5 iOS 26 Features Android Users Already Have

Apple unveiled iOS 26 at WWDC 2025 back in June, with the beta version available to download following the event. The stable version of iOS 26 will be available in a few weeks as a free update for all compatible iPhones, with the iPhone 17 series being among the first phones to run the new OS. Like every new mobile operating system, iOS 26 introduces several new features that competitors may want to adopt. That's the usual cat-and-mouse game we've witnessed for years between Apple and Google, the two giants behind the most popular mobile operating systems.

While both companies keep taking inspiration from each other, Android users have had access to several features iPhone users will discover once they install iOS 26. The list includes dynamic wallpapers, Visual Intelligence support, Call Screening and Hold Assist, spam detection and unknown sender screening, and Live Translation support in Messages, FaceTime, and the Phone app.

iOS 26 delivers arguably the biggest design makeover since iOS 7. Termed Liquid Glass, the new design brings translucent elements to every menu and button, giving the user interface a fresh coat of paint. One of the best places to showcase the glass and light effects is the lock screen — thanks to the new dynamic wallpapers.

After the update, users will experience new effects when setting their wallpapers. First, the San Francisco font displaying the time will change its size automatically — depending on the elements in the background. The typeface will also adapt its size when notifications come in. Additionally, the software uses AI to turn 2D images into 3D experiences. Well, Google's Pixel phones received Cinematic wallpapers in June 2023, allowing users to turn their 2D pictures into 3D images. Moreover, the new clock design with dynamic wallpapers looks eerily similar to Xiaomi's implementation on HyperOS 2.0, which began rolling out in early 2025.

Apple unveiled Visual Intelligence during the iPhone 16 announcement in 2024. It's an Apple Intelligence feature that lets you point the camera at objects, monuments, animals, plants, etc., and ask questions about them. Users need to press the Camera Control button or Action button to invoke Visual Intelligence. With iOS 26, Apple expanded the abilities of Visual Intelligence by letting you search the contents of your screen. The feature can recognize products you see online and find similar items, add events to the Calendar app, find the breed of a dog, or pass questions to ChatGPT.

Google Lens – introduced in 2017 — is an early Google product that lets users identify objects in the real world and interact with them. In early 2024, Google unveiled the Circle to Search functionality that further leverages Google Lens's capabilities to allow users to perform searches related to everything they see on their phone's screen.

Apple announced two important features that are coming to the Phone app with iOS 26 — Call Screening and Hold Assist. Call Screening automatically answers calls from unknown numbers and asks the caller to identify themselves. The process happens in the background, and the phone stays silent until the identification process is complete. Only then does the iPhone ring, and the user can decide whether to pick up the call.

Hold Assist is another useful feature that should improve your call experience. It comes in handy when calling customer support or other such call centers, since you don't have to listen to a robot. The feature holds the call for you until a live agent connects. The phone will then ring, so you know a human is ready to talk to you. Google introduced the Call Screen feature in 2018, allowing Google Assistant to answer calls from unknown callers. Hold for Me is an Android feature released in 2020, offering similar functionality to Hold Assist.

Along with the Phone app, the Messages app on iOS also got two useful updates in iOS 26: spam detection and unknown senders screening. Spam detection uses on-device filters to keep spam messages away from the main Messages screen. Unknown sender screening will move all messages from an unknown number to a separate menu, so you can focus on the conversations you have with people who are important to you. The features will not block time-sensitive texts like security codes or notifications about specific events, like your table being ready at a restaurant.

Google Messages already features spam detection, with Google introducing the feature in 2018. In late 2024, Google announced a new Scam Detection feature for phone calls that uses on-device Gemini Nano processing to identify potentially malicious calls. Apple doesn't have an alternative in iOS 26 to this more advanced anti-spam tool. Perhaps a similar feature could be rolled out in subsequent iterations of iOS 26.

Apple Intelligence on iOS 26 brings Live Translation capabilities to three apps: Messages, FaceTime, and Phone. The feature uses Apple-built models that run entirely on the device, so your data isn't leaving your device. The feature is useful for translating written text in the Messages app and spoken language in the FaceTime and Phone apps. In fact, it even works for voice notes sent via the Messages app. Rumors say the Live Translation functionality will also be available on AirPods in the near future to translate real-time conversations.

Google unveiled its Live Translate feature with the Pixel 6 series in 2021. The feature lets Android users translate messages in various apps, including Google Messages, WhatsApp, and others. Additionally, Google Assistant also has an Interpreter Mode feature, allowing for real-time translation between two parties. It works on calls as well as during real-world conversations.