macOS 27 to Reportedly Feature Big Changes With Liquid Glass Refinements, Better Readability

Apple's Liquid Glass push has been in the news for some time now. Released with iOS 27 and related software updates, it brings a fresh visual makeover, with glass-like elements in the UI. While it has appealed to some, others have called it a Windows Vista-lookalike, along with the corresponding problems that came along with it. As per a seasoned journalist, the Cupertino-based tech giant is preparing a refined version of its Liquid Glass interface with macOS 27. It is said to focus on improving readability, polishing transparency effects, and fixing visual inconsistencies.

Liquid Glass Refinements in macOS 27

According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman in the latest edition of his Power On newsletter, Apple internally considers macOS 27 to be a “slight redesign”. It is aimed at refining the Liquid Glass interface introduced with macOS 26 Tahoe. The company is reportedly looking to address issues related to transparency, shadows, and overall readability that some users experienced after the rollout of the Mac operating system.

Gurman says Apple does not intend to abandon Liquid Glass altogether. Instead, the tech giant reportedly views the current implementation as unfinished rather than fundamentally flawed. The redesign effort is said to focus on making the interface behave the way Apple's design team originally envisioned it.

The report notes that the Liquid Glass has been less effective on Mac compared to iPhone and iPad due to the reliance on LCD panels rather than OLED displays. According to Gurman, OLED screens render transparency effects, shadows, and glass-like textures more effectively. Consequently, the UI appears better suited to newer Apple hardware, such as the iPhone, Apple Watch, and the OLED iPad.

Users have reportedly encountered readability issues in areas such as Control Centre, Finder, and apps with dense sidebars or lists. Transparency effects and layered textures can occasionally make text appear harder to read or visually cluttered. While the overall Liquid Glass design language is expected to remain, the move is said to be part of a broader software cleanup effort across macOS, iOS, and iPadOS this year.

Apart from visual changes, Apple is also expected to fix issues related to bugs, battery life, and overall performance across the entire 2026 operating system lineup. Gurman added that the second major focus for Apple's upcoming software releases will be AI features. These reportedly include a redesigned Siri experience, a standalone Siri app, deeper Apple Intelligence integration, and more chatbot-like interactions across Apple devices.