I have read and heard a great deal of negative commentary on Liquid Glass, but I like it. Yesterday I posted that I updated my wallpaper with photos from the Artemis mission. I think this image is an example of how Liquid Glass can enhance the aesthetic of our computing experience. In this image, Liquid Glass minimizes the time display so that it does not distract from the photo, though the placement of the date is less than ideal. As far as I can determine, the date cannot be relocated on the iPad lock screen.
7 Likes
I think I must be in the minority (based on the echochamber of tech podcasts) that I actually like Liquid Glass. 
I’ve always liked it. There are things to improve, but the overall look I find pleasing and perfectly usable.
1 Like
Not that my opinion matters much, but… I like it on iOS. I, however, loathe it on macOS. 
6 Likes
I agree that it is much better on iOS.
I guess I’m weird, but it’s not bothering me on macOS either.
1 Like
I’m mostly OK with Liquid Glass by now, but there are (at least) two things I still think are very ugly:
- this “liquid” clock… (luckily that can be disabled on iOS; wish we could do that on macOS as well)
- the different corner ratios (of different apps)
I’m still not a fan, but I can tolerate it on my iPhone and iPad. My Mac, on the other hand, may stay on Sequoia until it goes to the recycler.
2 Likes
@WayneG Can you give some examples of things that are such deal breakers to you that you refuse to upgrade? Not picking a fight or anything – truly curious. You aren’t the first person (in the tech blogosphere) I’ve heard say that. Just seems like quite a leap. Curious your thoughts.
1 Like
I installed macOS 15, and went back to macOS 14, twice before I was happy with Sequoia. I use my MacBook Air as a home server. It contains the files that I don’t want online, a copy of my photos, and archives of files that I keep for various reasons. It also holds a mirror of my Google Drive and iCloud data and backs up everything locally and online. And it runs Google Chrome that I need for sites that don’t run properly in Safari.
In my case, there are no deal breakers. Tahoe just doesn’t offer me anything that is worth dealing with the bugs and unfinished UI elements.
4 Likes
I can’t SEE stuff in liquid glass! It’s a POS big time. I wear bifocal contacts, have cheater readers for books and a different prescription for computer screens (which are further away from my eyes) Liquid glass sends me into an inability to even distinguish what is being displayed. The resulting in/out of focus triggers a headache that makes a migraine seem like a minor problem and can result in me being unable to work on a computer for hours until I regain equilibrium. The after effects of a session in liquid glass include me stumbling down things like stairs where depth perception is critical. Also difficult to walk through a field navigating irrigation marks after working in liquid glass for a while.
I have a new MacBook Pro, that runs Tahoe only, and I’m still struggling with every available accessibility option to get something where I can work on it for more than an hour at a time without having these issues. On my phone it’s a complete non-starter, so bad that I just hope and pray my phone will last long enough to get past that s**t before I’m forced to upgrade it.
5 Likes
It’s also not just liquid glass. I’ve posted in other posts the screen freezes, UI glitches and other problems. I also hate my iPad that now doesn’t do simple split screens.
My iPhone 16 plus was the worst iPhone I’ve ever purchased, from the crappy photos to the pathetic AI. I’ve now replaced it with a Pixel Pro 10 XL and couldn’t be happier. OS 26 heralds a change of quality and the paywalling of iWorks. I have thankfully been moving to cross platform apps in the last 5 years as I suspect at some point Apple’s quality will not be worth the price.
1 Like
I hope not, but I’ve always kept my options open. And if Apple doesn’t delivery on their 2024 AI promises this year, I will probably add a Pixel to my toolkit.
I think for me to consider going to Android full time, I’d have to see a marked change in the app industry. The apps (in my experience) on Android just aren’t as plentiful nor as polished as their iOS counterparts (if they even exist on Android). Not even close. But that doesn’t mean it’ll always be that way!
I hope Apple keeps the pressure on Google in that regard. Meaning making sure they improve their software, hardware, and developer relations to keep the ecosystem healthy. I can’t see myself leaving Apple any time soon, but I’m also not beholden to them. While I’m fully entrenched in their ecosystem, everything I have is completely portable if needed.
OTOH there are apps on Android that are never on iOS due to how Apple locks down hardware. Now I won’t say AnimalTrakker® is a mainstream app although we are working on world domination in field collection of data and pedigree registry operations for farmers and ranchers with the 6 main livestock species, 
But, until things change in the EID reader industry we cannot make a version for iOS.
Apple requires all Bluetooth classic devices to use in their design a chip approved by Apple and conform to specific rules regarding the connections. Most of the EID readers that are available use Bluetooth Classic. Only a few have the Apple approved chips and those devices are typically $2500 or more each. That makes the entire system a non-starter for both small farms and very large ones. The closed nature of Apple means I cannot perform the required functions with a variety of hardware peripherals that are in common use. Plus with a grand total of 2 primary programmers we are hard pressed to keep up with our already complex system of Android app for phones and tablets, desktop app for Mac, Linux and Windows using Electron and Web portal for registries using Python, Flask and Gunicorn.
<>
In the sheep industry small farms with less than 100 breeding ewes cannot afford the cost of a system when you pair a $2500 reader plus a monthly or yearly software subscription that typically runs in the $500-1$,500/yr range plus additional tablets or phones to talk to the system. Nearly all the desktop apps are Windows only. Large farms with 2000 or more breeding ewes need a full system for each band of 1000 ewes plus their lambs. With a typical range flock in Colorado having 5-10 bands that is a cost they cannot afford. It’s unworkable with the tiny margins due to cost of production here. We face huge numbers and varieties of predators and lack of equivalent preventative vaccines and drugs. Our competitors in other countries often have no major predators and can use a variety of vaccines and dewormers that our FDA wants to force the companies to redo safety and efficacy trials on even though they are used effectively on more sheep each year in those countries than exist in all of the US!
<>
Which is a long winded way to say that there are often MORE apps on Android that service small niches than can be made on Apple due to Apple’s restrictions.
2 Likes
I’ve found Android 16 every bit as polished as OS26, except I can actually see what I’m looking at on the Pixel. The AI integration is excellent and makes me wonder what on earth Apple are thinking, they are way behind the curve here. All the apps I need work great. Todoist, Obsidian, 1Password, Claude, MS Office and of course Google Workspace. I’ve not found anything yet that makes me regret the switch. Contacts where moved from iCloud to Google without a hitch. I also prefer Google photos over Apple photos. Apple photos never synced properly for me. I did try the switch before and it never stuck, so we’ll see what happens long term.
I think that’s fair – that there are more apps for niche purposes. I don’t think I can personally hold it against Apple that not every app can live on their platform. Maybe I’d be more worried if Android didn’t exist? I’d actually prefer a third option that was equally as popular…I think three competitors would make for a much healthier ecosystem (and would force Apple to change).
No push back here. I was specifically talking apps, not OS. I think Android has come a super, super long way and I prefer some of it’s design and functionality over iOS.
That’s great to hear! Last time I hopped on an Android device there were definitely apps I missed that either didn’t exist or weren’t nearly as reliable/polished as their iOS counterparts. Admittedly that’s been a year or so, so I’ll continue to monitor!
Same experience. Even though cross platform is a thing, and in general works, it’s just not as seamless (at least in my experience). The number of cross platform apps that I found were better on iOS:
- 1Password
- Notion
- Todoist
- Disney World
- Adobe Apps
- Day One
- Logos
I’m sure there are more, but those were first to mind.
The bigger issue for me were things that just don’t exist on Android but do exist on iOS. I can’t leave Things behind. I’ve tried, and failed so many times to use something else as my task list. It just works too well and I have too much history in it. Jump Desktop doesn’t exist on Android. Arguably I could use something else, but again this is all configured and working well with multiple people on a team, so I hesitate to make that switch. The reason for this thread: Apple Photos. I tried Google Photos, Mylio, and all are inferior with my family.
Then there’s the opposite, things that work better on Android than iOS: browsers, AI / voice, keyboard, messaging, etc… The hard part for me is that these are such system level things, that it really makes not using Android a difficult choice.
All that said, I came to the conclusion that if Apple really wanted to solidify their platform as the de-facto one (for me), they should simply allow full customization of the platform. If I could more easily swap out their systems that lock me in, I’d be less likely to even consider the alternative.
As it stands though, my full switch to Android is coming. It’s just a matter of time. Apple seems to believe that the lock-in is what keeps people on iOS. They are right, but not seeing the full picture. Being “locked in” keeps you on a system but it embitters you toward it. It’d be better if the reason why people chose your platform is because it is genuinely better, or it allowed you to work the way you want. That’s how I remember the Apple of old, and why I moved from Windows to Mac in the first place.
Really enjoyed this take and specificity! I think the other thing Apple has going for it is a better focus on privacy, but as services revenue becomes more important, advertisements and up charges are becoming more common, which makes me a little concerned on the privacy front.
I’m with you 100% on browsers. And I’m with you 99% on opening up for more choice (read, alternate app stores, etc). I do think I should have more control over MY phone. I get where Apple has to balance this against what works for most of its users. It’s not an easy problem no matter how much we wish it were so.
If Android apps keep getting better, I could be intrigued. I try to keep all my data somewhat portable for this very reason. I never want to be fully locked into a platform.
1 Like
Of the apps I listed I can find no difference between iOS and Android. I find Android settings far more granular than iOS. But this can be overwhelming.
I think this is now a modern fallacy. Out of the box I would agree with you, but in terms of the system settings a user has on an Android, it can be the same as iOS. Both companies have access to all your data and usage and Apple also has a multi-billion dollar ad revenue.