Livsy Code

Glass Options in iOS 26: Clear vs Regular (Frosted Glass)

Greetings, traveler!

With the introduction of the new liquid glass interface paradigm in iOS 26, Apple has taken another step toward blending visual fidelity with spatial depth. However, this change has raised a number of concerns — not just among developers and designers, but among users as well. Chief among them is a familiar question: how readable will these new translucent surfaces be under real-world conditions?

As with many of Apple’s design innovations, the answer lies in a balance of form and function. While the liquid glass concept introduces dramatic aesthetic possibilities, early beta versions have shown some challenges with clarity, especially in dynamic or content-heavy interfaces. That said, given Apple’s track record and its meticulous attention to user experience, it is reasonable to expect that most of these concerns will be resolved by the time of public release.

Two Glass Modes: clear and regular

One feature available to developers right now offers direct control over the visual weight and readability of glass elements: the Glass structure. It comes with two primary rendering modes — .clear and .regular — each with distinct characteristics and use cases.

The .regular mode resembles frosted glass. It diffuses the background image or content more heavily, enhancing contrast and significantly improving legibility. This is the more conservative and interface-safe option — well-suited for most UI components like menus, sheets, or navigation panels where the foreground text or content must remain readable at all times.

On the other hand, the .clear mode is designed for dramatic effect. It offers minimal blurring and high transparency, giving the impression of actual liquid glass. While it may pose readability challenges in some layouts, it excels in motion or gesture-driven interfaces where dynamic shaders come into play. Visually, it is striking — especially in combination with background images, light shifts, or interactive motion effects.

A Minimal Demo to Experiment with Liquid Glass Behavior

To explore these effects in practice, here’s a SwiftUI demo that showcases two draggable circles using both .clear and .regular glass modes. Each circle can be toggled independently between modes, and the effects can be observed in real time over a background image.

import SwiftUI

@available(iOS 26.0, *)
struct DraggableCirclesView: View {
    @State private var firstCircleOffset: CGSize = .zero
    @State private var firstCircleDragOffset: CGSize = .zero

    @State private var secondCircleOffset: CGSize = .zero
    @State private var secondCircleDragOffset: CGSize = .zero

    @State private var isFirstClear: Bool = true
    @State private var isSecondClear: Bool = false

    @State private var firstGlass: Glass = .clear
    @State private var secondGlass: Glass = .regular

    var body: some View {
        ZStack {
            Image(.image)
                .resizable()
                .scaledToFill()

            GlassEffectContainer {
                HStack {
                    Circle()
                        .glassEffect(firstGlass)
                        .frame(width: 180)
                        .offset(
                            x: firstCircleOffset.width + firstCircleDragOffset.width,
                            y: firstCircleOffset.height + firstCircleDragOffset.height
                        )
                        .gesture(
                            DragGesture()
                                .onChanged { gesture in
                                    firstCircleDragOffset = gesture.translation
                                }
                                .onEnded { gesture in
                                    firstCircleOffset.width += gesture.translation.width
                                    firstCircleOffset.height += gesture.translation.height
                                    firstCircleDragOffset = .zero
                                }
                        )

                    Circle()
                        .glassEffect(secondGlass)
                        .frame(width: 180)
                        .offset(
                            x: secondCircleOffset.width + secondCircleDragOffset.width,
                            y: secondCircleOffset.height + secondCircleDragOffset.height
                        )
                        .gesture(
                            DragGesture()
                                .onChanged { gesture in
                                    secondCircleDragOffset = gesture.translation
                                }
                                .onEnded { gesture in
                                    secondCircleOffset.width += gesture.translation.width
                                    secondCircleOffset.height += gesture.translation.height
                                    secondCircleDragOffset = .zero
                                }
                        )
                }
            }
        }
        .toolbar {
            ToolbarItemGroup(placement: .bottomBar) {
                Toggle("1", isOn: $isFirstClear)
                Toggle("2", isOn: $isSecondClear)
            }
        }
        .onChange(of: isFirstClear) { _, newValue in
            firstGlass = newValue ? .clear : .regular
        }
        .onChange(of: isSecondClear) { _, newValue in
            secondGlass = newValue ? .clear : .regular
        }
        .ignoresSafeArea()
    }
}

This sample is intended to be a lightweight playground. You can use it to evaluate how the new glass modes behave under motion, image contrast, and overlayed content.

Final Thoughts

The arrival of liquid glass brings a new dimension to interface design on Apple platforms. It opens the door to richer, more immersive UI components — especially when paired with motion, parallax, and shader-driven dynamics.

For developers and designers, the key is to experiment early and identify where clarity matters most.

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