After a summer of beta releases, the real thing is here: Apple has just released iOS 27, the next cycle of iPhone software. It has a series of highly anticipated features such as granular control of Liquid Glass and Siri AI. Here are full details.

Which iPhones Can Run iOS 27?

The phones that run iOS 27 are identical to the ones that supported iOS 26. In other words, if your iPhone is compatible with iOS 26, then the new software is available to you, too.

Specifically, that means all iPhones from 2019 onwards, that is the iPhone 11 and later. All members of the iPhone 17 series, including the latest release, iPhone 17e, plus iPhone Air, are also supported. And when the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max are released on Friday, Sept. 18, they will have iOS 27 on board from day one.

How To Download And Install iOS 27

For the first time in the new iOS 27 cycle, go to the Settings app on the iPhone and choose General, followed by Software Update. Here you’ll find Download and Install. This is a large update, so be patient. More to the point, a lot of people will be wanting to get the new iOS cycle at the same time, so it may take time for your turn, when the download will become available for you.

iOS 27 — What’s In The Release

There’s a lot in this release, which isn’t surprising given it’s the beginning of the new cycle. Top of the feature list is Siri AI, the new and more capable version of Siri that is smarter, can draw on personal context and offers new voices and a dedicated Siri app for the first time. You can use Siri mode in the camera, write with Siri and more. These features are compatible with iPhone 16 models and later, plus iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max.

Apple Intelligence works across more apps to allow features like Spatial Reframing for photos after you’ve taken them or extend the image beyond its edges, for instance.

Safari lets you organize tabs by topic and you can set a feature called Notify Me to periodically check web pages for changes.

There are updates to the Home app with activity notifications and ways to search camera clips. You can describe an event in Calendar with natural language and Call Context in the Phone app can understand what you’re talking about and surface relevant information like a confirmation code, for instance.

There are new accessibility features such as an improved Magnifier, more ways to create Genmoji and more advanced Voice Control.

Apple’s focus on Child Safety is realized in terms of an improved setup experience, better communication safety protections and time allowances so parents can set boundaries for how long kids can use apps.

Liquid Glass now has a slider to customize the look. There are performance improvements, enhanced search in Mail, Photos and Spotlight.

All this and more minor improvements are included, such as Alarms and Timers which can have their own volume settings, independent of the rest of the system.

There’s a lot, in other words.