iOS 26.2: New Features Coming to Six Key iPhone Apps
Discover how the latest update elevates Reminders, Apple Podcasts, Freeform, Games, Music, and News with smarter features and fresh enhancements.
Apple’s upcoming iOS 26.2 release is packed with smart refinements across the apps you use every day. While major OS upgrades tend to steal the spotlight, these incremental updates often deliver meaningful improvements that enhance daily life. This version zeroes in on making Apple’s built-in apps more intuitive, capable, and aligned to user needs.
Whether you’re looking to take control of your to-do lists, enjoy a richer podcast experience, or streamline your news and gaming, iOS 26.2 brings practical and powerful advancements. Here’s a closer look at what’s new in six core iPhone apps.
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Reminders Gets an Urgent Upgrade
Reminders has evolved well beyond a basic to-do list, and with iOS 26.2, it takes another leap forward. The highly requested alarm feature finally arrives: any reminder with a due time can now be marked as “Urgent.”
When a task is marked urgent, your iPhone will sound an alarm—just like a wake-up call—ensuring you don’t overlook time-sensitive items. If you’re not ready to act, you can snooze the alarm for nine minutes. For extra visibility, the alarm also integrates with Live Activities to keep important reminders in the foreground. This thoughtful update turns Reminders into a more reliable time management tool, helping you stay on top of critical tasks.
Apple Podcasts Gets Smarter with AI
Apple aims to set its Podcasts app apart with new, intelligent features in iOS 26.2 that make discovering and navigating episodes easier:
Automatic Chapters: Apple’s intelligence models now generate chapters for all podcasts, even if creators haven’t provided them. This makes it simple to jump to topics of interest in lengthy episodes—especially useful for mainstream shows that previously lacked this level of detail.
Podcast Mentions: When hosts reference other podcast episodes, the app provides direct links, streamlining your path to related content.
“From this episode”: This section surfaces other media highlighted by hosts, like TV shows, music, and books, creating a richer and more interconnected listening journey.
Freeform Expands Its Canvas with Tables
Freeform, Apple’s collaborative whiteboard, gets a notable upgrade with table support in iOS 26.2. Already known for its flexible boards combining text, images, files, and links, Freeform now lets you organize information further with tables.
The experience is familiar if you’ve ever used tables in Notes, enabling easy entry and formatting. This enhancement makes Freeform even more effective for brainstorming, project planning, or collaborative efforts requiring both structure and creative flow.
Apple Games Refines the Playing Field
The Apple Games app, first introduced with iOS 26, becomes even more user-friendly and dynamic thanks to user-driven improvements:
Library Filters: Sort your game library in new ways—by challenging titles, or by what your friends are playing. Finding the next game to play is now much easier.
Controller Support: Navigating the app with a Bluetooth controller is smoother than ever, especially for dedicated gamers looking for a console-like experience.
Real-Time Challenge Updates: Challenge scores update instantly while you play, keeping you informed without breaking your flow.
Apple Music Adds Offline Lyrics
A long-standing user request is finally addressed in iOS 26.2: time-synced lyrics are now available offline. Previously, enjoying lyrics required an active data connection. Now, you can view them whenever—and wherever—you’re listening, even on planes, subways, or in areas without service.
While it’s not yet clear exactly when or how lyrics are downloaded, the expectation is that songs added to your library will support offline lyrics by default. It’s a welcome change for anyone who loves a spontaneous singalong.
Apple News Improves Navigation and Discovery
Apple News gains a set of design enhancements in iOS 26.2 aimed at surfacing more of its rich content and making navigation seamless.
New quick links appear at the top of the Today screen, providing instant access to sections like Puzzles, Sports, Politics, and Food. The navigation bar has also been reorganized—a more prominent “Following” tab highlights the content you track, while the Search tab adds smarter recommendations and quick links for faster discovery. Together, these updates create a more intuitive, engaging, and enjoyable reading experience.
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