Apple might be about to borrow its OS naming scheme from Windows 95

Summary

According to a new report from Bloomberg, Apple is preparing to rebrand its entire OS portfolio this year.
The company is reportedly ready to switch to a unified naming convention that reflects the year of each OS’s release.
This sweeping change to Apple’s naming scheme is likely to occur at the company’s WWDC conference in June.

In a new report from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, it has come to light that

Apple
is gearing up to rebrand its entire portfolio of operating systems, which includes iOS, iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, watchOS, and visionOS for the iPhone, the iPad, the Mac, the Apple TV, the Apple Watch, and the Vision Pro, respectively.

“Apple will announce its biggest ever software rebrand at WWDC, tied to operating system redesigns. Apple is moving from version numbers to years (like Windows in the 90s). The new OSs: iOS 26, iPadOS 26, macOS 26, visionOS 26, tvOS 26, watchOS 26,” says Gurman on X.

Currently, Apple operates on a yearly update cadence, with each year’s big feature release demarcated by a new whole number. Throughout the year, the company releases smaller .x updates filled with smaller tweaks, bug fixes, and security patches.

…the status quo has been one of inconsistently numbered releases each and every year.

As a direct result of the staggered conception of each of Apple’s operating systems, the status quo has been one of inconsistently numbered releases each and every year. For example, 2024

saw the simultaneous reveal
of iOS 18 and iPadOS 18, but also macOS 15, watchOS 11, and VisionOS 2.

By pivoting over to a single number that reflects the OS’s year of release, Apple would effectively consolidate its

diverse range of operating systems
under an overarching umbrella. I reckon this would make life easier for the end-user, as it would take the guess out of knowing whether you’re on the latest OS update or not.

The iPhone 17 Pro is shaping up to be an absolute unit

A new iPhone 17 Pro dummy unit hands-on from Majin Bu on X gives us another glimpse at Apple’s upcoming flagship handset, and it’s built like a tank.

Apple’s OSs are about to get glassier

A unified design language to match a unified naming scheme

ios-19-hero — Front Page Tech / Pocket-lint

Front Page Tech / Pocket-lint

Apple’s reported operating system rebrand is big news, but it’s only one part of this year’s software puzzle. By adopting a unified visionOS-style software aesthetic in its next batch of OS releases, the company will be able to offer a far more consistent experience across its platforms as a whole.

This redesign,

rumored to be code-named Solaris
, is widely expected to feature increased depth elements, glassier UI components, and other new visual flourishes. The internet is filled with mock-ups by concept artists, and I’m personally a fan of the look in its conceptual form (I have mixed feelings about the circular icons, though).

Thankfully, we won’t have to wait much longer for the official reveal of Apple’s next major OS updates — the company’s software and developer-focused WWDC25 conference is set to take place from June 9 through 13. More than anything else, I’m personally excited about the launch of the next version of iPadOS — whether it be called iPadOS 19 or iPadOS 26 — squarely because of the rumored improvements to Stage Manager’s window management system (via 9to5Mac).