Apple’s next iPhones could feature an always-on lock screen for quickly checking useful information.
Bloomberg sources report that Apple is planning major improvements to the iPhone’s lock screen in the forthcoming iOS 16 and iPhone 14.
News of the possible iOS features comes ahead of Apple’s 2022 Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC) beginning June 6, where it shares what’s new in its operating systems and hardware.
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The always-on lock screen would provide handy at-a-glance information, much like the always-on mode in the 2019 Apple Watch 5 and later, as well as new widget-like capabilities and wallpapers.
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Bloomberg reports the always-on mode will be exclusive to the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max.
Recent rumors suggest the iPhone 14 will get the A16 chip, a new pill-shaped Face ID camera notch, and a 48-megapixel main camera.
Supporting the idea of an always-on display, the iPhone 14 models are expected to have an OLED screen with a 120Hz refresh rate but also use Low-Temperature Polycrystalline Oxide (LTPO) backplane technology. LTPO allows AMOLED displays to refresh at high rates where needed and much lower rates for static information in order to conserve power.
CNET’s Stephen Shankland has a thorough rundown of LTPO in Apple products. LTPO allows for high resolution, an adjustable refresh rate and ultra-low power consumption, but comes with 5% to 10% price premium. LTPO enabled always-on in the Apple Watch 5 and underpinned the ProMotion smooth-scrolling feature in iPhone 13 Pro and Pro Max. These iPhones supported refresh rates between 10Hz (refreshed 10 times per second) to 120Hz.
The iPhone 14 could also cost $100 more than Apple’s 2021 lineup and initial supplies of the new models could be low due to China’s COVID-19 restrictions imposed in Shanghai this March.
Apple is unlikely to announce the iPhone 14 at WWDC but is tipped to be unveiling a new MacBook Air, which was last updated in late 2020 with the M1 chip and specs close to the 13.3-inch MacBook Pro.
