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iOS 26.5 now available: Here are all the new iPhone features
After six weeks of beta testing, iOS 26.5 is now available to everyone. The update comes with a handful of new features and changes. Here’s everything you need to know. Updated May 12, 2026 with details about official release. iOS 26.5 details iOS 26.5 is now available to everyone. iPhone users can head to the Settings app, choose General, then choose Software Update to install it. iOS 26.5 features and changes New wallpapers iOS 26.5 adds new wallpapers for iPhone users. The new wallpapers come as part of Apple’s 2026 Pride collection. The Pride Luminance wallpapers are highly customizable. Users can choose from dozens of different color combinations. Apple says the Pride Luminance wallpaper highlights “colors that refract dynamically to celebrate the vibrancy, spirit, and individuality of the LGBTQ+ community.” It’s a “joyful and dynamic design” for iPhone users, complementing the Pride band for Apple Watch and matching Apple Watch face. Read more: iOS 26.5 adds beautiful wallpapers for your iPhone, here’s what’s new Apple Maps: Suggested Places, ads coming soon Last month, Apple announced its plans to bring ads to Apple Maps this summer. iOS 26.5 lays the groundwork for that change, adding the following text: “Maps may show local ads based on your approximate location, current search terms, or view of the map while you search.” As of iOS 26.5, however, Apple hasn’t actually rolled out ads to Apple Maps. iOS 26.5 also enables a new Suggested Places feature in Apple Maps. This feature, which you can see above, will “display recommendations based on what’s trending nearby, the user’s recent searches, and more.” RCS encryption Apple started testing end-to-end encryption for RCS messaging with iOS 26.4. The feature, however, didn’t actually ship as part of that update. Apple said it would come as part of a future iOS 26 update. Now, as part of iOS 26.5, RCS end-to-end encryption is rolling out to everyone. The feature is enabled by default. You can manage the option by going to Settings > Messages > RCS Messaging, where you’ll see a new “End-to-End Encryption (Beta)” toggle. You can view the carriers that support RCS end-to-end encryption on this webpage. The feature is rolling out gradually over the coming months. Even if a carrier is listed on the above webpage as supported, the feature might not be available for all users of that carrier right away. If RCS encryption is enabled for your device, you’ll see a lock icon at the top of the thr...
iOS 26.5 features — here's everything that's new for your iPhone
Siri and Google Assistant have long been available in CarPlay, but IOS 26.5 introduces broader integration, including ChatGPT. You can't use your voice to ...
iOS 26.5 Features: Everything New in iOS 26.5 - MacRumors
Apple released iOS 26.5 after a few months of beta testing, and while it doesn't have the Siri features we were hoping for since those are being held until ...
Looking for some Apple wireless/wired carplay data points ... - Reddit
iOS 26 here, history of issues with wireless carplay, infotainment reboot does not fix it, but sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. The only thing that ...
