At this point, iPhone 14 Pro rumors are pretty solid when it comes to the new display, which is not only expected to have a new design but also to support an always-on mode. And while previous versions of iOS 16 already had multiple references to a new always-on mode, even the system’s wallpapers have now been updated to take advantage of this new technology.
If you’re unfamiliar with an always-on display, this technology allows the system to keep showing some information on the screen like the clock while consuming very little battery power. Some Android smartphones already feature always-on displays, while Apple Watch Series 5 and later also have the same technology.
Even before WWDC 2022, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman had already reported that iOS 16 would be ready for a new always-on mode, which is expected to be exclusive to iPhone 14 Pro models. That’s because this year’s models will reportedly get a new variable refresh rate display that goes down to 1Hz per second. As a result, it should consume less power than current displays.
9to5Mac found multiple references to always-on display support in iOS 16, which corroborates all the iPhone 14 Pro rumors. There’s even an internal mode that Apple uses to test always-on mode in iPhone 13.
iOS 16 wallpapers ready for always-on display
When it comes to Android smartphones with always-on display, the feature works pretty much the same among all of them. You get a black screen with the clock and sometimes widgets. With the new lock screen in iOS 16, it has become pretty clear that the iPhone is likely to follow a similar approach. However, Apple might be working on something beyond that for iPhone 14 Pro.
Based on the internal files of iOS 16 beta 4, 9to5Mac has found that the system wallpapers are now ready for this new always-on display mode. As we previously explained, iOS 16 no longer uses static images as wallpapers. Instead, the new wallpapers are multi-layered vectors rendered in real time.
Now, in addition to the regular vectors, the native wallpapers (such as the default one and the recently added clown fish wallpaper) also have a new state labeled “Sleep,” which has very dark and faded elements. Wallpapers in this state are quite similar to the Apple Watch faces with always-on enabled.
Once the user turns off the screen of the iPhone 14 Pro, the wallpaper will switch to the “Sleep” version. We were able to reproduce the new behavior, which you can see below:
Basically, it seems that Apple will replicate the same effect from the Apple Watch on the iPhone 14 Pro. This means that users will still see their wallpapers in some way even when the screen is turned off. The wallpaper will be displayed at full brightness once the user taps the screen or presses the Power button.
Of course, on a real device, the clock and widgets chosen by the user will also be visible when the screen is “off.”
More about iPhone 14
Apple is expected to introduce four new iPhone models this year. However, iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max will be the only ones to have a faster chip and a new screen design with a pill-shaped cutout instead of a notch. This year’s Pro models are also rumored to get a new 48-megapixel wide camera capable of shooting 8K video.
iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max will also get the biggest front-facing camera upgrade in years with a new larger aperture f/1.9 lens and autofocus for better low light performance.
As for the regular iPhone 14 models, they should be heavily based on the current iPhone 13 hardware with minor camera upgrades, larger batteries, and 6GB of RAM instead of 4GB. The most notable upgrade for the mid-range lineup this year will be the replacement of the “mini” model with a new 6.7-inch screen “iPhone 14 Max.”
The new iPhones are likely to be announced this fall.
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