Picture Playground is Apple’s picture era app that launched final yr. Most individuals could not have a variety of use for the cartoonish photos that it produces in iOS 18, however you are going to need to take one other take a look at it in iOS 26 as a result of Apple has improved its algorithms.
Folks look extra pure within the photos generated by the app, with extra lifelike eyes and extra variation in hair that higher matches pattern images.
As a fast recap, Picture Playground enables you to kind in any phrase to generate a picture in considered one of three non-realistic kinds. You can even choose pre-determined scenes and props that Apple suggests, and generate photos that includes your family and friends. It is these photos the place you will notice the most important distinction in iOS 26, as a result of the content material generated based mostly on photos of individuals has modified fairly a bit.
Animation
In iOS 18, images generated utilizing the Animation fashion have blunt hair with little variation, a lot of distinction, and unnatural trying faces, however in iOS 26, options are softer, hair is extra various, and it has extra circulate. Garments additionally look extra pure, although Picture Playground would not usually trouble matching outfits.
iOS 18.6 picture in center, iOS 26 picture on proper
Picture Playground’s Animation fashion in iOS 26 appears to take extra liberty with picture backgrounds, pose, and physique form, and it is higher at small particulars like particular eyebrow form.
iOS 18.6 picture in center, iOS 26 picture on proper
Sketch
With the Sketch fashion, Picture Playground is once more higher at matching facial features, options, and hair fashion. The picture on the precise appears extra like MacRumors videographer Dan Barbera than the center picture.
iOS 18.6 picture in center, iOS 26 picture on proper
Illustration
Illustration has a few of the identical traits as Sketch, higher capturing colours and inventing higher backgrounds.
iOS 18.6 picture in center, iOS 26 picture on proper
Animals and Landscapes
The adjustments to Picture Playground will also be seen in photos of animals, meals, locations, and extra, in all three built-in kinds.
iOS 18.6 picture in center, iOS 26 picture on proper
Feelings
Picture Playground appears to be higher at reflecting emotion, too. For this picture, the modifier “sobbing” was added to the picture. It did not fairly present tears, however there may be extra emotion within the iOS 26 face on the precise. There’s even a devoted “Expressions” menu, with choices that embrace giggle, joyful, mad, unhappy, shocked, considering, thumbs up, and thumbs down.
iOS 18.6 picture in center, iOS 26 picture on proper
ChatGPT Integration
ChatGPT picture era capabilities are included in Picture Playground in iOS 26, so there are an expanded vary of kinds to select from. There are just a few prompt choices, together with anime, oil portray, vector, print, and water colour kinds, all of which use ChatGPT quite than Apple’s capabilities to create the picture.
Anime, oil portray, and water colour kinds in Picture Playground
The output is much like what you get in case you use ChatGPT 4o for picture era, and you may make these cute anime-style photos which have been floating across the web.
ChatGPT’s anime-style output in Picture Playground
There’s additionally an open-ended “Any Fashion” choice to create photos with ChatGPT, and that provides extra vary to what’s doable with Picture Playground. ChatGPT can basically mimic any fashion that you just ask it to, and it may possibly generate lifelike photos, which isn’t one thing that Apple’s picture era expertise does.
A “lifelike” picture of a hen on high of a cat’s head.
As with customary Picture Playground picture era, you may make a text-based request or add a picture to ChatGPT and ask it to make use of that as the idea for a picture. Photographs that you just add and textual content requests will be mixed.
Creating photos with ChatGPT makes use of up tokens, and you probably have a free account, you most likely will not be capable to create multiple or two photos. Benefiting from ChatGPT picture creation options in Picture Playground past that requires a paid account.
Genmoji
Picture Playground in iOS 18 doesn’t help creating Genmoji, and that is a separate characteristic positioned within the Messages app. In iOS 26, you need to use Picture Playground for Genmoji.
Genmoji is a mode that you could choose, and selecting it opens up an interface the place you may select an emoji or a number of emoji to customise. One of many new Genmoji options in iOS 26 is the choice to mix emoji to make new emoji quite than ranging from scratch with a personality, and this functionality is out there in Picture Playground along with the Messages app.
You possibly can faucet a number of emoji to create a brand new one, or select an emoji after which add text-based descriptions to make tweaks. There is no such thing as a possibility to make use of images for Genmoji. The Genmoji that you just make are added to your emoji keyboard and so they can be utilized in Messages.
Labeling
While you ship somebody a picture generated with Picture Playground in iOS 26, like over AirDrop, it’s labeled as a generated picture within the file title.
