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A Summary of the WWDC25 Group Lab - Design
At WWDC25 we launched a new type of Lab event for the developer community - Group Labs. A Group Lab is a panel Q&A designed for a large audience of developers. Group Labs are a unique opportunity for the community to submit questions directly to a panel of Apple engineers and designers. Here are the highlights from the WWDC25 Group Lab for Design. Can you expand on how Liquid Glass helps with navigation and focus in the UI? Liquid Glass clarifies the navigation layer by introducing a single, floating pane that acts as the primary navigation area. Buttons within this pane seamlessly morph as you move between sections, and controls can temporarily lift into the glass surface. While avoiding excessive use of glass (like layering glass on glass), this approach simplifies navigation and strengthens the connection between menus, alerts, and the elements that trigger them. What should I do with customized bars that I might have in my app? Reconsider the content and behavior of customized bars. Evaluate whether you need all the buttons and whether a menu might be a better solution. Instead of relying on background colors or styling, express hierarchy through layout and grouping. This is a good opportunity to adopt the new design language and simplify your interface. What are scroll edge effects, and what options do we have for them? Scroll edge effects enhance legibility in controls by lifting interactive elements and separating them from the background. There are two types: a soft edge effect (a subtle blur) and a hard edge effect (a more defined boundary for high-legibility areas like column sorting). Scroll edge effects are designed to work seamlessly with Liquid Glass, allowing content to feel expansive while ensuring controls and titles remain legible. How can we ensure or improve accessibility using Liquid Glass? Legibility is a priority, and refinements are ongoing throughout the betas. Liquid Glass adapts well to accessibility settings like Reduce Transparency, Increase Contrast, and Reduce Motion. There are two variants of glass: regular glass, designed to be legible by default, and clear glass, used in places like AVKit, which requires more care to ensure legibility. Use color contrast tools to ensure contrast ratios are met. The Human Interface Guidelines (HIG) are a living document offering best practices. The colors and materials pages are key resources. Do you have any recommendations for convincing designers concerned with consistency across Android and Web to use Liquid Glass? Start small and focus on high-utility controls that don't significantly impact brand experience. Native controls offer familiarity and predictability to users. Using the native controls makes sure your app feels at home on the device. Using native frameworks provides built-in accessibility support (dynamic type, reduce transparency, increase contrast). Native controls come with built-in behaviors and interactions. Can ScrollViews include Liquid Glass within them? You can technically put a glass layer inside a scroll view, but it can feel heavy and doesn't align with the system's intention for Liquid Glass to serve as a fixed layer. Think of the content layer as the scrolling layer, and the navigational layer as the one using Liquid Glass. If there is glass on the content layer it will collide into the navigational layer. What core design philosophy guided the direction of iOS 26, beyond the goal of unification? The core design philosophy involved blurring the line between hardware and software, separating UI and navigation elements from content, making apps adaptable across window sizes, and combining playfulness with sophistication. It was about making the UI feel at home on rounded screens. Can we layer Liquid Glass elements on top of each other? Avoid layering Liquid Glass elements directly on top of each other, as it creates unnecessary visual complexity. The system will automatically convert nested glass elements to a vibrant fill style. Use vibrant fills and labels to show control shapes and ensure legibility. Opaque grays should be avoided in favor of vibrant colors, which will multiply with the backgrounds correctly. What will happen to apps that use custom components? Should they be adapted to the new design within the next year? The more native components you use, the more things happen for free. Standard components will be upgraded automatically. Look out for any customizations that might clash. Think about what is the minimum viable change, where your app still feels and looks very similar to what it did. Prioritize changes in core workflows and navigational areas. There are a number of benefits to using native components including user familiarity, built-in accessibility support, and built-in behaviors and interactions. Will Apple be releasing Figma design templates? Sketch kits were published on Monday and can be referenced. The goal is to ensure the resources are well-organized, well-named, and easy to use. It's a high priority.
Topic: Design SubTopic: General
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Jun ’25
Liquid Glass support : Best practices for navigation button styles in iOS 26 and later
Hello! I'm currently working on Liquid Glass support for my app. I understand that starting with iOS 26, standard buttons like "Close" or "Done" have shifted from text buttons to using SF Symbols, as mentioned in the Human Interface Guidelines under "Icons". However, on iOS 18 and earlier, the flat text button style remains the standard. I am unsure about the best approach for backward compatibility: Branch by OS version: Keep text buttons for older OS versions and use SF Symbols for iOS 26+. Concern: This increases the number of conditional branches, potentially reducing code readability and maintainability. Adopt SF Symbols universally: Use SF Symbols for all versions. Concern: I feel that SF Symbols do not fit well (look inconsistent or out of place) with the flat design language of iOS 18 and earlier. What would be the recommended approach in this situation?
Topic: Design SubTopic: General Tags:
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How does Apple achieve this effect?
Hi everyone, I'm new to building apps on Swift and recently I've been wondering how does Apple get this blur effect behind the control center on Mac OS Tahoe. I think it would be nice to use in an app that I'm making but I can't seem to find it in the docs. Is it available through AppKit? I would appreciate some help on this
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NFC Bottomsheet customization
Hi all, I wanted to check whether the NFC bottom-sheet UI shown by iOS during an NFC reading session can be customized. We have a Figma design (attached) for how the sheet should look, but we are not sure whether iOS allows modifying the default NFC UI. Is UI customization supported, or is the bottom sheet fully controlled by the system? Thanks in advance.
Topic: Design SubTopic: General Tags:
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Network access has changed
I had, a long time ago (over 10 years) developed an application that is connected to my UPS (for solar panels). Until yet it worked very well, and I didnot have to compute more than making updates of XCode. That was all. But yet I have swiched to the latest value of switch, and it continue to compile, but it does'not work. I am asking to yo in order keeping my app working as previously. As it does not work, which library is replacing Cloudkit.framework ? and which library is replacing InsPersistantContainer.framework ? Have a good day Guy Desbief
Topic: Design SubTopic: General
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SwiftUI Logo
I see the logo all over the internet, but the only Official logo I can find is the swift logo, the orange one, but the blue one I do not see a place to download it nor the usage guidelines. I have seen it on various Icon site like Icon8. I would like to use it on my reddit forum that is dedicated to SwiftUI but I want to be legal. Is it allowed to use and if so, where can you download the official verison?
Topic: Design SubTopic: General Tags:
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The airdrop was sent to the wrong device. Will modifying the interface in this way reduce the error
I have many Apple devices, such as macbook, iPad and iPhone. It's very convenient for me to transfer files between devices. However, when I want to send files to my own device in public places, I often click on the wrong recipient because the list avatar keeps changing. I hope the list of recipients can be grouped One group is my own device (or the one I often send to), and the other group is other devices. When the user is about to send, the mouse will be in a relatively fixed and mentally expected area. I feel that this can reduce the probability of sending wrongly
Topic: Design SubTopic: General
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Shadow on top of Vision OS icon
Hi guys, I've exported the images with transparency for a Vision OS icon but I still keep getting a weird shadow on the top of the icon when I focus on it. Do you guys had this issue before?
Topic: Design SubTopic: General
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1.5k
Nov ’25
Modal Shadows - In App Purchases (macOS)
Hey, everyone. I'm having an issue with my modal shadows when building for macOS. I've attached an image to show you what's going on. I have a rounded corner window, and when the In-App Purchase overlay opens, the modal shadow of that rounded window is square (which doesn't make sense, and looks bad). Can somebody please help me address this? I've tried searching high and low for a solution but I can't find anything :-( I really appreciate you taking a look! -Logan
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Nov ’25
Got Some Error while build of my Application
Showing Recent Errors Only Prepare build error: Multiple commands produce '/Users/mayankjain/Library/Developer/Xcode/DerivedData/PCS_EmpApp-chsylqbxjptobeawzzckymqzagvr/Build/Products/Debug-iphonesimulator/PCS_EmpApp.app/Info.plist' note: Target 'PCS_EmpApp' (project 'PCS_EmpApp') has copy command from '/Users/mayankjain/Documents/05-NOV-2025-SWETA_IOS/PCS_EmpApp/PCS_EmpApp/xcode-out/Platforms/iOS/Info.plist' to '/Users/mayankjain/Library/Developer/Xcode/DerivedData/PCS_EmpApp-chsylqbxjptobeawzzckymqzagvr/Build/Products/Debug-iphonesimulator/PCS_EmpApp.app/Info.plist' note: Target 'PCS_EmpApp' (project 'PCS_EmpApp') has process command with output '/Users/mayankjain/Library/Developer/Xcode/DerivedData/PCS_EmpApp-chsylqbxjptobeawzzckymqzagvr/Build/Products/Debug-iphonesimulator/PCS_EmpApp.app/Info.plist' Multiple commands produce '/Users/mayankjain/Library/Developer/Xcode/DerivedData/PCS_EmpApp-chsylqbxjptobeawzzckymqzagvr/Build/Products/Debug-iphonesimulator/PCS_EmpApp.app/Info.plist'
Topic: Design SubTopic: General
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Nov ’25
Build Error
While build now I receive this error help me to resolve it Showing Recent Errors Only Prepare build error: Multiple commands produce '/Users/mayankjain/Library/Developer/Xcode/DerivedData/PCS_EmpApp-chsylqbxjptobeawzzckymqzagvr/Build/Products/Debug-iphonesimulator/PCS_EmpApp.app/Info.plist' note: Target 'PCS_EmpApp' (project 'PCS_EmpApp') has copy command from '/Users/mayankjain/Documents/05-NOV-2025-SWETA_IOS/PCS_EmpApp/PCS_EmpApp/xcode-out/Platforms/iOS/Info.plist' to '/Users/mayankjain/Library/Developer/Xcode/DerivedData/PCS_EmpApp-chsylqbxjptobeawzzckymqzagvr/Build/Products/Debug-iphonesimulator/PCS_EmpApp.app/Info.plist' note: Target 'PCS_EmpApp' (project 'PCS_EmpApp') has process command with output '/Users/mayankjain/Library/Developer/Xcode/DerivedData/PCS_EmpApp-chsylqbxjptobeawzzckymqzagvr/Build/Products/Debug-iphonesimulator/PCS_EmpApp.app/Info.plist' Multiple commands produce '/Users/mayankjain/Library/Developer/Xcode/DerivedData/PCS_EmpApp-chsylqbxjptobeawzzckymqzagvr/Build/Products/Debug-iphonesimulator/PCS_EmpApp.app/Info.plist'
Topic: Design SubTopic: General
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Nov ’25
Navigation Bar Title Hidden When Right Bar Button Title Is Long (iOS 26)
I’m developing an app that includes a navigation bar with a centered title and a single right bar button item. I’ve noticed that when both the navigation bar title and the right bar button item’s title are relatively long, the navigation bar title becomes hidden. This issue only occurs on iOS 26. When running the same code on iOS 18, the layout behaves as expected, with both elements visible. Has anyone else experienced this behavior on iOS 26? Is this a known layout change or a possible bug?
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Nov ’25
Display problem with keyboard in iOS 26
The problem is the same in all of my applications. To reproduce it, in iOS 26, set the dark mode in the Brightness and display settings and in Accessibility, Display and text size, activate Increase contrast and bold text. With these settings, all the controls will be surrounded by a thin white line. When in the app a keyboard is dispayed, the thin white line does not appears correctly around the keyboard like in the capture joined, it is present on top and partially on bottom but not on sides
Topic: Design SubTopic: General
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Oct ’25
Proposal: Capacitive swipe-based volume control integrated into iPhone frame
I would like to propose a design enhancement for future iPhone models: using the existing bottom-right antenna line (next to the power button area) as a capacitive “volume control zone” that supports swipe gestures. Today this line is a structural antenna break, but it is also located exactly where the thumb naturally rests when holding the phone in one hand. With a small embedded capacitive/force sensor, the user could slide their finger along this zone to control volume without reaching for the physical buttons. Why this makes sense: • Perfect ergonomic thumb position in both portrait and landscape • One-handed volume adjustment becomes easier for large-screen devices • Silent and frictionless vs. clicking buttons (useful in meetings / night mode) • Consistent with Apple’s recent move toward contextual hardware input (Action Button, Capture Button, Vision Pro gestures) The interaction model would be: • Swipe up → increase volume • Swipe down → decrease volume • (Optional) long-press haptic = mute toggle This could also enhance accessibility, especially for users with reduced hand mobility who struggle to press mechanical buttons on tall devices. Technically, this would be similar to the Capture Button (capacitive + pressure layers), but linear instead of pressure-based. It does not replace physical buttons, it complements them as a silent gesture-based alternative. Thank you for considering this as a future interaction refinement for iPhone hardware design.
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Oct ’25