iOS 27 is Apple's major software update of the year, and it brings a lot of interesting features to get excited about. From a rebuilt Siri getting its own dedicated app to new Visual Intelligence features and AI-powered Shortcuts, there is a lot to look forward to in this update. So, we are breaking down everything new in iOS 27, from features to supported devices and release date, all in one spot.
Everything New in iOS 27 Update
Most of the rumoured features have come to pass, with Siri as the biggest highlight, along with several AI-powered upgrades to the Camera, Photos, Shortcuts, and Wallet apps. Let's take a look at everything new in the iOS 27 update.
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Siri AI and the Dedicated Siri App
iOS 27 introduces the new Siri AI, which is more conversational and context-aware and can provide deeper personalised recommendations based on your locally stored data like photos, mail, messages, notes and more, which was originally promised in 2024 with the launch of the iPhone 16 series.
It also has a new interface appearing as a bubble surrounding the Dynamic Island, showing a "Search or Ask" field. Users can activate this feature with a new swipe-down from the Dynamic Island gesture.
iOS 27 also features a dedicated Siri app for the first time since its arrival on the iPhone 4S. It allows users to have back-and-forth conversations with Siri. The app supports both text and voice modes and also understands the context of the screen thanks to Google Gemini integration in Siri.
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Adjust Siri's Pitch and Tone
To make the new Siri sound less like a monotonous AI assistant, Apple added a new menu to let users adjust the Pace and Expressivity in Siri's Voice. This makes Siri sound more natural than before.
The feature was marked as "Coming Soon" in earlier betas, but it is finally ready to use in the latest iOS 27 developer beta 3 update. Simply head to Settings > Siri > Voice to adjust its tone.
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Siri in the Camera App
Talking about Siri, it is also coming to the Camera app with a new Siri mode. Users can find Siri Mode alongside Photo, Video, Portrait, Time Lapse and other options. Users can click a picture of anything and get details about it in real-time, along with web results from Siri.
There's also a new Visual Intelligence option added within the Siri menu in the Settings app. It includes an option called "Highlight to Image Search". It is turned off by default, but enabling it allows users to search for results similar to the subject, but the data will be shared with third parties.
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Siri in iOS Keyboard
Users will also find a new Write with Siri suggestion when opening the keyboard in the Mail, Messages, Notes and other apps. It also upgrades the existing Writing Tools with Siri, as it can now proofread, rewrite, and provide suggestions on your text.
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Changes in Liquid Glass on iOS
With the iOS 27 update, Apple is providing more control to adjust the intensity of the transparency effects in liquid glass. There's a new Liquid Glass slider that lets you keep the transparency or change back to a frosted look in older iOS versions, and it also applies to third-party apps.
New Features in the Photos App
The Photos app in iOS 27 gets an improved search to look up images in natural language. You can be as specific as you want to. Shared albums now also allow contributions from Windows and Android devices.
The Photos app gets a new Apple Intelligence tools section in iOS 27 with two new AI-powered features:
- Extend: Extend generates additional image content beyond the original frame, for example, filling in surrounding scenery or a close-up shot of a landmark.
- Reframe: Reframe is designed primarily for spatial photos and lets users shift perspective after a shot is taken.
- Improved Clean Up Tool: The existing Clean Up tool in iOS 27 has received a new High Quality option, offering cleaner and more accurate object removal by sending the image to cloud servers.
These iOS 27 features work with all images, whether they are shot from an iPhone or imported from other sources. They also support RAW-format images.
Edit Images in Natural Language
Another upcoming iOS 27 feature will allow users to edit images using natural language. So, you can say 'improve lighting and tone down the contrast', and it automatically applies these changes.
Rating System in Photos App
iOS 27 developer beta 3 added a new rating system in the Photos app, allowing users to rate their images out of 5 stars, with the rating badge appearing on every photo. It can be enabled from Settings > Apps > Photos > View options > Show Rating Controls. However, it is unclear what it is for right now.
Describe a Shortcut with Prompts
The Shortcuts app is also getting Apple Intelligence integration, as users can now describe shortcuts in natural language. You can simply type a prompt, and the app will use AI to generate a new shortcut, making it easy for many users to make and use their own custom automations.
In earlier betas, the Shortcuts app would open Describe a Shortcut by default. But with iOS 27 developer beta 3, users can pick to open the older Shortcuts editor instead from Settings > Apps > Shortcuts.
Changes to Lock Screen Wallpaper
iOS 27 developer beta 3 added a new effect that shows the subject of the lock screen wallpaper first over the home screen when pulling down the notification shade. It looks something like this.
The lock screen shortcuts also have new black icons instead of white, making them more visible when using lighter-coloured wallpapers.
Intuitive Child Safety Features
iOS 27 is bringing child safety features to the next level, allowing parents to select a few essential apps and set up Ask to Buy so the kids don't make unwanted purchases. Kids will also need permission from parents to open websites with the new Ask to Browse feature.
Parents can also set time allowances or schedules, letting their kids use games or social media apps for a specific period only. Apple is even letting parents change any regular account to a kid's account if required.
Real-time Context During a Call
The Phone app will now pull relevant context related to a call and show results in real time. For example, if you have received a call from Amazon, it will show order details from the Messages or Mail app about your delivery.
Create a Pass in Apple Wallet
Another new iOS 27 feature is Create a Pass in Apple Wallet. It allows users to create a digital pass by scanning a QR code, ticket or gym membership card. The feature includes customisation tools for styles, images, colours, and text fields.
The developer beta 2 added the option to select individual colours and textures for each pass.
Smarter Bill Splitting
Apple is also working on smarter bill-splitting tools in Apple Cash that can generate payment requests after scanning a receipt. This would let users split a restaurant bill directly from the Wallet app without needing a third-party service.
Apple Wallet Insights
With iOS 27 developer beta 2, Apple Wallet received a new insights feature that lets you look back on your spending habits. It will let users "connect accounts to Wallet to see spending insights, recurring transactions, account balances, and more". However, the feature is not fully implemented yet.
Safari Updates
Safari is getting automatic naming for Tab Groups based on content, which means your open tabs will be organised automatically by topic. Users should also see a new Safari start page, with four tabs covering favourites, bookmarks, a reading list, and browsing history.
Apple Health Upgrades
The Cycle Tracker feature in Apple Health can notify about symptoms of perimenopause when you log your cycle patterns in the app on iOS 27.
iPhone Fold Support
The rumoured iPhone Fold Ultra will be one of the first devices to launch with iOS 27 out of the box. So, iOS 27 should also bring about several changes to support the bigger foldable display. This could include multitasking features, like floating windows, split-screen apps, or an iPad-style home screen layout. It is also likely that it might support some iPadOS apps even though it is running on iOS.
Image Playground Redesign
Image Playground is getting a redesigned interface in iOS 27, with fewer controls and a new "describe a change" option for editing images that have already been generated. But the biggest change is that you can move objects inside the image anywhere you want without affecting the rest of the photo.
Image Playground on iOS 27 lets you add people from your photo library to create custom images. It also uses improved AI models to generate more realistic, lifelike images with resize options, including landscapes and wallpapers. This allows users to generate custom wallpapers for the device with Image Playground.
What's New in Screen Time
Apple has also made it easier to quickly check which apps you use the most in the Screen Time app on iOS 27. Now, your most-used apps will appear in a bottom shelf, letting you keep tabs on them at a glance.
Performance and Stability Improvements
iOS 26 had a lot of bugs upon its launch, and several users complained about issues long after the public release. Apple is fixing that with iOS 27, with up to 30% faster app loading speeds by preloading the data, 70% image loading in the Photos app and 50% faster file transfers in AirDrop.
Apple is also using an optimised CPU scheduler to improve performance on older iPhones like the iPhone 11, iPhone 12 and the iPhone 13 series. The developer beta 2 further improved performance, stability and battery life.
Custom EQ Support for AirPods
iOS 27 also adds support for custom EQ, as in equaliser tuning for AirPods. This has been a much-requested feature, allowing users to set their own sound tuning based on their listening preferences.
AirPods are also getting more controls over Adaptive noise. iOS 27 developer beta 3 added a new slider that lets users switch to more noise cancellation or more transparency.
AI-Enhanced Home App
The Home app also gets Apple Intelligence integrations, which now enable it to alert you about exactly what is happening on the video footage and provide you with a summary of the same if required. You can also comb through the different recorded footage in the Home app with natural language searches.
With the iOS 27 developer beta 2, Apple added the ability to update Apple TV from the Home app. The option is available in the Update section.
Note: To use the new Apple Intelligence features in the Home app, users will need to subscribe to the 2 GB iCloud Plus plan.
Reply to Individual RCS Messages
In developer beta 2, iOS 27 expanded RCS messaging support, allowing users to reply to a single message in the app, similar to iMessage. Users can press and hold a message in an RCS chat and see the Reply option at the top.
5G+ Support in India
iPhone users in India also get support for 5G+ connectivity with the iOS 27 developer beta 3 update, allowing for faster and more reliable internet speed with carriers like Jio, Airtel and Vi.
iOS 27 Release Date: Developer Beta vs Public Release
If we follow the pattern from previous years, then Apple will release the iOS 27 update in three phases:
- Developer Beta Release Date: The iOS 27 developer beta 1 rolled out on June 9, 2026, followed by developer beta 2 on June 23, 2026, and the iOS 27 developer beta 3 arriving on July 7, 2026.
- Public Beta Launch Date: The iOS 27 public beta 1 update arrived on July 13, 2026.
- Official Release Date: The official iOS 27 update should be released to all eligible iPhones in September 2026, coinciding with the launch of the upcoming iPhone Fold and iPhone 18 series.
iOS 27 Supported Devices
iOS 27 is coming to the iPhone 11 series, up to the latest iPhone 17 and iPhone Air. This means that Apple is dropping support for iPhone XS and older devices. You can check out our list of iOS 27-eligible devices for a detailed rundown of supported iPhones.
That wraps up everything we have for iOS 27, eligible devices, features and release date. The update might not be as feature-packed, but it is still shaping up to be a big upgrade, and I am sure many Apple iPhone users like me are excited to receive it on our devices. So keep an eye out for the update, and I hope you found this guide useful.
