iOS 26.4 Beta: Everything New Across Six Key iPhone Apps


iOS 26.4 is currently in beta, and it brings a wide range of meaningful updates across Apple’s core apps. From AI powered playlist creation to smarter reminders and improved video podcast playback, this release focuses on refining everyday experiences.

Here’s a complete breakdown of what’s new in six major iPhone apps.

Apple Music Gets a Creative Upgrade

Apple Music receives one of the biggest app updates in iOS 26.4, introducing five new features designed to enhance discovery and personalization.

What’s New in Apple Music

  • Playlist Playground – an AI powered tool that builds playlists based on prompts

  • A redesigned fullscreen view for albums and playlists

  • Ambient Music widgets for the Home Screen

  • Concert information for artists and nearby venues

  • The ability to add a song to multiple playlists at once

The new fullscreen layout makes album artwork more immersive, while Playlist Playground helps users discover music in a more intuitive way. However, the AI powered tool requires a compatible iPhone.

Reminders Adds Better Urgent Task Visibility

The Reminders app continues refining its ‘Urgent’ reminder feature, first introduced in iOS 26.2. When marked as urgent, reminders:

  • Trigger an alarm at the scheduled time

  • Stay visible via a Lock Screen interface and Live Activity

  • Offer snooze options

With iOS 26.4, Apple introduces a dedicated “Urgent” smart list at the top of the app. This makes it easier to see all time sensitive tasks in one centralized location.

Apple Podcasts Enhances Video Playback

Apple Podcasts has supported video podcasts for years, but the experience needed modernization. iOS 26.4 introduces an improved video podcast experience, allowing users to:

  • Seamlessly switch between audio and video

  • Watch in horizontal full screen mode

  • Download videos for offline viewing

  • Benefit from automatic playback quality adjustment via HLS technology

While the video podcast catalog is still growing, these improvements make the format more competitive with other platforms.

Apple TV Brings Subtitle Customization Forward

Apple TV now makes subtitle styling easier to access directly within the app. When watching content, users can tap the Subtitles button to access new style options such as:

  • Classic

  • Large Text

  • Outline Text

  • Transparent Background

Users can also further customize subtitle appearance through the Manage Styles option. Previously buried in Accessibility settings, this feature is now more accessible for everyday viewing.

Health App Expands Sleep and Vitals Insights

Apple Health continues enhancing its data visualization tools.

New in Health

  • A new sleep “Bedtime” Highlight showing a two week overview

  • Average bedtime data and a bar chart display

  • Restoration of Blood Oxygen readings within the Vitals graph

The return of Blood Oxygen data improves continuity for Apple Watch users tracking long term health metrics.

Freeform Gains AI and Content Hub Features

Freeform now includes premium features previously seen in Apple’s productivity apps.

New additions include:

  • A Content Hub with Apple curated photos, graphics, and backgrounds

  • AI image generation powered by OpenAI models

These tools expand Freeform’s creative potential, making it more versatile for brainstorming, collaboration, and visual storytelling.

Keeping Your Device Organized After Updates

With richer video podcasts, AI generated images, fullscreen album art, and enhanced media sharing, iOS 26.4 can quickly increase storage usage.

That’s where ClutterFly, a third party app, becomes especially useful. While iOS adds powerful new features, ClutterFly ensures your storage remains optimized. Its intelligent Storage optimizer scans your device to identify unnecessary files, while its Duplicate files fix functionality helps remove redundant content that builds up over time. After major updates like iOS 26.4, performing a quick cleanup ensures your iPhone continues running smoothly without storage slowdowns.

Final Thoughts

iOS 26.4 may still be in beta, but it delivers meaningful improvements across Apple Music, Reminders, Podcasts, TV, Health, and Freeform.

The update focuses on smarter AI integration, better task management, improved media experiences, and enhanced customization. Combined with effective storage management tools, users can enjoy new features without sacrificing device performance.

Which feature are you most excited to try?


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