With the recent release of iOS 16, iPhone users can now add widgets to the Lock Screen. The new widgets can feature anything from weather to stock information to calendar events, and will update themselves periodically.
At WWDC, Apple also announced that Live Activities — a feature that shows live information like updating sports scores or time until an Uber driver arrives — could also be shown in a widget-like feature on the Lock Screen. However, Live Activities will not be ready for public rollout in the fall, and will be coming at a later date via an update.
SEE ALSO: How to use iOS 16's new door detection
Here's how to add the currently available widgets to your Lock Screen.
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1. Open Settings and scroll down to "Wallpaper."
Gotta start somewhere. Credit: Screenshot: Apple
This is where any edits to your Lock Screen will live.
2. Tap on your existing Lock Screen to pull up the available edits.
Your current Lock Screen and Home Screen backgrounds will display. Credit: Screenshot: Apple
If you want to create a whole new Lock Screen, you can also tap on "Add New Wallpaper" and make every edit possible before proceeding to add widgets with the below steps.
3. Tap on the empty box below the time.
This is also where widgets will appear on your Lock Screen, Credit: Screenshot: Apple
This will pull up the available widgets and the ones you select will go in the area encased by this box.
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4. Pick your desired widgets and arrange them.
Tons of widgets to choose from. Credit: Screenshot: Apple
The left is the small option, the right is the larger version. Credit: Screenshot: Apple
Certain widgets will have different size options (e.g., a small square or larger rectangle). Depending on the sizes you choose, you can select between two and four widgets for your Lock Screen, and they will appear in a row in the order you select them.
Apple's iOS 16 iPhone update, released this week, lets iPhone users add little squares or rectangles of information known as "widgets" to the lock screen.
That's helped popularize Chinese app Top Widgets, which rocketed to the second most popular free app in the App Store behind social media app BeReal.
I've never heard of the app before, so I downloaded it to give it a try.
Top Widgets lets you personalize your home screen or lock screen with little squares or rectangles of information, like how much storage is left on your phone, pictures, the amount of steps you've taken, custom icons for apps and more. There's a lot more than what Apple offers by default, which might be one reason it's popular.
And it makes good use of the new always-on display on iPhone 14 Pro or Pro Max, which still show widgets on the screen even when the phone is idle. Those phones launch on Friday.
Here's what the app is like.
Top widgets for iPhone
Top Widgets app.
Sofia Pitt
To get started, just, just download Top Widgets from the App Store.
You don't need the newest iPhone to use the app. But, you need to first make sure you've installed iOS 16 to get widgets on your lock screen. IOS 16 is available for iPhone 8 and newer. Home screen widgets have been available since last year.
Next, open the app and select the widget you want to add to your lock screen or home screen.
You can pick from lots of stuff, like quick toggles to turn cellular or Wi-Fi on and off, your calendar, screen brightness, photos, reminders and even little animated emoji. Browse under the "LockScreen" section for specific options that can be added to your lock screen.
Hit save after you've picked the ones you want.
As you can see from my background, my widget tells me how many steps I've taken, how much battery I have left on my iPhone, and even how much storage space my iPhone is using.