The iPhone Always On Display Needs A Quick On & Off Toggle

Introduction

Undoubtedly, it has been one of the most requested iOS features alongside dark mode until it was introduced by Apple with iOS 13. Android phone enthusiasts have always been proud about their Always On display (AOD) on their smartphones. Apple decided to introduce this feature with the iPhone 14 Pro (and Pro Max) on iOS 16.

Apple’s Implementation

Apple’s AOD implementation on the iPhone 14 Pro has nothing to do with what Android manufacturers do. Considering that Apple stays loyal to its core design principles, this should not be a surprise. Apple has been following a different path already since 2019, when the always on display was introduced as a highlight feature of the Apple Watch Series 5.

Apple delivered an always on display that allows time and important information to remain visible while dimming down the rest of the display to save battery life. In other words, Apple wants to keep the same display and watch face experience by making the display operating at lower brightness. At the same time, important information displayed on the AOD gets refreshed less frequently than normal in order to maintain good battery life in combination with the LTPO display drivers.

The Challenge

Whether this implementation is better than the one seen before on Windows or Android phones is subjective. However, it is a fact that under certain circumstance the AOD may be creating some uncomfortable situations when turned on. Under these circumstances we may be forced to turn the feature off. The major challenge is the display brightness level in really low light environments. To be more precise, the display brightness is not as dimmed as it should be when watching a movie or a play in theatres. Your iPhone could easily ruin the experience of your or the people sitting around you if you hold your phone in your hands. Under these circumstances you may need to put your phone in your pocket. However, this may not be a possible option for several different reasons. The other alternative is turning off the always on display mode. This may be the most reasonable option, but there is really no quick way to do it. A quick workaround would be enabling Low Power Mode which turns the Always On display mode off. The latter creates other problems though, since additional features, such as background app refresh, are also disabled and we simply do not want to do it. Apple should create a faster way to enable or disable the always on display on the iPhone.

The Solution

Apple has been offering us several different options on the iPhone to perform certain actions faster than navigating multiple screens in settings. Let’s see them:

• Back Tap. Apple is offering us a way to quickly double or triple tap the back of our iPhone to perform certain actions or run a shortcut. Unfortunately, not only has the AOD toggle been excluded from Back Tap, but also Apple doesn't allow us to use this setting in shortcuts as well. This leads us to the second possible solution.

• Shortcuts. Apple could easily allow us to include this toggle in Shortcuts app. However, it has been once more deliberately excluded as an option. It’s clear at this point that Apple does want iPhone 14 Pro users to keep this feature turned on. Shortcuts are an easy way to create a toggle that can be used both as a Lock Screen Widget (through a 3rd party app) or even through Siri. Which brings us to the next alternative, Siri.

• Siri. Words may be unecessary sometimes. “Hey Siri, turn the Always On display off” could do the job.

• Control Center. Apple could add a new Control Center toggle, that would allow users to quickly enable or disable this feature. Perhaps a theatre mode, similar to the one found on the Apple Watch could be another viable option. Theater mode on the Apple Watch prevents the display from turning on, so it stays dark. It also turns on silent mode and disables Walkie-Talkie, but users still receive haptic notifications.

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Have you enabled the Always On display feature on your iPhone 14 Pro or iPhone 14 Pro Max? Have you ever felt obliged to turn the Always On display temporarily off? What do you think?