iOS 16 will enable always-on display but only on the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max

One feature that has been eluding iPhone users, even with the latest iPhone 13 series, is the always-on display (AOD), something that Android users have been enjoying on almost all modern devices for quite some time. An AOD enables displaying glanceable notifications and reminders on the display without having to fully wake up the device. It looks like iPhone users will finally be able to make use of AOD functionality with the upcoming iOS 16 update. However, there's a catch.

An always-on display for the iPhone was initially speculated to debut with the iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max. However, that never materialized. References to a possible AOD feature were also spotted in an iOS 16 feature leak last month. Now, Apple watcher Mark Gurman notes in his latest Power On newsletter in Bloomberg that AOD will finally be a reality with this year's iPhone 14 series launch. He notes,

“I’m told iOS 16 builds in future support for an always-on lock screen, something Apple was originally planning for last year’s iPhone 13. This would allow the iPhone to turn down the frame rate significantly on the lock screen and display quickly glanceable information – similar to newer Apple Watches."

While iOS 16 will obviously make its way to the iPhone 13 lineup, Gurman notes that AOD functionality will be exclusive to the iPhone 14 Pro and the iPhone 14 Pro Max, at least for now. This is likely because the iPhone 14 Pro series will now feature newer LTPO panels that can potentially refresh as low as once per minute similar to the Apple Watch. The iPhone 13 Pro models also offer 120 Hz displays, but they refresh between 60 Hz and 120 Hz and do not go down any lower.

Apart from the AOD, the upcoming iPhone 14 series is also slated to transition to a pill-shaped cut-out for the notch and get upgrades to the A16 Bionic SoC and 48 MP cameras.