Blog

Jun 22, 2023

How to Use Interactive Widgets on Your iPhone and iPad

On iOS 17, you can interact with widgets to perform actions that would otherwise require you to open their respective apps. Apple has made Home Screen widgets more useful and engaging in iOS 17 by

On iOS 17, you can interact with widgets to perform actions that would otherwise require you to open their respective apps.

Apple has made Home Screen widgets more useful and engaging in iOS 17 by allowing developers to create interactive widgets. Previously, widgets could only display read-only information, but now you can tap on items and directly interact with a widget without making it open the app.

This will make widgets more powerful and versatile, and it will allow developers to create more innovative and useful widget experiences for iPhone and iPad users.

iOS 17 is currently in beta, meaning you can only use interactive widgets right now if you install the iOS 17 beta on your iPhone.

Unlike some of the best Android widgets found in Android, iOS widgets—prior to iOS 17—were static views that displayed information from an app. Tapping on a widget would open the corresponding app and take you to the appropriate screen.

With iOS 17, developers can now create interactive widgets that allow users to perform actions directly from the widget without opening the app. For example, you can change the currently playing song or control other playback options from the Apple Music widget or control your HomeKit-compatible products from the Home app widget.

As of this writing, only a handful of Apple apps support interactive widgets. However, over time, you can expect a wider selection of widgets as more developers get on board. You can add widgets to your iPhone or iPad by following these steps:

Currently, Reminders, Apple Music, Podcast, and Home widgets are the ones you can interact with.

The Apple Music widget now allows you to control playback directly from the widget without having to open the app. The smaller-sized widget option allows you to tap the play/pause button, while the larger one lets you change tracks between your recently played songs by simply tapping the corresponding button.

The Apple Music widget is a great way to control your music playback without having to open the app. It's especially useful if you're listening to music in the background while you're doing something else.

With the Reminders widget, you can now mark off completed tasks right from your Home Screen. To do this, simply tap the empty circle next to the task you want to mark as completed. The circle will fill in with the color of your list, and the task will be marked as completed.

This is a small change, but it makes a big difference. Thanks to this widget, it's a lot easier to keep track of your completed tasks, and you don't have to waste time opening the Reminders app whenever you want to mark something off.

You can now control your HomeKit accessories directly from your Home Screen with the interactive Home widget. This is a major improvement that makes it much easier to manage your smart home.

Once you add the Home widget, it will show you a list of your HomeKit devices, and you can tap on any device to control it. For example, you can turn on your smart lights, lock or unlock doors, or adjust the thermostat.

Interactive widgets are a great way to make your Home Screen more informative and feature-rich. With interactive widgets, you can now get quick access to the information and functionality you need without having to open their respective apps.

As third-party developers start making their widgets interactive, it will bring in a sea of new features to iPhone and iPad users. This is a major change that makes widgets much more powerful and useful.

Raghav Sethi is a computer science student with a passion for technology. With a background in writing, he has contributed extensively to his college's Linux board, and now writes articles focusing on the Apple ecosystem. In his free time, Raghav indulges in playing the guitar and coding, allowing him to express his creativity and further enhance his programming skills.