What one hand giveth – macOS 26 killing much-loved icon after half a decade

Apple announced a number of new software features during its WWDC event at the beginning of June.

For iPhone, iOS 26 will bring features like Call Screening and the ability to change the snooze time for your alarm, while for Apple Watch, there's a new Workout Buddy that's powered by Apple Intelligence to give you a pep talk before and during a workout.

When it comes to iPad, Apple's tablet will work much more like a Mac if you choose the windowing option with iPadOS 26, while Mac is getting some excellent features too, including coloured folders.

What icon will macOS 26 Tahoe ditch?

However, the macOS 26 Tahoe update will also ditch a long-loved feature of the Mac interface when it arrives. Get ready to say goodbye to the Mickey Mouse glove cursor.

As spotted by 9to5Mac in Design Resource files released by Apple, a small 15 x 17 pixel icon has been found, showing a much more generic and standard-looking glove-wearing hand.

Currently – on macOS Sequoia and for many years prior – when you hover over a clickable link in an app or browser, the cursor changes to look like Mickey Mouse's hand and it is very cute.

But the icon in the macOS 26 Tahoe assets will presumably replace that hand, marking the end for the Mickey glove hand that has been part of Mac's visual identity for half a decade at least.

It's not the first time Apple has removed something like this with a software update. The iconic Mac startup chime was removed in 2016 before being reintroduced in 2020 as an optional feature with macOS Big Sur, while more recently, the "poof" animation and sound that happened when you drag something out of the dock on Mac has been cut.

We're still in the beta phase for macOS 26 Tahoe so you never know, someone might fight for the Mickey Mouse glove hand to stay in the final build. As it currently stands though, you should make the most of this cute little icon over the next few months before it disappears for good.