The iPhone is about to get an overhaul, and it won’t cost you a penny to upgrade. iOS 16, due for release this autumn, is a free upgrade and it’s packed with exciting new features that get the most from your Apple smartphone.
The new operating system offers a complete overhaul for the iPhone’s lock screen. A new multilayered effect makes the subjects of photo wallpapers sit in front of the time, offering a sense of depth. If you press and hold the lock screen you get a screen selector, where you can swipe left and right through lock screen presets and screens you’ve already created. Tap a screen to set it as your lock screen, or tap Customise to edit it. Apple Watch owners will be very familiar with this feature.
Tapping Customise takes you to the editor, where you can swipe to try out different styles that automatically change the colour filter, background and the font and colours used to display the time. You can also add widgets to your lock screen, selectable through the widget gallery. Widgets collate information gleaned from iOS apps, and present them on your lock screen where they can be seen without unlocking your iPhone. A Calendar widget might offer upcoming events, for example, and Weather might show the current temperature at your location. Third-party developers can create widgets for their own apps too.
The wallpaper picker has been updated, and there are some new exciting wallpapers on offer, including an astronomy screen which shows the globe focusing on your current position and showing whether it’s day or night, and a real-time weather wallpaper which gives an animated illustration of the current weather.
The way the lock screen shows notifications has also been updated. Instead of covering up your entire screen, including your new widgets, they now roll in at the bottom of the screen, and can be hidden in favour of a link telling you how many notifications you’ve received. A new type of notification, called Live Activities, takes over when you’re following a real-time event like a sports score or the progress of your Uber ride. These appear as a single notification, which updates whenever necessary instead of being superseded by a new notification.
The new iPhone lock screen is amazing, but cynics might point out that several of its forthcoming features have been available on Android phones for years.
The Lock Screen
No one pays too much attention to the iPhone lock screen these days. It’
