Apple is set to change the way you use the iPhone when it’s not in your hand with a new feature coming to iOS 17 later this year. Announced at WWDC, the company’s annual developer conference in California, the new software feature will encourage you to turn your iPhone into a desk buddy, kitchen clock, or bedside table companion when you aren’t using it.
Called Standby, the new enhancement will let you display key information like the weather, news, calendar appointments, and other widgets when the iPhone is in a landscape orientation.
If that sounds familiar, it’s because widgets are already available on iOS 16 (just swipe right on your iPhone screen), but until now the widgets screen hasn’t been available in landscape or when the phone is locked.
