Building The Perfect iOS 26 Setup for iPhone 16 Pro Max

What's up everyone? My name's Jossi. I'm a tech creator based in New York City. And today I'm walking you through how I customize my iPhone 16 Pro Max with the new iOS 26 update. From the new liquid glass design to spatial scene, black screens to a minimalist home screen setup that's actually functional. This isn't just about making your phone look good. It's about making it feel like yours. This video is in partnership with The Body. [Music] [Music] [Music] All right, guys. We got coffee in hand and I even made a target run at 8:00 a.m. So, a super productive day and honestly, I was just really excited about today because for one, we updated and installed the new iOS 26. I've been loving how good Liquid Glass looks on this phone. But before we jump into my setup for my iPhone 16 Pro Max with iOS 26, we got a whip to pick up. Heat. Heat. Heat. [Music] [Applause] Heat. Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. Heat. [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] All right. So, we're on our way to one of my favorite coffee shops to get work done in the city. It's actually in Chelsea, and it's not the most glamorous cafe, but it feels very homey. It's spacious. They have a nice bathroom, and I just like the overall vibe. You know, I've learned in New York that you have to pick your cafes for whatever your preference is. So, if you want to work, you got to go for those more cozy, less aesthetic looking cafes. And if you want to have like a nicer vibe or get some cooler Instagram shots, it's better to go to those cafes where they're more like to- go cafes and they don't have a ton of sitting room. Time's fine. I actually need to post a stairbody campaign for short form. Hopefully, I can get to the cafe within the next 5 minutes. I think one of my favorite things about being in New York during the summer is seeing all the exotic or like rare cars. It's so cool to see because during the winter time I don't see them as nearly as much, but during the summer the Porsche guys show out. Depending on what neighborhood you're in, you're going to see a Porsche on like every block. Sometimes you see Lamborghinis. The supercars can get really crazy out here. I know Porsche isn't a supercar, but I'm just saying in general, the car scene can be wild. And look what I just spotted. A Rivian. [Music] Rivian R1 ST in red spotted in the wild. On our way to pick up our R1S. [Music] So brilliant. [Music] All right, Chad. We're about to get the Rivian in a few moments. Oh, the keys in the middle. Okay, appreciate it. Yo, this is so crazy. So, we got the Rivian R1S here in this forest green color. And this is surreal, man. This is so cool. It's going to be a really fun week driving around in the R1S. So, we're going to do a little bit of a short trip around just the tri-state, maybe hit up Jersey, Long Island. Hopefully, it doesn't rain too much, but it's looking clean. Before we continue the video, let's hear a word from today's sponsor, The Body. Running long distances is demanding on your body and adding the layer of running in New York City. Pavement, curbs, traffic, it all adds up. The Theun Mini has helped me take recovery more seriously. It's small but powerful. I use it to relieve tight calves and sore quads after long runs. It's The Body's smallest and lightest massage gun fits seamlessly into the palm of my hands and has been my go-to solution for relieving tension and reducing soreness after a tough workout. With its compact design and size, I no longer have to be confined to my apartment for recovery, but can now use the The gun mini for recovery on the go. It fits right into my bag, and the battery lasts long enough to make it through any trip. No charger needed most days. The damper, standard ball, and thumb attachments provide different levels of therapy. Three adjustable speeds to find the massage level that suits your recovery. It's become a part of my recovery reset at home and on the go. Transform the way you recover. Click the link in my bio if you want to check out the Theun Mini today. [Music] I realized my iPhone setup just wasn't doing it for me anymore. It looked plain and honestly it didn't match the vibe of iOS 26. So I went down the rabbit hole. I used GBT and Gemini to really understand spatial scene. What makes a photo work and how to make the most of the new liquid glass design? That's when I stumbled upon this app called Wallpapers. They've got an entire section just for depth enabled wallpapers. Game changer. I started testing images with strong contrast photos with a distinct foreground and background, people, objects, shadows, anything that would help the 3D effect pop. iOS 26 takes it from there. Just tap the spatial scene icon. The phone analyzes the image and gives it depth. I zoom, refframe, test the tilt. It's subtle, but when it works, it really works. Once I landed on the right wallpaper, I focused on building a layout that actually feels like iOS 26. Minimal, fluid, and a little moody. First up, aesthetics. clean, minimalist layouts with tinted or transparent icons. Want a cohesive wallpaper? Those always hit. I've got the phone in dark mode, but I've actually been using the light clear icons throughout today because they just contrast against the dark backgrounds, which makes the liquid glass really stand out. It's clean, functional, and undeniably polished. And here's a spatial scene lock screen in action. As I tilt the phone, you can see the depth. It's subtle, but the clock literally wraps around the subject. This one's a simple photo, but iOS 26 makes it feel dynamic and immersive. And the best part, you don't need a vision pro or a live photo. One thing to watch out for is if your control center or widgets start to clash with your wallpaper, head to settings, accessibility, display and text size, and toggle on reduce transparency. It gives you cleaner separation without losing the overall aesthetic. Messages got an upgrade that I'm actually going to be utilizing as well. You can now customize group chat backgrounds with spatial images and based on what your group chat chats about the most. You can use image playground right inside messages to generate visuals that match the vibe. Mine didn't exactly turn out great, but yours might. It's a cool feature, and I expect it to smooth out once we get the official release of iOS 26 in the fall. My home screen is intentionally minimal, less bloat, more breathing room. I only keep the apps I actually use daily, spaced out with widgets. I don't organize apps by page, really, outside of a few pages. I mostly just search for apps or use physical buttons like the action button for Chat GBT or the camera control button to open up the iPhone 16 Pro Max camera. But the one page I'm proud of, my travel page. It's got the flighty widget and all my airline apps and go-to tools in one spot. And liquid glass isn't just pretty, it's functional. Widgets now float with this frosted translucent finish that blends into the wallpaper. I've got a social media smart stack with YouTube, Instagram, and Tik Tok. It shifts with my day, but stays looking sharp while doing it. So, that's my full iOS 26 setup. Clean, minimal, and built around how I actually use my phone every day. If you're customizing your own iPhone, drop a comment below. I'd love to know how you guys are using spatial scene. And if this video was helpful, give it a like and consider subscribing. I got more setup videos and everyday tech content coming soon. Peace. [Music] [Music]