iOS 18 will be fully revealed this Monday at the WWDC keynote. According to one of the latest rumors, the iPhone update will introduce a redesigned Control Center.
One of the core features of the new Control Center is the ability to place controls on multiple separate pages instead of the currently available single page view. Here’s what that means for you.
Control Center is more powerful than ever
Mark Gurman writes for Bloomberg:
Control Center…gets an updated interface that allows you to rearrange shortcut buttons in the Control Center view itself and place them on multiple pages. It will also have a new music widget and an updated interface for controlling smart home appliances.
In iOS 10, Apple introduced a version of Control Center that included multiple pages. You can switch between three different sets of controls. Unfortunately, these controls were not customizable at all.
What Apple has planned for iOS 18 will be a small return to this long-forgotten design. But mostly it will be a brand new thing that is more powerful than ever before.
Creating your own multi-page control center in iOS 18
Currently in iOS 17, Control Center has some customization options. You can open Settings ⇾ Control Center and adjust which specific controls appear in Control Center. However, some controls can’t be modified – things like Now Playing, Focus, and the connection controls are all static. Their location cannot be changed and they cannot be deleted.
In iOS 18, reports like Gurman’s suggest that a lot more customization options are coming to users.
Consider what Apple has done with the iOS widget system over the past few years. Widgets can be placed and arranged on your home screen and lock screen to provide exactly the controls you care about most.
Looks like something similar is coming to Control Center.
Just like when you enter “shake mode” on your iPhone’s home screen, in iOS 18 you’ll be able to rearrange, add, and remove controls directly from Control Center. You no longer need to go to Settings.
A fundamental part of this newfound freedom will be the ability to create multiple pages of controls. Unlike the static design options of iOS 10, with iOS 18 you should be able to create fully customizable pages that suit your needs – just like home screen pages with apps and widgets.
This additional screen should combine well with the reported changes to the Now Playing and Home controls, which could take up more space than before. Apple could also stop hiding additional control layers with a long press. This would benefit not only the Now Playing and Home controls, but also Focus, Volume Control and more.
Will third-party apps be able to connect to Control Center?
This may be a little radical, but it would be awesome to see Apple open up Control Center to third-party developers as well, so apps can offer their own controls there.
Allowing third-party controls that build on the foundations created by widgets makes sense. It’s very much in line with what the company has done with widgets in recent years.
Pack
I’m really excited about the Control Center capabilities in iOS 18.
Apple could be touting this newly capable, redesigned Control Center as part of a broader push for greater customization options for iPhone users. In iOS 18, you’ll be able to customize your desktops in more ways than ever, so why not Control Center too?
What are you most excited about in the new Control Center? Do you think Apple will open this up to 3rd party apps? Let us know in the comments.
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