This iOS 26 upgrade could make your iPhone feel much faster, but there’s a catch

• iOS 26 public beta 3 improves app opening times
• This makes using apps feel much quicker and snappier
• The adjustment does make apps’ content load any faster, though

Apple’s iOS 26 third public beta has just been released, and it includes a few small changes and enhancements for your iPhone. However, there is one modification that has truly attracted my attention, and it has also made my iPhone feel a lot faster.

You’ll probably notice the change almost instantly after downloading iOS 26 public beta 3: apps now launch and close considerably more quickly than they did previously, and you can tap them to bring them to live on your screen. Rather than waiting for them to fill your screen, they appear very immediately. The speed is demonstrated in the video further down this page.

Objectively speaking, the third beta of iOS 26 and iOS 18 most likely differ by only a few milliseconds in the times it takes for apps to launch and close. In actuality, though, you can definitely feel the difference. I adore how iOS 26 makes it feel like I can start using my apps right away without having to wait for the animation to finish.

The new animation is really helpful when I need to get started quickly, as when I open my camera app to take a picture of a special moment. However, those instances are really uncommon, and I’ve discovered that the primary advantage is just the sense of greater snappiness I now experience with my iPhone. It’s a minor yet significant alteration.

The slight drawback

iOS 26 beta 6 brings new animations when opening and closing apps pic.twitter.com/u2BiXZDVTg

— Aaron (@aaronp613) August 11, 2025

It’s important to keep in mind, though, that you might not always experience the advantages. This is because the modification affects the speed at which the container for an application loads and fills your screen, but it has no effect on the speed at which the content of that application loads.

Therefore, the most recent iOS 26 public beta probably won’t make an app feel any faster if it is not optimized well or takes a long time to display any content on the screen. This implies that the enhancements may differ based on the programs you use most frequently.

Nevertheless, when iOS 26 officially launches next month, you’ll see a noticeable difference if your apps are well-designed and load their core operations rapidly.

Updates like this demonstrate that little adjustments can occasionally have a greater impact than major, ostentatious modifications or new features. That’s definitely the case here, and I think one of my favorite changes made to iOS 26 so far is the quick app-loading animations.