{"id":253501,"date":"2026-05-23T04:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-05-23T08:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news-you-need.com\/index.php\/2026\/05\/23\/ios-26-tweaks-iphone-always-on-display-in-a-way-you-might-not-like\/"},"modified":"2026-05-23T13:40:13","modified_gmt":"2026-05-23T17:40:13","slug":"ios-26-tweaks-iphone-always-on-display-in-a-way-you-might-not-like","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news-you-need.com\/index.php\/2026\/05\/23\/ios-26-tweaks-iphone-always-on-display-in-a-way-you-might-not-like\/","title":{"rendered":"iOS 26 tweaks iPhone Always On Display in a way you might not like"},"content":{"rendered":"

iOS 26 tweaks iPhone Always On Display in a way you might not like<\/a><\/p>\n

https:\/\/9to5mac.com\/2026\/05\/22\/ios-26-iphone-always-on-display-wallpaper-blur\/<\/a><\/p>\n

Publish Date: 2026-05-23 04:00:00<\/a><\/p>\n

Source Domain: 9to5mac.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Apple\u2019s Always On Display has been fairly consistent since it debuted on iPhone 14 Pro. With iOS 26, Apple quietly changed how it works in a way that may not be obvious.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Always On Display modes<\/h2>\n

Instead of simply dimming your Lock Screen wallpaper, the system blurs it by default in iOS 26.<\/p>\n

The tweak makes the clock and widgets stand out more, but it also defeats the purpose of displaying a photo if that\u2019s what you like about the feature.<\/p>\n

Luckily, there\u2019s also a toggle to bring back the original behavior.<\/p>\n

In iOS 18, the Always On Display worked much like it works in iOS 26. A dimmed version of your Lock Screen stays visible when your iPhone is locked, giving you quick access to essentials like the clock, date, notifications, and widgets.<\/p>\n

The screen will turn off entirely when face down, covered, in CarPlay, using Continuity Camera, in Low Power Mode, while Sleep Focus is on, or at bedtime.<\/p>\n

Customization has always been limited but useful. You can decide whether the wallpaper appears at all and whether notifications are shown.<\/p>\n

This means your always on screen can be clean and utility-driven, or retain the personality of your wallpaper and lock screen setup.<\/p>\n

iOS 26 makes one big change<\/h2>\n

With iOS 26, wallpapers are blurred by default when the display is dimmed. The effect likely improves legibility, but it changes the look of the Lock Screen.<\/p>\n

For me, I think I\u2019d rather not show any wallpaper than be presented with a blurred version of my Lock Screen image.<\/p>\n

Fortunately, Apple added a toggle alongside the behavior change to give you control.<\/p>\n

In Settings > Display & Brightness > Always On Display, you can disable blurred wallpapers so your Lock Screen appears in full clarity like before.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Which behavior do you prefer? Is blurring better for privacy and sensitivity, or does it defeat the purpose for you?<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\"Add
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FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.<\/p>\n

Source<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

iOS 26 tweaks iPhone Always On Display in a way you might not like https:\/\/9to5mac.com\/2026\/05\/22\/ios-26-iphone-always-on-display-wallpaper-blur\/…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":253503,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/9to5mac.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2025\/08\/ios-26-clock-lock-screen-b6.jpg?resize=1200%2C628&quality=82&strip=all&ssl=1","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[120],"tags":[69,95,77,132],"class_list":["post-253501","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-iphone","tag-ios","tag-ios-18","tag-ios-26","tag-iphone-14"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/253501"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=253501"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/253501\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":253504,"href":"https:\/\/news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/253501\/revisions\/253504"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/253503"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=253501"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=253501"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=253501"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}