A few days before the presentation new iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max, there are more and more details about one of the main features of these devices – Always On Display. In a separate article, I noted that most users would prefer to disable this feature in exchange for more autonomy. However, there will always be those who want to get the most out of their devices that they can provide, and will constantly use it. Taking into account the cost of the new flagship Apple this is a perfectly reasonable approach. After all, you don’t want to pay for some kind of functionality just for the sake of having it.
In this regard, I want to understand what opportunities Always On Display will give users and how it will look. Let’s see together what is permanent active screen on iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max.
Always On Display – iPhone
For those who do not know or have forgotten, I will briefly remind you what Always On Display is. As the name implies, this is an always-on screen. When you lock your smartphone, the display is not just black, but some information is displayed on it. For example, clock and notification indicators. In such a situation, there is no need to highlight the screen of your device in order to understand whether you received any messages or not. Yes, and even corny to see the time becomes much more convenient.
However, any such function has disadvantages. In the case of AOD, this is autonomy. It is not yet known how much power the screen in the new iPhones will consume. Given that the refresh rate in them can vary from 1 to 120 Hz, we can hope for minimal charge loss. But only tests can show the real picture. Another point is burn-in and afterimage. On Android smartphones, they learned to deal with this problem by constantly shifting the splash screen. How Apple will implement this is also not completely clear yet.
According to MacRumors, new lock screenswhich will appear in iOS 16, will interact directly with Always On Display in iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max. Notifications, wallpaper depth effects, and different colors are neatly integrated into the new iPhone functionality. Separately, it should be noted that due to the reduction of the cutout in the screen of firmware, Apple will return to a full-fledged battery indicator, which is displayed on iPhones with a home button – percentage next to the battery icon. In this case, the signal strength of the cellular network will move to the left side of the status bar, as it was before.
In this case, the Always On Display itself will look like this:
- If you have installed wallpaper with depth effect, the background will be completely turned off, and the foreground will be very dark. At the same time, if the clock on the lockscreen is displayed in the background of the image, then it will remain so when using AOD.
- Widgets will not be permanently displayed in AOD mode. This is done to prevent screen burn-in. At the same time, it is stated that they will appear imperceptibly for the user and disappear at specified intervals. It is possible that their appearance will be tied to Attention recognition functions. Face ID will read your gaze and, depending on this, display widgets on the lock screen.
- All elements on the lockscreen and in Always On Display mode will match exactly. You won’t be able to set them up separately.
- Notifications will appear at the bottom of the screen in the same way as when the lockscreen is active, and will be displayed in full for ten seconds. After that disappear. In this case, after waking up, all notifications will appear with animation at the bottom of the screen and grouped depending on the user setting.
- Perhaps Apple will allow you to enable the counter of unread notifications in Always On Display mode. However, this has not yet been confirmed.
Separately, it is noted that almost immediately after the release of new smartphones will appear iOS 16.0.1 update or iOS 16.1, which will include a fix for the always-on screen. It is reported that although Apple is in the final stages of testing, it is still facing bugs in the new feature.
Always On Display – Xiaomi
In words Always On Display in iPhone 14 Pro and the iPhone 14 Pro Max will look very cool. But let’s see what Android smartphones provide to their users as part of this function. Samsung and Xiaomi are the furthest advanced in terms of capabilities. Not only is it possible to display a clock, notification counters, but also small images or neat animations.
Xiaomi smartphones allow you to use super wallpapers, which in AOD mode move the planet as far as possible. In this case, most of the screen becomes just black, and the selected planet is displayed in the center. Unfortunately, they are not available on all devices, but installing them is not difficult.
Apparently, Apple decided to go its own way and will try to keep lock screen wallpaper, albeit in the darkest form. How effective this approach will be, we will find out after the new devices go on sale and become available to the first buyers. One thing is for sure: there are more and more opportunities for users to personalize your iPhone. This is to be welcomed.
