iPhone and iPad users can look forward to a smoother experience when connecting to Wi-Fi at hotels, airport lounges and even on-board flights.
Apple’s forthcoming iOS 26 and iPad OS 26 software will come with a clever new feature that makes travel connectivity easier.
This innovation targets what are known as ‘captive Wi-Fi’ networks where you have to log on through your Web browser: typically entering a password and, in the case of hotels, your room number and last name.
Today, and for the longest time, you’ve had to sign in separately with each Apple device – a pain if you want to swap between your iPhone and iPad.
With iOS 26 and iPadOS 26, when one device connects to a captive Wi-Fi network, the sign-in data will be automatically shared to your other devices so that you’re just one click away from connecting.
While you’ll still see the captive portal when connecting another iDevice, the log-in form will automatically be completed with the relevant data.
Nobody is pretending this is a life-changing feature, but by the same token, nobody can argue against this simple yet smart way to seamlessly hand-off between devices.
It should also be a fix for hotels which make you repeat the log-in process every 24 hours.
Apple didn’t highlight this feature at its mid-year developers conference, but it was spotted in the iOS 26 beta code and has already been used by early adopters running the beta software.
When can you expect to enjoy this new level of convenience? Apple is expected to release the final versions of iOS 26 and iPadOS 26 in September 2025.
Source: https://www.executivetraveller.com/news/apple-ios-26-ipad-os-26
