Level 1

12 points

Forced cross-version update to "Liquid Glass" OS

I am beyond frustrated right now. I deliberately updated my iPad to the latest iOS 18 version (holding off from the new "Liquid Glass" interface) and prior to updating made sure my Automatic Updates switch was toggled OFF.

Imagine my shock a few days later when I picked up my iPad to find it had completely ignored my settings, silently downloaded, and cross-version upgraded itself right into the new Liquid Glass OS anyway!

Even worse, I checked the settings afterward, and Apple had somehow toggled my Auto-Update switch back ON by itself. I never touched it! It was flipped back on without my consent!

I immediately tried to downgrade or undo it, only to find out this sneaky, devious and cunning move is permanent and irreversible.

Why give us an "Off" switch for automatic updates if the system is just going to override it anyway? This strips users of control over their own devices. Is there any way back from this?

iPad Air, iPadOS 26

Posted on Sep 10, 2026 8:30 AM

31 replies

np318 Author

Level 1

12 points

Sep 10, 2026 11:44 AM in response to np318

I appreciate all the replies thus far, but would like to re-stress the main points of my original post:

The forced/extremely sneaky and cunning nature of the upgrade by auto toggling a switch I had OFF to ON!
No way to roll back to previous version! WHY! It's still supported! Cmon!

I think everyone is getting a bit bogged down in the fact that they may prefer Liquid Glass and I don't, but that's really beside the point. It's buggy on my devices, I've tried to troubleshoot without any luck, and yes I've restarted my devices and updated my apps lol 😅 and yes, I did prefer the old UI also. but I am glad it is working bug free for others!! :))

np318 Author

Level 1

12 points

Sep 10, 2026 11:57 AM in response to IdrisSeabright

yep you're completely right! what's done is done, apple got me good! I will be more mindful that they toggle the auto update from OFF to ON in the future. and, "update to "Liquid Glass" OS" = "update to iOS 26" in my mind, but I can maybe see how that could have been confusing to others. iOS 26 was the first OS where they introduced the Liquid Glass look so this is why many people just refer to it as "Liquid Glass" OS or similar. apologies if that was confusing to some!

in the meantime, I will hope they fix these annoying bugs! 🙏🐛

np318 Author

Level 1

12 points

Sep 10, 2026 12:36 PM in response to IdrisSeabright

ok I think this is getting into semantics and nitpicks so I'm not going to debate this further sorry! i can grant you that technically liquid glass is the UI of iOS 26 :) thank you for your contribution to this thread!

Sep 10, 2026 1:09 PM in response to np318

np318 wrote:

ok I think this is getting into semantics and nitpicks so I'm not going to debate this further sorry! i can grant you that technically liquid glass is the UI of iOS 26 :) thank you for your contribution to this thread!

Using correct terminology is important when troubleshooting.

I hope you get your issues resolved.

Best of luck.

Sep 10, 2026 1:20 PM in response to np318

np318 wrote:

"Since this was released about a year ago, certainly glitching/flickering text in the middle of the screen would have been widely reported by now."

sure, maybe widely reported..but certainly not fixed

I see no reports of that here on this Community support site and yes they would be filled with the same complaints if they were widely reported.

np318 Author

Level 1

12 points

Sep 10, 2026 1:29 PM in response to Mac Jim ID

if I uploaded a video of the bug would you believe me then? or would others also need to have reported it? I don't know why people are so untrusting/gaslighting that I'm experiencing these issues! 😭😭

Sep 10, 2026 1:34 PM in response to np318

np318 wrote:

if I uploaded a video of the bug would you believe me then? or would others also need to have reported it? I don't know why people are so untrusting/gaslighting that I'm experiencing these issues! 😭😭

Certainly a video would help, as I already requested a Screenshot as those are easier to integrate into a post. It was in my very first post here to help us see what you are experiencing. I would also recommend, after previously stated, for issues with UI lag you should wait the 4 days for the processes to finish indexing in the background if that is what you are experiencing.

Sep 10, 2026 1:41 PM in response to np318

np318 wrote:

if I uploaded a video of the bug would you believe me then? or would others also need to have reported it? I don't know why people are so untrusting/gaslighting that I'm experiencing these issues! 😭😭

No one is denying that you have issues. They sound very annoying. What people are questioning is your assumption of the cause.

Sep 10, 2026 4:13 PM in response to np318

np318 wrote:

"Since this was released about a year ago, certainly glitching/flickering text in the middle of the screen would have been widely reported by now."

sure, maybe widely reported..but certainly not fixed since I'm seeing it 😅 both the liquid glass Mac OS and iOS have had an absurd number of bugs *on my devices*. I am glad that others are enjoying a bug free experience!

But it HAS NOT been widely reported. There are roughly 500 million iPhones with Liquid Glass. “Widely” would be in the tens of thousands. How many is “widely” to you?