It probably won’t be much time before the next major update round is released. Apple has just released the fifth preliminary versions – and declared them as release candidates. In all likelihood, Apple will then offer System 26.4 to all users in the coming week. Apple itself offered a clear indication of that date on Monday: The new AirPods Max 2 will come onto the market at the beginning of April; they require an iPhone running iOS 26.4 or a Mac running macOS 26.4. Testing of iOS 26.4, macOS 26.4 and the updates for iPadOS, watchOS, tvOS and visionOS has been running since February 16th. These are more straightforward updates with less far-reaching adjustments. The next big feature update is only expected for iOS 26.5 and macOS 26.5, after 26.4 is released without the new Siri generation. Apparently Apple had already targeted the March/April update for Siri, but then allowed itself a little more development time.
Apple has been working on end-to-end encryption for RCS since the beginning of the current beta phase, but activation will take some time. Apple recently documented in the developer area that this will only happen “with a later update”. The biggest known innovation in System 26.4 is HTTP Live Streaming for video podcasts including the integration of advertising platforms. Apple is thereby strengthening its position in the video market. Otherwise, numerous smaller changes could be found, especially with regard to cosmetic adjustments relating to Liquid Glass.
The current betas in the developer area
With the fourth beta, most build numbers already ended with an “a”, which corresponds to the designation for “almost finished” – whereas release candidates no longer have a letter at the end. The cycle began with unusually high endings, namely “q” in iOS and iPadOS 26.4 and “k” in macOS. This is what it currently looks like in the developer area after the latest builds have been released:
| system | Build number | Published |
| macOS 26.4 RC | 25E241 | March 18, 2026 |
| iOS 26.4 RC | 23E244 | March 18, 2026 |
| iPadOS 26.4 RC | 23E244 | March 18, 2026 |
| watchOS 26.4 RC | 23T239 | March 18, 2026 |
| tvOS 26.4 RC | 23L240 | March 18, 2026 |
| visionOS 26.4 RC | 23O244 | March 18, 2026 |
