Apple Ships Fifth Developer Betas of iOS 27, macOS 27, and Other Systems with Liquid Glass Icons
Apple released the fifth round of developer betas for iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27 Golden Gate, watchOS 27, tvOS 27, and visionOS 27. The updates refine system stability and introduce Liquid Glass design changes to core app icons, restore progressive blur in the Photos app, and add AI editing tools. Build numbers vary by platform. The betas target developers for early adaptation; a public beta is expected later.
Apple has officially pushed the fifth round of operating system test builds to developers, covering iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27 Golden Gate, watchOS 27, tvOS 27, and visionOS 27. In terms of version numbers, iOS 27 and iPadOS 27 Beta 5 update to build 24A5408d, macOS 27 to 26A5406e, watchOS 27 to 24R5347a, tvOS 27 to 24J5346a, and visionOS 27 to 24M5348b. This update arrives at a critical testing stage ahead of the major autumn release, focusing on overall system stability while introducing several adjustments to design language, personalization settings, and built-in app features.
On the visual design front, iOS 27 Beta 5 reworks several core system app icons based on the Liquid Glass design language. The Safari browser icon now features a more vibrant blue background with richer compass tick marks and pointer details. The Siri app icon evolves into a new style resembling a glowing orb when activated. The magnifying glass element in the Preview app is placed on a more colorful background. Settings and App Store icons gain layer transparency to create a gradient sense of depth. The Remote control icon's background color shifts from black to gray. In built-in apps such as Photos, the progressive blur effect previously removed from the system top bar has been restored, with smoother transitions.
Built-in apps also receive functional upgrades. The Music and Photos apps now show a new feature guide page on first launch. The Photos app introduces AI editing features in the tool panel, including lens angle reconstruction, edge expansion, and smart completion, and adds new sorting options in utilities by photographer and identity document type, supporting cross-platform shared albums at original quality. The Clock app's alarm and timer fonts become bolder and brighter. The drawing toolbar on iPhone gains a collapsible and hideable behavior similar to that on iPad. Siri's AI voice for British English further opens up personalized adjustment of speech rate and emotional expressiveness. The current developer beta still carries some system stability risks and is primarily intended for early adaptation and testing by app developers; a public beta will be released later.