Part of our Apple WWDC Announcement Series
Specifications and expert analysis on each launch, as it happens.
When Apple introduced Liquid Glass across its operating systems in 2025, the response was mixed. The translucent, refracting interface aesthetic looked striking in marketing materials. In practice, on many devices and in many lighting conditions, readability suffered – the blurred, translucent layers that made elements look modern also made them harder to read.
Apple heard the feedback. At WWDC26, it gave users a dial.
The opacity slider
Across iOS 27, iPadOS 27, and macOS Golden Gate, Apple is adding an opacity slider for Liquid Glass. Users can control how transparent the interface appears – dialling it back towards a more solid, readable aesthetic if the default is too visually busy, or pushing it further towards full transparency if they prefer the original effect.
This is a notable concession. Apple rarely offers UI customisation at this level of directness. Giving users control over a signature design element suggests the company received enough genuine accessibility and usability feedback to act on it rather than hold the aesthetic line.
Accessibility Angle: For users with visual impairments, Reduce Transparency has been available in Accessibility settings for years. The new opacity slider is a more mainstream, granular version of the same principle. It does not replace the existing accessibility setting – it complements it, making the choice accessible to users who might not know to look in Accessibility settings.
macOS-specific changes
macOS Golden Gate carries several design refinements beyond the opacity slider:
- Sidebars stretch edge-to-edge. App sidebars now run the full height of the screen rather than stopping at a set distance from the edge. This reduces visual noise and gives the interface a cleaner frame.
- Sidebars regain colour. In the active window, sidebars return a degree of colour rather than presenting as uniform grey. This makes it easier to identify which window is in focus when working across multiple apps.
- Tighter window corner radius. macOS windows will use a more uniform, tighter corner radius – moving slightly away from the very rounded aesthetic of recent releases. Subtle, but the kind of change that designers will notice.
- Refreshed app icons. Apple is updating first-party app icons as part of the visual language refresh.
- More uniform toolbar. Toolbars are expected to be more consistent across Apple’s own apps, reducing the visual dissonance that sometimes appeared when switching between applications.
Why this matters beyond aesthetics
Interface readability is a genuine productivity concern in managed environments. Support requests related to “I can’t read the text” or “the buttons look weird since the update” are a real cost. If the opacity slider reduces those friction points, it has a practical value beyond personal preference.
For organisations deploying devices to users with specific visual requirements – including older workers, users with low vision, or anyone working in variable lighting conditions – the slider is a welcome addition to the toolkit of adjustments available before reaching for formal accessibility settings.
MDM Consideration: It is not yet confirmed whether the Liquid Glass opacity setting can be managed or locked via MDM payload. For most organisations this is likely a user preference to leave unlocked – but for kiosk or locked-down single-app deployments where interface consistency matters, watch for the relevant payload key in the iOS 27 MDM documentation once it is published this week.
The Short Version: Liquid Glass still exists. It is just adjustable now. For most users in most environments, this means fewer complaints and more flexibility. For IT administrators, it is a net positive with minimal management overhead.
Read More WWDC 2026 Coverage The opacity slider is one of several interface changes arriving in iOS 27 and macOS Golden Gate. See our full WWDC26 breakdown for everything that matters to your business.
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