Apple Releases iOS 26.3 and iPadOS 26.3

I’m somebody who definitely relies on dictation. So we’re specifically did you see the bugs in dictation? Because it was only in certain apps or was it the entirety of the operating system? Cause if there’s a lot of issues with dictation, I will definitely have to wait on this update. I also use Siri for a lot of things too. I know you guys said that you weren’t sure if this affect or not. Thanks.

Hi Singer Girl,

In my experience, the level of accuracy of Dictation has decreased significantly with iOS 26.3. I mainly use Dictation in the Messages and ChatGPT apps, which is where I encountered the issue in. I do not think it is something app-specific. My hope is that this is something Apple can address on their servers but I would definitely recommend anyone who relies on Dictation to stay away from iOS 26.3 for the time being.

I just caught the same bug as well just capitalize all the letters

After updating to iOS 26, in the TV App, when you go to the Continue Watching Section, voiceover doesn't say the name of the show or movie. It just says, for example, "S2 E8" and doesn't say the name of the show. Hopefully this is fixed.

pronunciation glitch again just write watch the o. e. the o being capitalized and the write ess

This is fixed for me.

Lasw week did the RC, Apple release update to that. Will see if VO and notification is fix. Not. Long live cats.

In the announcement about iOS 26.3 on this page, there's mention of switching to Android. At first, I thought I wasn't hearing things correctly. Was that an error?

I primarily use dictation for text messages and other similar things. I've already dictated several messages since updating, and so far as I could tell, everything worked as expected. For those who are heavily reliant on dictation, definitely follow the advice given by Applevis, but perhaps the dictation thing is only going on with select devices? I'll try to pay closer attention if I need to do any additional dictation over the next few days.

Sad the bug continues. Maybe iOS 26.4? Apple is not interested in fixing it. Nuts. Long live cats.

I'm waiting to see if there are any bugs specific to non-AI compatible iPhones, before I upgrade.

Nope? your ears did not hear wrong.

https://appleinsider.com/articles/26/02/11/ios-263-arrives-with-a-simpler-way-to-transfer-from-iphone-to-android

Disclaimer, these will not disrupt anybody's workflow or anything, just a couple things I have noticed after updating my backup/testing device to iOS 26.3.
1. A while back I reported on iOS 18.7.2 that the emoji search feature was broken. That is to say that when trying to type something in the search field, absolutely no emojis would populate. This was not the case in iOS 18.7.1. I have since figured out the fix/workaround. On iOS 18 or later as of this writing, go to Settings, Display & Brightness. At the very bottom of this screen, double tap on Display Zoom. If you have it set to larger text, it will break emoji search. At least on smaller devices. If you set it to default, emoji search will work fine.
2. Display Zoom is also where the second bug/glitch exist. This one is minuscule, but wanted to report it anyways. If you do decide to switch between larger text or default, and iOS 18 and earlier, once you make your choice there is a "Done" button. However, on iOS 26.3, the "Done" button is mislabeled "Selected" button.

HTH.

Their was a horrible bug with any text field in iOS 26 - 26.2.1 where it seemed like the keyboard haptic machine-gunned itself open and closed when activating a field or sending a message. This would drag on VoiceOver and make the BSI input and interaction unbearable.

I am no longer encountering this issue since updating to 26.3! Looks like they actually fixed something I filed.

whilest not a android user myself nice to know people have that option. I'm guessing for the apps the android device would download its android counterparts? I.e, say one has speech central, one transfers to android, the android device would then download speech central but for android. At least that's how i'm picturing it. Would be interesting to see what happens when an app exists for ios but not for android? Or vice versa. Also, what about accessibility settings? Obviously voiceover settings cant be transfered but, status of settings? I.e, accessibility features on or off etc? This is interesting for sure.
Grad the appstore status of downloading apps got fixed. Granted it was miner but man if it wasn't annoying as heck.

A small bug that has been with us for a while. Usually when you enter your passcode on the lock screen when you delete a character vo will announce the number of characters and the requiered number usually X of 6 in the edit field. This has not worked when you have to enter passcode to start the update, and it does still not work from 26.2.1 to 26.3

When I updated could not put password. Lucky I have an slim folio keyboard and that help. Without it I would not be able to put the password. Long live cats.

It doesn't give weird words anymore. However, for me at least as apps are downloading it now says something on the lines of 35% complete then a random other number so, 35% complete 64%. No idea what that is about. That random number changes as more of the app is installed.

Still broken, not accurate, iMessage, Dystopia, Apple Mail you name it! Moreover, I'm dictating this post and once I double tap to stop dictation voiceover is not reading back what I have dictated! Right here right now Be My Eyes! Except not/S

Hi,

After updating, here are my thoughts. first, I use Dictation for messaging people in my contacts and so far it's been working fine as expected. No issues here on my end. However, the Community dictionary in Eloquence seems to be broken in some areas. For example, it not only affects when it says the words iOS, but it also affects macOS and some folks in my contacts with different names. The apps such as Gmail and WhatsApp all seem to be speaking correctly without any issues. overall, everything else appears to be working normally as expected. Hopefully Apple will address these issues and release an update with the fix to the community dictionary in eloquence.

To answer your question Igna, the feature only transfers data. You will have to manually find the third-party apps yourself that you wish to use at this time. Eventually, it may do what you're thinking of.

Someone else feel free to correct if I may have missed something.

Still very neet for sure.

I’ve just updated both of my devices. This comment is being written with dictation. I didn’t see any problems with dictation so far on my secondary device which is an iPhone SE third generation. Because of this, I decided it was safe to update my primary phone, which is an iPhone 15. I am dictating my comment on my secondary device at the moment though. Seems to be OK so far. And I am somebody who does rely on dictation. I mean, I think updating is completely an individual decision and it always has been. So far I haven’t seen really any issues. Hopefully everybody else is having a good luck with this update.

So far I have only updated 26.3 to my backup/testing device, which is an old iPhone SE 2020. Other than the little glitches I mentioned a few posts above, I've not really had any problems with the update. Dictation is also working rather well for me, at least better than my primary device, an iPhone SE 2022, still running iOS 18.7.2.
Go figure...

Hi Lee,

I just listened to an app update download with your findings in mind. On my device, VoiceOver spoke the following pieces of information:

• The progress of the download, in megabytes;
• The speed of the download; and
• The percentage of the download.

Is this what you are experiencing?

i gotta update my iPad 9 to 26.3, i haven't done it yet

For the folks who aren't experiencing dictation errors, are you using AI capable devices?
I wonder if this is more specific to iPhone 16 and higher.

I said this above, but no, not using any AI compatible Apple devices here. Also agree that it may be the newer iPhones that are having dictation issues.

My phone is not AI compatible as it’s an iPhone 15. Also, my secondary device is an iPhone SE third generation. So that could be a possibility that it’s an issue with the newer phones. But no, I’m not experiencing any dictation issues. Hopefully whoever is will be getting those issues resolved really soon.

I have an iPhone 15 Pro and yes, there are dictation issues on 26.3. Luckily I type everything with BSI.

Not sure. Before as far as I recall it just said installing 50% complete, 75% complete etc as it moved on. If what you are saying is true then I get the other info with no knowledge of what the other number relates to.

I am using an iPhone 17 Pro Max but have all of the Apple Intelligence features disabled. Dictation is still very broken for me on 26.3, though initially I thought it had improved between the RC and public release versions of 26.3.

VO needs a serious overhold. When was the last time apple did so? Not interested in new features but fixing bugs or rebuilding VO from the ground up. Getting tire of VO and notification bug. This is a fact for me and some and is not negativity. Long live cats.

Are we sure this is a bug? I.e, does the same thing happens with sighted people, that they look at the notification on lock screen and their phone locks after x amount of seconds? I ask because if yes, then this isn't a bug; it’s normal behavior. I'll have to see if the same behavior shows up for sighted people to see if my theory is correct.

I dictate my texts and there's no issues so far. Also I am so glad that the TV App bug is fixed!

Well I have it and some do also. When I ask Siri to read notifications no issue. Bug. Did I said bug!!! Long live cats.

Deffo a bug re notifications and it is rediculous how long this is taking to fix. Surely, it can''t be that difficult to sort out

i am having a bit of a different bug with VO talking, sometimes when i lock my screen VO will still finish what ever it was saying before i locked the screen, it happened twice since i updated, the notification bug that everyone is talking about is there for me too.

Voiceover hasn't gotten stuck in the resize window button like it always did before the update, hope i didn't just jinks it lol

Can not believe a company that is worth 1 trillion dollar can not fix a bug. Like I said before, when was the last time Apple updated VO, not talking about new features but check VO code

We have to remember that there are a lot of other accessibility features and these phones besides voiceover. Apple does fix the bugs. We just need to keep reporting them. Apple does listen to us. And yes, I do consider it negative negativity to every time we get a new update that somebody has to post. How many bugs them around all the time?

Well the VO and notification has been around since iOS 18.5 or higher. If you do not dealing with this bug, you are lucky but most of us are dealing with it and we are tire of this. Again 1 trillion company. Long live cats.

Yes, I am dealing with this bug. It’s unfortunate, but we just need to keep reporting it. I’m sure Apple will figure out where the problem is at some point. I think it started in like 18.4 but yeah it’s not great. I guess it’s annoying.

Reporting it, It has been reported until the cows come home. We get getting the same reply from apple about it. Long live cats.

I don’t use dictation a whole lot, but I’ve used it a few times yesterday and today and the results are pretty good for me. I’m on the iPhone Air.
Dave

I've got a regular iPhone 16, and I have all the apple intelligence stuff turned on. Dictation seems the same as ever to me, which, for the most part is pretty good.

Is it just me or nowadays we have to really exaggerate the gesture? Before even a tiny movement was enough but now we must really want it. Or was it always like that and I've just discovered it recently?

I don't have any problems with notifications. When I get one and I activate my screen to read it, I swipe to the right from the clock and st reads the whole text without locking.

Lucky you.

What notification bug are you talking about? I notice that a lot of people are talking about it. Could someone please describe it to me? I might have it as well. Regarding voice dictation, I'm wondering if it is not specific to English? It doesn't seem to be present with my friends who use dictation in French Canada.

What notification bug are you talking about? I notice that a lot of people are talking about it. Could someone please describe it to me? I might have it as well. Regarding voice dictation, I'm wondering if it is not specific to English? It doesn't seem to be present with my friends who use dictation in French Canada.