing down in the comments.
Thank you for being part of our community. Read our Comment Policy before posting.