The early reviews for Apple’s latest iPhone models are in. In addition to outlining what reviewers like and don’t like about the latest iPhone, they’ve offered a more detailed look at one important new feature. Several reviews dug deep into the always-on display for the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max. These explorations confirm some details we already thought while also offering some interesting surprises.
Sorry, You Can’t Customize the Always-On Display on the iPhone 14 Pro Lineup
We suspected this would be the case, but early reviews confirm that you can’t really customize the Always-On Display for the iPhone 14 Pro family. It offers you a tinted version of your chosen iOS 16 Lock Screen wallpaper, widgets, and any active Live Activities. Some hoped we’d be able to adjust what information was displayed. Another item on the wish list was the ability to show a darkened wallpaper or black background.
Neither of those options are there, but you can disable Always On in the Settings app. It’s too early to know how much impact the always-on display might have on battery life, but the handsets do offer a much more power-efficient OLED display compared to previous models. The ability to drop the refresh rate down to 1Hz should help tremendously.
Further Power Savings by Intelligently Disabling the Always On Display
One technical detail that many missed could definitely help with battery life. The iPhone 14 Pro, when paired with an Apple Watch, can intelligently disable the always-on display under certain conditions. This same feature is also useful from a privacy standpoint.
If you’re wearing your Apple Watch and leave your iPhone 14 Pro in another room, the handset knows it. When this happens, iOS automatically disables Always On until you return. This will help preserve battery life, since the display turns off when you can’t possibly need it to stay on. It also helps safeguard your privacy, since the display won’t show your wallpaper and widgets when you’re away from your device.
We’re looking forward to seeing the iPhone 14 Pro for ourselves. Even though none of us currently have plans to upgrade, several of us have quick and easy access to physical Apple Store locations. Rest assured, we’ll be visiting these beginning Friday to get our hands on the devices to at least see the improvements for ourselves.