(Credit: Eric Zeman/PCMag)
We are all used to hearing bizarre rumors about Apple products, but every now and then, one still manages to catch us off guard. With just 10 days left until WWDC 2025, Bloomberg reports that the next version of iPhone software might not be called iOS 19.
Apple wants to align its operating systems with the year rather than version number. That means Apple plans to jump from iOS 18 to iOS 26. Though it will launch in 2025, Apple appears to be mimicking the auto industry, which releases its "model year 2026" cars in 2025, for example.
The goal is to bring uniformity to the naming system. Currently, because each OS originally launched in different years, the version numbers are inconsistent: iOS 18, macOS 15, watchOS 11, and visionOS 2. At WWDC, Apple is expected to change that and rebrand the upcoming versions of all of its software with the number 26.
In addition, Apple is expected to announce a uniform UI for each OS, codenamed Solarium after the glass structures that allow a lot of light. Among other changes, the UI will borrow elements from visionOS, such as translucent backgrounds and circular app icons, add floating navigation menus, and reposition the search bar for apps to the bottom of the screen.
We’ll get a first glimpse of the updated software during the WWDC keynote on June 9. As usual, the latest version of iOS is expected to roll out with the new iPhones in September. We might also get to see a new dedicated gaming app come pre-installed on the iPhone 17.