English DT journalist Christine Romero-Chan really wants her iPhone home screen to work the same as it would on Android.
Apple keynote speech at the conference WWDC 2024 It was quite a spectacle. Showed off the many new features coming to iOS 18, iPadOS 18 And macOS Sequoiaand most of them work with Apple IntelligenceApple’s own brand in the field of artificial intelligence.
But there were other non-AI features, too, including some much-needed changes to the iPhone’s home screen. It’s been a while since Apple really redesigned the Home screen, the last time being iOS 14 and the ability to add widgets and create custom app icons using Shortcuts. In iOS 18, users can further personalize their Home screen with new ways to rearrange apps and widgets, as well as the ability to theme app icons like never before.
Some might argue that these changes make iOS more like Android, which is not what they want. But I don’t agree! iOS 18 means I can finally have fun with my iPhone’s home screen, and I can’t wait.
Give app icons a new coat of paint
One of my favorite things about Android How easy it is to customize the appearance of your device. I especially love using Samsung’s Galaxy Themes system, which allows me to create a completely new look with just a few taps.
I really wish Apple had some sort of theme store for iOS. While this wasn’t the case in iOS 18, what we have is no less interesting. In iOS 18, Apple added new themes for its app icons, including Light, Dark, Auto, and Shaded. Light is the “normal” look, dark gives them a similar theme to dark mode, the automatic cycles between the two modes depends on your iPhone’s dark mode settings, and tint lets you make them any color you want.
I practically set my iPhone to dark mode 24/7. I’ve been using the same set of app icons for several years now, which mostly have dark backgrounds with colorful icons and logos. But once I get iOS 18, I can go back to the default icons. Because? Because the default dark mode option looks quite attractive if I do say so myself.
It’s similar to what I had with my own icon set, and I like how the colors look vibrant, at least in Apple’s own apps. Of course, I also use third party apps, so we’ll see how quickly they adapt to the new dark coloring mode.
Now the hue function is something of a mixed bag. The examples that Apple showed are not the best. Some of the complaints I’ve seen from people online so far say that tinting icons results in low contrast, all tinted icons have a black background which not everyone wants, and overall it doesn’t look very good.
Despite the downsides of changing the appearance of the icons themselves, I think it’s still great that we have more ways to personalize our iPhones. It may not be the same as having a full theme store, which is something I’d like to see someday, but giving users more options is always welcome.
Freedom to move apps and widgets anywhere.
Another big change is the way you can rearrange apps and widgets on the Home screen. Although Apple still uses a grid format, there can now be empty spaces, columns, and rows between apps and widgets.
If this sounds familiar, it’s because Android can do this already years. Yes, iOS 18 will allow you to rearrange icons and widgets any way you want. No more dumb decisions like creating a transparent space using an app to place digital squares where you want them.
I’ve kept the same home screen layout for several years. I left it the same because the limitations of iOS meant I needed to have everything I needed, plus I like quick access to frequently used apps. But as soon as I have iOS 18 iPhone 15 proI’ll go back to working on the entire home screen.
I try to keep my most frequently used apps at the bottom as they are much easier to access with one hand. With iOS 18, I can finally use bottom rows, eliminate unnecessary clutter, and show off my home screen wallpaper even more. Home screen design offers so many possibilities and I can’t wait to try it myself and even get inspired by others.
Finally, we can change the shortcuts on the lock screen.
I was pleasantly surprised that Apple finally allowed us to change the shortcuts on the lock screen. For years, these shortcuts have been locked to turning the flashlight on and off or launching the Camera app.
Now, with iOS 18, as part of the Control Center changes, we can finally change the shortcuts on the Lock screen. The Control Center also has a new look, allowing users to place their favorite controls wherever they want. I also like that developers can now create controls for their apps so users can see them in Control Center or on the Lock screen, or even assign them to the Action button on the iPhone 15 Pro or iPhone 15 Pro Max.
More customization is always good
Again, Apple’s implementation of advanced customization options may not be quite what you expected. Maybe we’ll have themes sometime in the future, right? I’ll cross my fingers.
However, I really like that Apple is giving us more options to make our devices more unique. Yes, this feature has been present on Android phones for many years now, but not everyone wants to use an Android phone. It’s taken a long time, but Apple has finally given its users more control over their phones.
Some people may not like the idea of iOS becoming more like Android. But here’s the thing: no one is forcing you to use any of these new features. They’re just there if you want to use them. If not, no big deal! And if so, you’ll have a great day.
Source: Digital Trends
