Exploring Apple's iOS 27: A Week of Transparent Living with Liquid Glass

Washington DC, United States Jul 23, 2026 ALN: I scroll on my phone, sipping on an overpriced espresso tonic at a San Francisco café. I watch as glassy notifications pop up on my home screen, one after another, distorting the top row of app icons in neat succession. Similar to how the glass in my hand refracts the coffee’s colors, the warping effect of Apple’s Liquid Glass tugs at the edges of whatever's behind each notification, disappearing a second later.

Apple dropped the public beta for iOS 27 in mid-July, with the software’s full release expected in September. The beta version of iOS includes a new slider for adjusting Liquid Glass’s appearance across your iPhone. Apple’s translucent operating system was polarizing when it launched in 2025, with some criticizing how the design impacted text legibility. In response, Apple rolled out updates that tampered with the Liquid Glass effect, making the smartphone interface more opaque.

With iOS 27, Apple gives users the option to make Liquid Glass even more transparent than its default. In the current public beta, this choice is available in Settings under the Appearance tab. If you tap on Liquid Glass here, you can drag it to the left for a more transparent experience.

Fear not—if you don’t feel the same way as I do about transparency—you can drag that same slider to the right and boost the overall opacity of Liquid Glass. There’s still the option to Reduce Transparency and Increase Contrast as well.

I immediately cranked my settings to maximum clarity after I downloaded the public beta and left the setting on for a week to get the full experience. I understand why some prefer the heavily tinted version or need to switch it for accessibility reasons, yet I reveled in the warped colors and characters as I experienced Liquid Glass in its clearest glory.

Early during my tests, I found myself slowly scrolling up and down on my Slack messages, watching as the names of Slack rooms refracted behind the menu bar at the bottom of my smartphone screen. I watched as the letters curled into meaningless lines and then reformed, unharmed, on the other side. The more I stared, the more whimsical it felt, and the more I appreciated Apple’s glassy design risk.

The “more clear” option also added an increased depth to my device—reminiscent of an Apple update from more than a decade ago, in iOS 7, that you likely haven’t thought about in a minute: 3D apps. Apple added a parallax wallpaper effect during the iPhone 5’s heyday that used the smartphone’s gyroscope to make it appear as if app icons on your home screen floated slightly above the background, visibly shifting to the phone’s tilt.

Both Liquid Glass and 3D app icons gave the iPhone a more tactile sense of dimensionality. “Translucency, parallax, animation, and motion (like a weather app showing falling snow) give the system a dive-in quality that it didn't have before. It appears three-dimensional in some ways,” wrote former staffer Mat Honan about Apple’s announcement of its iOS 7 redesign. I experienced a similar “dive-in quality” when I cranked up the transparency of Liquid Glass in iOS 27.

Halfway through my week of testing, this option started to look so normal to me that I worried I had accidentally reset my phone to the default and checked my settings to ensure “more clear” was still enabled. It was. Which was a relief, and a sign I’d adjusted to this clearer version of Liquid Glass even faster than anticipated.

If anything, the glassy effect became quite easy to ignore most of the time as I used my device. The clearest design elements of Liquid Glass often seemed relegated to menu bars or other smaller details near the edges of my screen. So, the legibility of what I was attempting to read was rarely impacted. Often, I would notice Liquid Glass warping words and colors out of the corner of my eye as I used my iPhone.

This transparency toggle is not as flashy a change as others available in the current iOS 27 beta, most notably the Siri assistant overhaul. Even so, this clear-minded update was delightful to try, and I’m keeping up with my transparent lifestyle even after the weeklong experiment ended. I don’t mind if my smartphone functions more like a beautiful piece of art at times rather than always prioritizing utility—clearly.

The introduction of Liquid Glass in Apple's operating system was part of a broader trend in mobile design that emphasizes aesthetics alongside functionality. This trend has been evident in various iterations of iOS, where Apple has consistently sought to differentiate its user experience through innovative visual elements. The use of translucency, shadows, and depth has been a hallmark of Apple's design philosophy, aiming to create a more engaging and immersive user interface.

Liquid Glass, in particular, was designed to evoke a sense of fluidity and modernity, aligning with contemporary design principles that favor minimalism and elegance. However, the initial backlash regarding legibility highlights a critical aspect of design: the balance between form and function. While aesthetic appeal can enhance user engagement, it is essential that such features do not compromise usability, especially for individuals with visual impairments or those who rely on clear text for effective communication.

In response to user feedback, Apple has been proactive in refining Liquid Glass, demonstrating its commitment to user-centered design. The ability to adjust transparency levels allows users to customize their experience according to their preferences and needs, which is a significant step towards inclusivity in technology. This adaptability is particularly important in today's diverse user landscape, where devices are used by people of various ages and abilities.

The impact of such design choices extends beyond individual user experiences; they can also influence industry standards and trends. As Apple continues to innovate, other tech companies often follow suit, adopting similar features in their products. This creates a ripple effect in the market, pushing competitors to enhance their design aesthetics and user interfaces. Consequently, the evolution of Liquid Glass may inspire new approaches to transparency and depth in mobile design across various platforms.

Moreover, the reception of Liquid Glass can serve as a case study in the ongoing dialogue about the role of design in technology. It raises questions about how much emphasis should be placed on visual elements versus practical functionality. As technology evolves, the challenge remains to create interfaces that are not only visually appealing but also accessible and user-friendly.

In the context of user experience design, iOS 27's Liquid Glass can be seen as a bold experiment. The transparency toggle exemplifies how technology can cater to personal preferences while also addressing broader accessibility concerns. By giving users the tools to control their experience, Apple empowers them to tailor their devices to fit their unique needs, fostering a sense of ownership and satisfaction.

As we look forward to the full release of iOS 27, it will be interesting to see how Liquid Glass evolves based on user feedback and how it continues to shape the conversation around design in technology. The balance between aesthetic innovation and functional clarity will remain a focal point for Apple and the industry at large as they navigate the complexities of modern design.

In conclusion, the journey through iOS 27 with its Liquid Glass feature highlights the interplay between design and usability in technology. As users engage with these new features, their experiences will contribute to the ongoing evolution of mobile design, influencing not only how we interact with our devices but also how we perceive technology as a whole. The transparent living experience brought forth by Liquid Glass may just be the beginning of a new era in smartphone design—one that celebrates both beauty and functionality in equal measure.