Finally, a useful lock screen.
iOS 16 is rumoured to include some big new features, including enhancements to your iPhone’s lock screen, as the WWDC conference draws nearer.
If Mark Gurman’s ‘Power On’ newsletter (paywalled) is to be believed (opens in a new tab), iPad multitasking, alerts, Messages, and Health apps will all see upgrades in the near future.
However, the lock screen has undergone a major overhaul. Aside from a Camera shortcut and a “Today” notice, there haven’t been any substantial updates to iOS since its launch in 2007. There’s a chance that the always-on screen on the iPhone 14 will be able to show notifications all the time, which would be nice for iPhone 14 users.
In contrast to iOS 15, which was a release that appeared to take a step back from big features in favour of existing ones, it appears that iOS 16 will push full steam ahead with brand new capabilities that will transform the way you manage your digital assets.
Analysis: Lock screen has been overdue for a facelift
To be fair, it’ll be nice to see Messages and Health get even better, but it’d be even nicer if Health were to get its own app on the iPad and the Apple Watch.
There have been three distinct ways to manage three windows on the iPad’s multitasking, but the iPhone’s lock screen has been left out of the equation entirely.
While iOS 12 brought a revised notification system and iOS 15 brought a new ‘Today’ view that displayed the current day’s weather, the lock screen has remained largely unchanged.
While widgets are changing the look and feel of our iOS home screens, the lock screen has the potential to undergo the same transformation. Adding notifications that appear like those on an Apple Watch, even while the iPhone 14 is in low-power mode, is a good idea.
Any user who can run iOS 16 should be able to see a significant improvement even before they access their home screen, it appears.