Apple releases iOS 26.0.1 and iPadOS 26.0.1 with fix for VoiceOver loss of speech

I'm updating my iPhone SE third generation to iOS 26.0.1 now. I will let you guys know if anything seems to be different for VoiceOver users. I am actually writing this on my iPhone 5. This phone is using Fred for voiceover and American Siri mail for Siri. That's what they were called them.

Chicago, I checked not yet.

There aren’t any changes here for VoiceOver users for me on my iPhone SE third generation or my iPhone 15. Still cannot use Karen premium. As I work around for this right now, I am using Karen enhanced. My iPhone third generation is using Samantha enhanced. I’m hoping that another software update will give me access again and premium eventually. Other than that, there’s really no changes that I can tell.

You can expect bugs to be squashed. No major changes.

I'm thinking the primary reason for this release is to fix the loss of VO on reboot, that a lot of of us experienced when we upgraded to 26.0.

It’s a really crappy annoying bug to have for people. I’m sorry that a lot of people experienced the loss of speech of voiceover. That’s crazy. I have not experienced that, but I’m glad that it’s been resolved now. I’m glad that Apple took care of this as quickly as they have. I am hoping for a software update to get access to Karen premium. As a workaround for now I am using Karen enhanced my iPhone 15. My iPhone SE third generation is using enhanced. I’m using British voice one for Siri on my iPhone 15. On my iPhone iPhone SE third generation I’m using American voice for. I’m using Samantha enhanced as a voice voice on my iPhone SE third generation.

I'm thinking iOS 26.1 will be the update that fixes the voices. At least, that's what I am hoping for. Right now, my SE 2020 is the only device currently with iOS 26 on it, and it's using basic Samantha, and it has Alex as a Roto voice. They both sound absolutely horrible on that device, when they used to sound pretty good on that device. At least back before updating to iOS 26.

That’s interesting. I had a basic Samantha on my SE third generation and she sounds fine. I did switch to enhanced for a little while. If anything that’s the one that sounds really weird to me. I haven’t tried Alex. Not really the biggest Alex fan. I hope they fix the voices for you though. It’s annoying to have voices that don’t sound right. Well, hopefully that will be fixed in iOS 26.1. I’m hoping to regain access to Karen premium with that update. Right now I can’t even activate her. She act as though she downloads but if you try to activate her you can’t. You can still play her sample though. And then she just honor delete so yeah she’s not even staying in the phone as a download. So as I work around right now, I’m using Karen enhanced on my iPhone 15. My iPhone SE third generation is using Samantha enhanced. I’m thinking of going back to basic Samantha and basic care note. You have more even inflections. I’m thinking I’m going to go do that now actually. Enhance Samantha on this phone sounds like she’s got some kind of a cold or something. It’s weird that the regular Samantha actually sounds better on this device.

Fred and Eloquence are probably your safe bet, and maybe the standard default voices.

Then again, I was using Fred and I still got the Voiceover bug.

Luckily it didn't happen for this minor update.

The issue where the home button was slow to respond when trying to use it to activate Siri seems to have been resolved with this update. I’m happy that that got fixed. It was kind of annoying. Because basically you would hold down the home button and it would kind of make a haptic and then the sound to respond, but it was just really slow. I’m glad Apple will fix that. This is on an iPhone SE third generation.

My SE third generation, is my daily driver, and basic Samantha sounds wonderful on that device. My old backup device, and SC second generation, basic Samantha sounds god-awful. I am not sure if that's hardware or software though.

No, it was more about the issues with the 7 series. Camera and so on. They fix VO not turning on as a nice thought but was more about the issues sighted people were having.

I updated to 26.0.1 yesterday and things are working as expected from my end. I am using Zoey premium as my primary voice on an iPhone 15. I have Ava premium, Siri Voice 4 narration, and Nikki enhansed as rodor voices.

Still waiting to update my iPad 9. It is now on iOS 26. Everytime I check to get it tells me my iPad is update.

I just updated my phone earlier this morning, and thus far all is well. Though I did not experience any loss of speech in the initial release of iOS 26, my iPhone 14 updated while I was at a neighbor friend's apartment for a bit and all is good. I haven't yet checked out this update in detail.

My phone updated last night. Bluetooth works, I can change voiceover and sound settings, and alarm sound is nice and loud.

Hi Brian, there might be something different with the SE second generation. I know the processor is different. Maybe there’s something slightly different with the speaker as well. I don’t know why Samantha would not awful on that phone. I’ve never used an Ashley second generation. Hopefully that will get resolved soon though. Cause I’m using basic Samantha on the third generation and she sounds great. I just found it odd that the basic Samantha voice sounds better than enhanced. But that does seem to be the case right now for my SE third generation. Hopefully this will get resolved soon. Hopefully all our issues we’re having accessing certain voices will get resolved soon.

Happy to hear alarm is working. Happy days are here again.

Many of the iOS apps put a "What's New" screen up when you first open them after updating and you have to push the continue button to get to the app. The continue button wouldn't activate with VO on in the camera app. I turned VO off and touched the screen where the button was to get it to work. Just a one time thing, and I didn't get a screen recording of it as proof. Even better, I was at the top of a very tall ladder at the time, and I didn't fall off.
That's the only app I've opened so far, so if there are others that don't work, I don't know about them. I plan on dealing with them the same way, maybe not at the top of the ladder though...

16 pro max. Notice that battery is worse with iOS 26.01. NUTS.

Don't play with your iPhone while climbing ladders! Or else we're gonna end up having to call you OldBearSpirit. 🤨

I never play with my iPhone while climbing a ladder, only when stationary at the top or the bottom.
I think I'm OK with the changes to the Photos app.

Since updating to iOS 26, Eloquence reads amounts of money literally rather than interpreting them. For example, $3 is read as "dollar three", not "three dollars". Alex does read money correctly. Has anyone else experienced this or know what's causing it?

Have you tried this, both with, and without, the community dictionary option checked? Also, have you tried using different eloquence voices, just to see if you get any different responses?
Just throwing out some ideas here. :-)

Changing those options has no effect on the behaviour.

The keyboard sound is still gone.

Forgot to also say that my ring tones work now. Before, voiceover would announce the call but no ring tone.

Does the valume of the alarm works? Before it did not. Still hoping VO and notification gets fix before I get to heaven. For Brian, I know apple does not like me. Nuts.

Knowing is half the battle. 😉

I think the notification will be fixed. I think I saw somewhere in the Apple beta releases for iOS 26.1 that somebody had mentioned that being fixed. But don’t quote me on it. But I’m pretty sure I saw that so it will be fine. And if it’s not just keep reporting it. Apple doesn’t know this issues if we don’t tell them. I think the same thing will happen with the voices too.

When I updated my SE 3 to version 26.0, my battery drained very quickly and it also overheated.

I found that with version 26.0.1, my battery life has improved significantly. I no longer have to charge it three times a day. My battery is back to normal.

I'm also on an iPhone SE 3rd generation, and battery life is always a concern win doing a major update to the OS. I have not updated yet, at least not on this device, personally, I'm waiting for 26.1. 😇

Nice dream but this will not be fix in my life time, if you ask Brian, apple does not like me and it is doing it to give me a hard time. Long live cats. To save battery check youtube on battery save for iOS 26.

I’m glad you’re having a good experience with the battery life and the iPhone SE third generation. I haven’t noticed that at all, but then again I’m also on YouTube a lot with this iPhone SE third generation I listen to music a lot with it so I’m sure it takes a lot of battery out of it. But I don’t have to charge it. I guess that many times a day. I’m sure it’s probably using a lot more battery right now too it’s using the iPhone 15 in order to get Internet access. But I mean, I kept it for the reasons that I’m using it for so I think it’s fine. Hey, I mean updating as a totally personal choice so I think people should just update whenever they feel ready too. And that means it’s towards the end. I was 26 then that works too. I’m just glad that this phone is still being supported. My iPhone 15 is my daily driver right now. My iPhone SE third generation is my secondary device. I kept as an iPod. I just transferred all the settings from SE to the 15. It’s been working out with Kait for me to do that. I bought my funds directly from Apple. I’m lucky because the local Apple Store here has a lot of people who know voiceover. They were able to help me set up everything and whatever they didn’t know they found somebody who could tell them how to do something with voiceover or they wouldn’t looked it up themselves, which I thought was really cool.

Check this out and turn off some of this privacy settings. Most will save more battery. Copy and paste in youtube if link does not work
iOS 26 SCARY Privacy Settings To Turn Off Now!

No, in Public beta 1 of iOS 26.1 notifications are not fixed. Still no feedback from Apple on this either in my bug report!

Not even in iOS 26.01

so after updating to iPadOS 26.0.1 i can't go to the top or botum of the screen with my hable, holding dots 1 2 3 or 4 5 6 just makes the hable vibrate but nothing happens, also scroling up and down with it voiceover doesn't say anything, scroling with 3 fingers works as it should, think this may be an issue with the hable but it's still super frustrating, it's gotten to the point where i don't even bother using my hable with my iPad most of the time, i just connect it to my phone because of this and all the focus jumps it causes, nun of this happens when it's connected to android

Hi all,
I just updated, the no speach on reboot issue seems to have been resolved, but I'm now getting inconsisstant behaviour from the app swicher, it doesn't matter where I amm, In an app, on the home screen or the lock screen. VO will indecate screan change and loading, the app swicher will appear for maybe 1 secondd, but the first page of the home screen pops up after that and it's really fiddley to close an app. I'm not sure if this a VO focus issue? or just another randum bug.
I'm going to restart, then see what happens. I'll post here when I know.
Also on the lock screen, Particularly but not limited to X, if i'm clearing a notification Vo will just go to the nex one. If I long press to interact, say repost/like, once it's done it it will most likely jump back to the time on the lock screen or the heading for what ever notification group I happen to be on. This has been an issue forever, but I'm just wondering if anyone else has experienced it and if they've got any suggestions/workarounds.
In apendix to the post about the iphone locking while atempting to view notifications on the lock screen because the screen only stays awake for maybe 4 seconds and doesn't seem to recognise that VO is trying to read something, thiss still appears to be ongoing.
Screen lock set to never.
Anyone else got ideas about that, they would also be apretiated.
I just read more comments so i'm amending this, I'll check on the money thing with Eloquence, I have noticed that my Eloquense still fales to say the f part of word like Fail, Phone, Filter, Fantastic, ETC, only when the phanetic is at the start of words, though. I tried changing oices, I tried changing Eloquence voices, it happen on anything other than Eloquence and all voices are effected. disabled then reenabled conunity dictionary. It's a shame people can't add words to that or that words can't be added from a file, I have so many of them on my PC it would be nice to have them on iOS too, but I think that may be impossible...
My next step is to reset Vo settings completely (so glad We can do that now) and see if that fixes it. I was reluctent to do that, but it's really anoying now.
Thiss issue has been around for me since I updated to iOS 18.2 from 17.6.
Thank you all.
Regards,
Melissa.