Apple is giving its Books app a handful of useful improvements in iOS 27.2, making it easier to track reading progress, save your place, and navigate between books.
The changes, spotted in the third beta of iOS 27.2, arrive as Apple prepares to launch its first foldable iPhone, the iPhone Duo, later this month.
What’s New in Books
The most useful addition is a reading progress bar that shows how far you’ve made it through a book without opening a separate menu.
Apple has also brought back a dedicated bookmark button in the upper-right corner, making it easier to save your place while reading. Previously, that option was tucked inside a menu.
The reading interface has received several smaller adjustments. The bottom-right menu now uses a three-dot button with Apple’s Liquid Glass styling, while the close button has moved to the upper-left corner.
A larger back button now sits in the lower-left, giving readers a more prominent way to navigate.
These changes are limited to the reading experience, with no reported adjustments to the bookstore or library management features.
Better Timing for iPhone Duo
The improvements arrive at an interesting moment for Apple Books.
The upcoming iPhone Duo features a 7.6-inch inner display, giving readers considerably more screen space than a traditional iPhone. Its foldable design could make it particularly appealing for ebooks, documents, and other long-form reading.
A more accessible bookmark button and clearer progress indicator would be useful on that larger screen, especially for readers switching between books or returning to longer passages.
Apple hasn’t confirmed that the Books redesign was developed specifically for iPhone Duo, although the timing puts the changes close to the device’s launch.
iOS 27.2 is currently in beta testing, with a public release expected in the coming weeks.
