VERDICT: DO NOT UPDATE
You are sitting on a goldmine. Community developers have standardized on iOS 26.1 as the "Daily Driver" validation target.
Exclusive 26.1 Capabilities
Features you will LOSE if you update to 26.2
Liquid Glass Write
Full read/write access to the glass transparency layers. You can make the dock invisible, remove folder backgrounds, and tint the Action Center.
Dynamic Island
On iPhone 15/16 models, you can use Nugget to force-enable the newer A19 Dynamic Island animations that were software-locked.
App Encoders
JIT Enablers work roughly 40% better on 26.1 due to a memory leak in the verification daemon (patched in 26.2).
Recommended Action Plan
Install tvOS Beta Profile
This prevents your phone from accidentally auto-updating overnight.
Install Misaka26 Manager
Get the package manager to start applying tweaks. View Install Guide
Supported Tools for iOS 26.1
Misaka26
The golden standard for customizing 26.1. Full read/write access to Liquid Glass layers.
View Tool →iOS 26.1 Specific Scams
Because 26.1 is popular, scammers target it heavily.
"Unlock26"
Claims to "unlock" root on 26.1. It is a browser hijacker.
View other iOS 26 versions:
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is iOS 26.1 called the 'Golden Version'?
It's the FINAL version to support the unpatched MobileGestalt exploits. It offers the stability of a .1 release with the customization freedom of a .0 release. It is the best version for A19/A18 devices.
How do I block update to iOS 26.2?
You must install the tvOS 25 Beta Profile. This tricks your device into looking for tvOS updates (which don't exist for phones), effectively disabling the OTA daemon.
Does Genmoji work on 26.1?
Yes! While official Genmoji requires 26.2+ on supported devices, the 'GenmojiEnabler' tweak for Misaka26 works perfectly on iOS 26.1 to force-enable it.