Apple iPhone 14 Pro / Max Hidden Switch Enables Black and White AOD All Weather Display

Sept. 22 - The AOD all-day display on Apple's iPhone 14 Pro /Max doesn't work like the always-on display mode on most Android phones (which consists mostly of black pixels and an always-visible clock). It works more like Apple Watch, with AOD mode almost identical to the standard lock screen -- the same colorful wallpaper and informative widgets, just dimmed.

Many users who got their hands on the new iPhone were surprised by this. In fact, some of the initial reviews suggested disabling the AOD display feature altogether because it was too distracting. However, it turns out that there is a hidden way to try the black and white AOD display on iPhone ......

The trick to getting a black and white AOD display now is to use the long-standing focus mode setting called "lock screen dim". This has the effect of completely darkening iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max in AOD mode.

How to Enable Black and White AOD Lock Screen

To enable this feature, navigate to Settings -> Focused Mode -> [Select Focused Mode] -> Options -> Enable Lock Screen Darkening. Now, when this focus mode is activated, the lock screen darkening setting will take effect. When the user's iPhone 14 Pro enters AOD display mode, the entire lock screen will switch to a simple black and white mode.

In this mode, the AOD display shows the date and time (and any widgets selected) in white font ...... and nothing more. Any custom lock screen wallpapers or photos will be completely darkened.

However, there are some drawbacks to enabling this setting. For tasters, it only works in Focused mode -- if you want to permanently display the black and white AOD, you need to be in Focused mode all day. The Focus Mode status label will also appear at the bottom of the lock screen.

What's more, enabling the dimmed lock screen also changes your lock screen when iPhone is awake. It makes the wallpaper blurry. After all, the intended purpose of this Focus Mode-related feature is to darken the phone's lock screen and make iPhone less distracting when you're focused on other things.