Customization of a smartphone is not only exciting but also useful. It helps make the device truly yours and adjust things according to the preferences.

There are plenty of iOS features that ensure that. In this guide, you’ll find all the tips and tricks on how to make your device unique and authentic.


Lock Screen Features

It is only logical to start with the Lock Screen. After that, you’ll be able to change wallpapers, home screen, and widget placement. In iOS 16, you can create multiple lock screens, which is great. But there should be one that remains without changes. It is going to be a default one the device uses for Focus Mode.

Start by long pressing on the lock screen, then swipe right until you see a blank one with an “Add new” button on top. Next, click on the “+” in the middle of the screen and proceed to wallpaper selection.

The possible categories are:

  • Photos from your library;
  • People album;
  • Photo shuffle if you want more than one picture. They will shuffle throughout the day;
  • Emoji – select 6 of them to create a pattern;
  • Weather – your wallpaper will change based on the weather conditions;
  • Astronomy offers beautiful pictures of space and planets;
  • Color – create a minimalistic look with one shade or gradients;
  • Collections – dynamic pictures offered by Apple.

You can disable the parallax effect that makes the shapes of the wallpaper move separately from all other elements of the screen.


Safari Adjustments

Another useful thing is making your browsing experience better. It helps find needed sites and platforms in a matter of seconds.

For instance, students can add sites they often use to the tabs. So when they need qualified paper writers at WritePaper to polish their essays, they can easily access the page. 

Moreover, you can organize your tabs in groups like “Study,” “Travel,” “Reading,” etc. You can create new groups, choose their names, and add all the useful links.

It is also possible to organize tabs in a group in a specific order or pin one on the top of the group.

Other useful Safari customization features are:

  • Start page adjustments (from privacy reports to background pictures);
  • Text size options;
  • Display and privacy settings.

This will ensure a smooth and easy browsing experience.


Clock Adjustments

Also, it is possible to change the clock font and color scheme to your liking. To do that, you can simply tap on the clock and see all the font and color options available. Then, to save the changes, press “x” in the top right corner of the menu.


Adding and Deleting Widgets

Widgets on hom e and lock screens are very handy to get the most crucial information instantly. It can be a weather report, news feed, or schedule – whatever you need the most.

For the lock screen, iOS 16 offers 4 widget slots. Here you can add information from various apps you already use on your device. Tap on the slot and select one of the offered options and choose the right size. Some applications offer different styles and types of them, so you can choose the suitable one.

Also, a user can tap on the widget and select what information it shows if there are several kinds of data available. To save the changes, press “x.”

The widget under the clock cannot be removed. By default, it shows the current date. But you can select alternatives.


Home Screen Alterations

As soon as you are done with the Lock screen and Safari, it is a good time to move to this part. The major change in its look happened with iOS 14, which introduced an app library and widgets.

So if your device has iOS14 and further, there are many more options available.

Here you can have:

  • Up to 15 pages;
  • App folders;
  • Widgets;
  • Or six rows of app icons (four in one row).

Those who prefer a slick and minimalistic look can now remove pages, widgets, and apps. This is helpful to stay focused and remove all the junk. By default, all new apps are installed on the Home Screen. But you can change that by going to Settings – Home Screen – App Library Only.

If you want to delete a page, you can press and hold on an app icon (enter wiggle mode) or blank space on the page. After that, press the Home Screen tab – these are the dots on the bottom of the screen.

Now you can see all the pages available on the Home Screen. Those that are active in the Focus Mode will be checkmarked.

By tapping on the mark, you can disable a page from the Focus Mode. But it is not deleted yet. After you remove the mark, you’ll see the “-” button in the top left corner. This is the delete option. All the applications from this page will go straight to the library.

A Library is a repository where you can store all the tools you do not use often. So they won’t clutter the screen but remain available.

Another great feature is the ability to remove widgets you do not need or do not like. For instance, those that were installed by default. Long press the widget to open the menu. Enter wiggle mode, and press “-” to remove one or the whole stack.


Focus Mode

When you are done with adjusting the Lock and Home Screens, you can connect them to a Focus Mode. Let’s say you want to concentrate on your study time, that’s when the Focus mode is the most useful. When it is on, only the selected pages will be seen.

You can customize the look and display when it is on and off to easily switch. Go to Settings and Select Focuses. You can create up to 10 of them. For instance, one for driving, work, or personal time. These are available by default. But you can create a unique Focus or adjust the existing one.


Conclusion

After iOS 14, Apple made a major shift to high style customization and functionality. With different modes and widgets, one can adjust the device to their particular needs and make it unique.