When Liquid Glass dropped, the first thing it changed was how your icons and UI looked more glassy. The effect made the screen look clean and modern, but it also made the icons feel a little bland. What if you could keep the glass look and still have colors showing through? That’s the idea behind the “clear-colored” icon concept that’s now going viral among iPhone users.
The idea behind clear-colored icons
The concept, which has been trending on Reddit’s iOS community, shows two home screens side by side. One uses the current transparent icons from iOS 26, while the other mixes transparency with full-color icons. The result keeps the minimal glass finish but adds a splash of color back to the screen. Many users think it strikes the right balance between modern design and personality.
Supporters say the colored-glass mix looks more “Apple-like” and feels alive compared to the plain transparent version. Some even use similar designs in Focus modes to reduce eye strain while keeping things visually interesting. They argue that users should simply have the choice to switch between the standard Liquid Glass, tinted, and this clear-colored style.
Why Apple hasn’t done it yet
The problem isn’t creativity, it’s consistency. Apple maintains a strict visual standard for app icons, and a mixed design could break that balance. Third-party developers would also need to adjust their icons to make them work with transparency. Without that, some icons could look too bright, too small, or completely lose contrast depending on the wallpaper.
Others noted that Android already allows similar “glyph-only” or themed icons, but even there, inconsistencies exist when developers don’t update their designs. Apple’s design system avoids such visual mess by controlling every layer of the interface. That’s why Liquid Glass and Tinted modes were introduced together, both handled by the system rather than by app developers.
Users want more control
Despite these design hurdles, iPhone users are pushing for more customization. Many argue that Apple has already shown it can handle visual themes safely with dark mode, tinted icons, and dynamic wallpapers. A “clear-colored” option could easily fit into that framework as another toggle in the Display settings, similar to the Liquid glass intensity toggle in the new beta.
Some even joked that Apple might save this feature for iOS 27, since the company often rolls out visual tweaks slowly across updates. Others said it would make sense to tie the feature to Focus modes, brighter icons for work, and muted icons for downtime.
The takeaway
The discussion shows how much users care about the visual identity of iOS. Apple’s current Liquid Glass design brought a fresh layer of depth, but it also sparked debate over style versus clarity. The clear-colored icon concept lands right in the middle, balancing form and function while keeping the iPhone’s interface recognizable.
Whether Apple ever adopts it is another question.
