The upcoming iOS 27 and macOS 27 Golden Gate updates expand drawing tools to more of Apple's built-in apps across the iPhone and Mac.
In the Messages app on iOS 27, there is a new "Drawing" option in the app drawer, which can be opened by tapping the plus sign in the bottom-left corner.
On older iOS versions, the Messages app once had a very basic drawing tool that was accessible by tapping a button on the keyboard in landscape orientation, but now Apple's complete set of Markup tools are available in the app.
On the Mac, macOS 27 adds the Markup tools to the Notes and Freeform apps.
iOS 27 and macOS 27 are currently available in developer beta. The updates are expected to be released to the general public in September.
Apple this week previewed new accessibility features that are coming later this year, and one is particularly notable: automatic captions for personal videos.
For videos that do not already have captions, Apple said a new on-device speech recognition model can automatically generate them for spoken audio. According to Apple, this feature will be available for videos that you record on your...
Wednesday May 20, 2026 12:20 pm PDT by Joe Rossignol
Every May, Apple previews new accessibility features coming to devices like the iPhone, iPad, and Mac. The announcement typically occurs a few days before Global Accessibility Awareness Day, and it offers a glimpse into what will be included in the next major releases of Apple's software platforms, such as iOS, iPadOS, and macOS.
This year, one of the new capabilities shown off by Apple is...
Apple is rumored to be adding an AI feature for creating shortcuts with natural language to the Shortcuts app in iOS 27, but MacStories' Federico Viticci has a clever AI tool for making shortcuts that you can use today.
Shortcuts Playground is a plugin for Claude Code and OpenAI Codex that can create shortcuts for the Apple Shortcuts app using natural language input. It's set up to let users ...
Interesting. Got a link? Even if it's built into the glass, I'm inclined to think there's thickness penalty somewhere, maybe in the glass itself. Pretty rare that something can be added for free.
“In his latest post on X (Twitter) ('https://x.com/mingchikuo/status/1968249865940709538'), Kuo writes that Apple's much-rumored OLED MacBook Pro will incorporate a touch panel using on-cell touch technology. On-cell touch technology integrates the touch sensors directly into the display panel's top layer (the "cell") rather than requiring a separate, dedicated touch layer.” https://www.macrumors.com/2025/09/17/kuo-2026-oled-macbook-pro-touch-panel/
I’m pretty sure the OLED iPad pros over the last couple years have all used this technology, and as you know, switching from mini LED to OLED still allowed them to shave off of over a millimeter in thickness. So either way, the smaller size requirements of OLED compared to mini LED will allow the display to be even thinner if Apple so chooses, touch or not.
I don't know if Pencil support is likely, but even if it's just touch, the display will likely need to get thicker due to the touch layer. And either way I think there would also need to be a change in form factor. Especially if there's Pencil support, but even if it's just touch, the current traditional clamshell form factor isn't ergonomically conducive. My preference would be a "floating" design somewhat like the iPad Magic Keyboard, but more like a Surface Laptop Studio.
There will be no separate touch layer. Apple has requested Samsung’s on cell tech for the 14 and 16 inch OLED MacBook pros, meaning that the touch layer is implemented directly into the display glass.
Honestly I think basic touch support is more likely. The screens are so thin on MacBook I’d almost be afraid to use the pencil . (Unless the new models drastically change that ofc)
I don't know if Pencil support is likely, but even if it's just touch, the display will likely need to get thicker due to the touch layer. And either way I think there would also need to be a change in form factor. Especially if there's Pencil support, but even if it's just touch, the current traditional clamshell form factor isn't ergonomically conducive. My preference would be a "floating" design somewhat like the iPad Magic Keyboard, but more like a Surface Laptop Studio.
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