Dynamic Island Is One of the Most Helpful Parts of Your iPhone and It's Right Under Your Nose
Whatever your thoughts on the name, the iPhone's Dynamic Island has managed to win over fans (apparently even some Android users, too). The pill-shaped cutout and alert interface replaced the much-maligned iPhone notch that housed the True Depth camera system required for Face ID.
Unlike the notch, which was a static physical cutout, the Dynamic Island is an area on top of the iPhone's display, which serves as an interactive hub and shape-shifts depending on the context. Within the Dynamic Island, two discreet cutouts remain for the camera and sensors, but the surrounding area is an interactive canvas of sorts for various content.
Apple's introduction of the Dynamic Island in 2022 for the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max was greeted with a combination of excitement, curiosity and laughter. The feature, which surfaces up system alerts and shows live updates on apps running in the background, was overshadowed by its name.
On social media, people poked fun at the name Dynamic Island saying it sounded like an offbeat tourist destination. Apple enthusiasts worried that name didn't have the finesse that other Apple feature names, like AirDrop or FaceTime, had. Popular YouTuber MKBHD even offered a backhanded compliment in a post on Twitter that said it was "the most Apple thing they've ever Appled."
By adding the Dynamic Island as a now-signature feature on the iPhone, Apple marked a departure from its rival Android phone makers. The latter opted to replace the screen notches on their devices with hole-punch cutouts for the selfie cameras. Through the Dynamic Island, Apple found a way to use the area around its cutout for system alerts, app controls, and tracking live activities, among other functions.
The Dynamic Island shows different icons and animations. During a FaceTime call, it shows a green camera icon on the left side.
Celso Bulgatti/CNET
When idle, the Dynamic Island is a fairly unobtrusive black area that takes up about an inch of screen real estate, which is smaller than the previous notch. Depending on what apps you're using, any background activities running and iPhone system alerts, the Dynamic Island will change into one of three shapes: a long oval, a large pop-up window and a combination of medium-sized oval and circle.
When using a single app like Apple Music, it becomes a long oval and shows an album cover on one end and a waveform for the song being played. In this state, if you tap on the Dynamic Island, it'll open the Music app to the current song. If you press and hold on the Dynamic Island, it'll pop out into a larger window spanning the top of your iPhone with mini-playback controls. Likewise, if you receive a call the pill-shaped cutout lengthens to display caller information.
If you have two apps open at once, like the Music app and Apple Maps, the Dynamic Island will look like a lowercase letter "i" on its side. One of the apps, Maps, has its own medium-sized oval to show turn-by-turn directions. The second app, Music (in this case) is off to the right in its own circle -- displaying the album artwork.
The form the Dynamic Island takes when receiving a call.
Apple/Screenshot by Clifford Colby/CNET
Because it integrates with third-party apps, the Dynamic Island can also show a real-time estimate for your Uber's arrival as well as food delivery orders -- and when you press and hold on the Dynamic Island, it'll physically size up into a pop-up window to show that information.
The Dynamic Island also provides visual feedback for privacy indicators (such as when the microphone or camera is active), AirDrop file transfers, or Apple Pay transactions, among other system functions.
Here are some of the things the Dynamic Island can show:
System alerts
Turn-by-turn navigation with Apple Maps or Google Maps
Contact information and call length for phone calls
Battery percentage when your iPhone or AirPods are charging
Find My Alerts
Screen recording duration
Cover art when playing songs from Apple Music
Transit card payments
Live sport scores
Flight information
Timer length
Payments with Face ID
Files sent with AirDrop
Mute icon
Live activities for services like Uber
The ability to dynamically change shape and display relevant content enhances the overall user experience. Since its launch, Apple has trickled down the feature to its base models which means the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus also feature the shape-morphing cutout in addition to the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max. If you want to learn more about the Dynamic Island, read our iPhone 14 Pro review and our iPhone 15 reviews.
Apple's iPhone 14 Pro, Pro Max Dynamic Island Explained Apple's iPhone 14 Pro, Pro Max Dynamic Island Explained
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Apple's iPhone 14 Pro, Pro Max Dynamic Island Explained
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