Adam Engst compares the Classic and Unified views in iOS 26’s Phone app across dialing, contacts, Favorites, Recents, voicemail, and call filtering—ultimately favoring Unified because of how its design reduces inadvertent calls. Adam also notes Apple’s quiet launch of an App Store website that puts all six platform stores under one responsive roof. In ExtraBITS, we link to Jason Snell’s colorful charts summarizing Apple’s fiscal 2025 and share Paul Kafasis’s sharp critique of macOS 26 Tahoe’s squircle icons. Notable Mac app releases this week include Acorn 8.3.2, Affinity 3.0.1, Audio Hijack 4.5.5 and Piezo 1.9.7, Fission 2.9.2, and TextExpander 8.4.
Apple has quietly launched a unified App Store website that brings together all its platform stores into a single responsive, searchable interface—though downloading still requires native apps.
Apple redesigned the Phone app in iOS 26 with a new Unified view that combines Favorites and Recents—and, crucially, makes it much harder to call someone. Adam Engst walks through the differences between Classic and Unified views to help you decide which to use.
Watchlist
Updates the image editor with a few improvements and bug fixes for the image editor. ($29.99 new, free update, 86.9 MB, macOS 14+)
Maintenance update for the recently announced free graphic design software. (Free, 981.4 MB, macOS 10.15+)
Two Rogue Amoeba audio apps bring full support for macOS 26 Tahoe. ($69/29 new, free update, various sizes, macOS 14.4+)
Adds full support for macOS 26 Tahoe and refinements to audio editor's recently updated color scheme. ($35 new, free update, 14.5 MB, macOS 14.4+)
Text expansion utility adds a new Date Picker feature. ($40 annual subscription, free update, 47.9 MB, macOS 11.1+)
