I Used iOS 27 for a Day, and These Changes Surprised Me

I usually don't expect huge changes whenever there's a new iOS update. Apple, in my opinion, tends to make small refinements rather than completely reinvent the iPhone experience.

The last major visual overhaul came with Liquid Glass in iOS 26. So when rumours about iOS 27 started flying around, I was a bit sceptical.

Part of that scepticism came from Apple's AI track record. The headline feature this year was a completely rebuilt Siri AI, but after everything that happened with Apple Intelligence over the past year, I wasn't about to get my hopes up again.

The one thing I was genuinely excited about, though, was the promise of tweaks to Liquid Glass. I wasn't the biggest fan of the design in iOS 26, and I was hoping Apple would make it look a bit sleeker and more consistent.

So I installed iOS 27 to see what all the fuss was about. Here are the things I noticed after using it for one day.

iOS 27 Release Time, New Features and Compatible iPhones

iOS 27 rolls out on Monday, September 14, with the update expected around 10 a.m. Pacific or 1 p.m. Eastern.

TechloyOgbonda Chivumnovu

My biggest gripe showed up almost immediately

Before I even started exploring new features, something kept bugging me.

Whenever I swiped up or down on the Lock Screen to bring up notifications, the background opacity kept changing. It almost looked like the interface couldn't decide whether it wanted to be transparent or frosted.

I don't know whether it's a weird iOS 27 bug or something specific to my iPhone 12 Pro Max, but I found it surprisingly jarring every single time it happened. Hopefully it's something Apple patches quickly.

The second thing? I'm still not completely sold on Liquid Glass.

It looks much better than it did in iOS 26, but dark wallpapers and some third-party apps still make the transparency feel a little messy. There are moments where the interface looks gorgeous, and other moments where it feels overly translucent for no reason.

The visual tweaks to Liquid Glass are actually good

But somehow Liquid Glass is probably my favourite part of iOS 27.

Instead of forcing everyone into one version of Liquid Glass, Apple has added a continuous translucency slider. You can adjust the interface from Ultraclear, almost completely transparent, all the way to Fully Tinted, which gives everything a much frostier, more opaque appearance.

I genuinely like this addition because it gives you control over how dramatic the effect looks instead of making Apple's design choice everyone's design choice.

I also noticed subtle changes across the interface.

The battery icon has been redesigned with flatter colours, especially when charging or in Low Power Mode. It looks cleaner and less glossy than before. The Wi-Fi and cellular icons have also changed slightly, although you'd probably miss those if you weren't looking closely.

And then there are the little animations.

Every time you tap an app icon, there's a tiny transition that somehow makes the phone feel more responsive. It's one of those details you don't notice until you do, and then it becomes oddly satisfying.

The apps got a few interesting changes

The first app that confused me was Preview.