Apple Updates iWork, iMovie, and GarageBand With Refreshed Icons and Designs for macOS Big Sur

Following today's release of macOS Big Sur, Apple has updated a number of its apps to support the new operating system version and upcoming Apple Silicon Macs.

iwork big sur icons
Apple's suite of iWork apps is among the updates, with Pages, Numbers, and Keynotes all sporting refreshed icons and a "refined new design on macOS Big Sur." Stability and performance improvements are also included. Alongside the updates on the Mac side, the iWork apps for iOS have seen minor updates for stability and performance improvements.

garageband big sur
GarageBand for Mac has also been updated with a new icon and refreshed macOS Big Sur design, among other improvements and additions.

- Refined new design on macOS Big Sur
- Improved performance and efficiency on Mac computers with Apple silicon
- Allows customisation of region colours in your tracks
- Adds 1,800 Apple Loops in a variety of genres including Hip-Hop, Chill Rap, Future Bass, New Disco, Bass House and more
- Adds over 190 instrument patches and 50 vintage and modern drum kits

Alongside GarageBand and the iWork apps, Apple updated its iMovie app for Mac with ‌Apple Silicon‌ support. No other new features are included.

Apple updated its professional video and audio apps, including Final Cut Pro and Logic, earlier today.

Popular Stories

iOS 26

6 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 26.1

Wednesday October 29, 2025 4:22 am PDT by
Apple is about to drop iOS 26.1, the first major point release since iOS 26 was rolled out in September, and there are at least six notable changes and improvements to look forward to. We've rounded them up below. Apple has already provided developers and public beta testers with the release candidate version of iOS 26.1, which means Apple will likely roll out the update to all compatible...
ios 26 1 slide to stop

iOS 26.1 Brings Back 2007 Feature in New Way

Friday October 31, 2025 1:40 pm PDT by
The upcoming iOS 26.1 update includes a small but helpful change for iPhones, and it could prevent you from running late to something important. Specifically, when an alarm goes off in the Clock app, there is a new "slide to stop" control on the screen for turning off the alarm. On previous iOS 26 versions, there is simply a large "stop" button, which could be accidentally tapped. The new ...
iOS 26

iOS 26.1 Coming Soon: New Features for Your iPhone and Release Date

Monday October 27, 2025 7:55 am PDT by
The upcoming iOS 26.1 update includes a handful of new features and changes for iPhones, including a toggle for changing the appearance of the Liquid Glass design, "slide to stop" for alarms in the Clock app, and more. Below, we outline key details about iOS 26.1. Release Date Given that Apple has yet to seed an iOS 26.1 Release Candidate, which is typically the final beta version, the...
M5 MacBook Pro

Waiting for New Macs? Apple Just Shared Bad News

Friday October 31, 2025 7:32 am PDT by
Apple has just given a strong indication that it will not be releasing any additional new Macs for the remainder of the year. Apple's CFO Kevan Parekh dropped the hint during the company's earnings call on Thursday:On Mac, keep in mind, we expect to face a very difficult compare against the M4 MacBook Pro, Mac mini, and iMac launches in the year-ago quarter.Parekh essentially gave a heads up ...
iPhone 17 Pro Cosmic Orange

8 Reasons to Wait for Next Year's iPhone 18 Pro

Thursday October 30, 2025 4:42 am PDT by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models at the same time, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 18 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. One thing worth...
maxresdefault

Apple TV 4K Could Still Launch Before 2025 Ends: All the Rumored Features

Monday October 27, 2025 4:51 pm PDT by
Apple is designing an updated version of the Apple TV 4K, and rumors suggest that it could come out sometime in the next couple of months. We're not expecting a major overhaul with design changes, but even a simple chip upgrade will bring major improvements to Apple's set-top box. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. We've rounded up all the latest Apple TV rumors. ...
ipad mini 7 feature blue

OLED iPad Mini: Release Date, Pricing, and What to Expect

Wednesday October 29, 2025 7:13 am PDT by
Rumors are stoking excitement for the next-generation iPad mini that Apple is reportedly close to launching. So what should we expect from the successor to the iPad mini 7 that Apple released over a year ago? Read on to find out. Processor and Performance Apple is working on a next-generation version of the iPad mini (codename J510/J511) that features the A19 Pro chip, according to...
Coffee Burgundy and Purple iPhone 18 Pro Mock 1

Leaker Outlines Potential New Colors for iPhone 18 Pro

Friday October 31, 2025 8:28 am PDT by
Apple's iPhone 18 Pro models could be available in new rich and warm color option, according to a known leaker. The Weibo user known as "Instant Digital" today suggested that next-year's iPhone 18 Pro models will be available in at least one of the following color options: Coffee, purple, and burgundy. The iPhone XR, iPhone 11, iPhone 12, iPhone 14, and iPhone 14 Pro were all available in ...
apple tv hd

Apple Launched Its Big New Vision for TV 10 Years Ago Today

Thursday October 30, 2025 8:58 am PDT by
Apple launched the Apple TV HD, the Siri Remote, tvOS, and their accompanying App Store a decade ago today, marking a major overhaul of the device. The new vision for the Apple TV was unveiled on September 9, 2015 during Apple's "Hey Siri" event in San Francisco, where CEO Tim Cook introduced the device with the statement, "The future of TV is apps." The announcement represented a major...

Top Rated Comments

Quu Avatar
65 months ago
I don't understand why Apple is producing such poor quality icons all of a sudden. These just look so bad :/
Score: 37 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Princess Cake Avatar
65 months ago
So are we done with this flat cartoony nonsense? Can we go back to a visually pleasing skeuomorphism design language now?
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
swingerofbirch Avatar
65 months ago
You know how in movies/TV shows they sometimes make fake generic operating systems and applications and icons instead of using real world ones?

These look like that.

Like props for a TV show.
Score: 20 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Mr. Dee Avatar
65 months ago
There is nothing wrong with the icons. In fact, they are the same icons, just morphed into looking like iOS icons. That’s the part I don’t like, the uniqueness of macOS has been reduced and consumed into the universe of its mobile offspring. I missed the stand out uniqueness of photo realistic icons. It’s really what made OS X attractive. Seeing a representation of true life on screen.

Apple now considers that redundant and I believe it was Jony Ive who promoted this when explaining the abstract look of icons iOS 7 such as Game Center. Icons should hint what they do and at least with these three, you have an idea,

- the charts and cells in the background suggest this has something to do with numbers.

- the pen, quotation symbol and lines suggest this is a tool for writing.

- the podium and what looks like screens it slides is a program for preparing presentations.

I still do miss the unique icons from the old days though. The Adobe Photoshop 7 eye, the Quark Xpress lotus flower, the picture of the child at the beach in preview.




Attachment Image

Attachment Image
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
thePhil907 Avatar
65 months ago
I love the overall look of Big Sur but those icons are butt.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BWhaler Avatar
65 months ago
I love, love, love iWork.

Those icons suck. They had better ones in some of the test versions. Such a shame.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)