When Apple finally unveiled its latest generation mobile operating system, iOS 16, it didn’t mention the existence of an always-on display. However, that doesn’t mean Apple has decided to skip it – at least according to reports based on the code behind the company’s latest mobile operating system. According to these reports, Apple has included always-on display provisions in iOS 16, suggesting that it will introduce this at the launch of the iPhone 14 line. Reports also suggest that the feature will be reserved for the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max.
Always-On Display on iPhone 14 Pro
According to 9to5Mac, Apple has included several code references that make it clear that having an always-on display in the iOS 16 code is no coincidence. These include three new frameworks that will be used in iOS 16 to effectively control the iPhone’s display backlight.
This structure, as explained in the report, is commonly used by all devices with always-on displays. Backlight control on the device allows its software to control the display in an efficient always-on mode. The feature is also linked to the ProMotion Variable Refresh Rate feature in the upcoming iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max, which the report speculates could drop the refresh rate down to 1Hz to consume the least amount of power when idle.
However, it also notes that Apple included developer flags in iOS 16, which they can use to enable persistent display on an older iPhone 13 Pro series phone. However, it’s not entirely clear if this is purely for testing purposes or if Apple might offer it as an upgrade to the iPhone 13 Pro series via a future iOS update.
The iPhone 13 Pro series is already shipping with the ProMotion display, which allows the software display controller to switch the refresh rate between 10Hz and 120Hz depending on the content being played on the screen. 9to5Mac argues that 10Hz may not be enough for an always-on display to work efficiently, and so Apple may release the iPhone 14 Pro with a refresh rate of just 1Hz to optimize battery consumption.
However, this is not always the case, as flagship phones such as Samsung’s flagship Galaxy S series devices feature always-on displays and refresh rates of up to 10Hz.