iOS 26.5 releases soon — new wallpapers, RCS encryption and all the new features coming to your iPhone
Publish Date: 2026-05-04 16:42:00
Source Domain: www.tomsguide.com
Apple just put out release candidate builds for iOS 26.5, which means the next update for your iPhone should release to the public later this month. The update arrives after a month of beta testing.
The latest iOS update isn’t massive but it does add some big changes to the Messages app, Apple Maps, and some minor ones to CarPlay. There’s new wallpapers in iOS 26.5, too. Read on for all the new features.
Ads in Apple Maps
(Image credit: Future)
If you’ve followed the roadmap over the last month, Apple laid the groundwork for ads in Apple Maps in mid-April with the second iOS 26.5 beta.
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A splash screen showed that Maps could show local ads based on your approximate location, current search terms, or businesses that are within view of your map as you search. Apple promised that advertising information is not linked to your Apple account.
Ads are also supposed to appear in the new “Suggested Places” section that was added in the first iOS 26.5 beta.
These ads will act similar to the ones you currently see in the App Store search results. The advertisements will have an “ad” label.
Chatbots in CarPlay
(Image credit: Tom’s Guide / John Velasco)
Siri and Google Assistant have long been available in CarPlay, but IOS 26.5 introduces broader integration, including ChatGPT. You can’t use your voice to activate it without an iPhone shortcut, but it is available on the widget screen for vocal queries.
My colleague John Velasco tested ChatGPT in iOS 26.5 and found that the OpenAI chatbot’s voice was more fluid and realistic than Siri or Gemini.
End-to-end encryption for RCS
(Image credit: Future)
Android phones already feature end-to-end encryption for RCS, except when talking to iPhones. Apple finally started testing encrypted RCS messages to Android with iOS 26.4 beta 2 back in February. The feature did not…
