Gurman: iOS 18 Will Allow Users to Recolor App Icons and Place Them Anywhere

[MacRumors]

Apple's iOS 18 update will introduce new features for further customizing the iPhone's home screen, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.

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In the latest edition of his "Power On" newsletter, Gurman claimed that Apple will allow users to change the color of app icons in iOS 18. For example, "you can make all your social icons blue or finance-related ones green." This kind of home screen customization is currently only possible by creating single-action shortcuts with a custom icon that serve to launch an app.

Gurman also corroborated previous reports that iOS 18 will allow users to place apps anywhere on the home screen's grid. This will enable users to arrange icons more freely, similar to how widgets can currently be placed.

iOS 18 is expected to be previewed alongside Apple's other major software updates at WWDC in June, before officially releasing to the public in the fall.

Article Link: Gurman: iOS 18 Will Allow Users to Recolor App Icons and Place Them Anywhere

 

[tothemoonsands]

Assuming this will be up to the given app developers to enable? Would be very interesting if it’s a forced global option.

More customization is awesome, but I think about other major necessities like a keychain.app to compete against dedicated password managers etc

 

[Dulcimer]

Tim Cook finally pressed the emergency “let Apple users customize their iPhone” button after seeing dwindling iPhone sales.

 

[purplerainpurplerain]

Doesn’t make sense.

Most likely the app folders will have a color background option.

 

[jb310]

This is awesome news; as soon as iOS 18 drops, I'm gonna put on some Eiffel 65 and get to work...

🎵 'Cause I'm blue, da ba dee da ba dye, da ba dee~ 🎶

 

[Slix]

I never understood why people wanted to be able to put blank spaces on their home screens. Wouldn't you want your home screen filled with apps so you don't have to scroll home screens as much?

 

[Kylo83]

I don’t want to change colour I want new app icons like macOS with a 3d look with a shadow, I’m worried now it’s just same with a different colour

 

[Populus]

Thid could make me update my SE3 earlier than usual… saying goodbye to my battery life

 

[coolfactor]

I never understood why people wanted to be able to put blank spaces on their home screens. Wouldn't you want your home screen filled with apps so you don't have to scroll home screens as much?

I prefer organizing my most-used apps into folders rather than swiping from screen-to-screen. But most of my navigation is done via Search anyway. Pull down and type, if the app is not already smartly suggested. Smart suggestions are very smart. If I've driven into my local McDonald's, it suggests the McDonald's app. 🤣

 

[xxFoxtail]

I never understood why people wanted to be able to put blank spaces on their home screens. Wouldn't you want your home screen filled with apps so you don't have to scroll home screens as much?

I keep very few apps on my iPhone. I have 2 rows of apps plus my iPhone dock. The top layers are filled with widgets that I’d most likely remove if this rumor is true. I just use search or the App Library for anything else.

 

[jdavid_rp]

I never understood why people wanted to be able to put blank spaces on their home screens. Wouldn't you want your home screen filled with apps so you don't have to scroll home screens as much?

In my case I like to have just two rows of most used apps and then space for the wallpaper, the issue is that having just two rows makes all icons to align on top, making it difficult to tap them with one hand. Although widgets kind of fixed this, I would prefer to just be able to align icons bottom to top.

I loved tweaks like Boxy, where I could make them smaller and align them to bottom so I had my wallpaper really pop up

 

[jdavid_rp]

I keep very few apps on my iPhone. I have 2 rows of apps plus my iPhone dock. The top layers are filled with widgets that I’d most likely remove if this rumor is true. I just use search or the App Library for anything else.

Just wrote the same lol

 

[vegetassj4]

UPDATE Jun 30, 2024

Beginning today, the redesigned iPhone OS and new iPad OS both powered by Apple silicon, are now available. Offered with Generative AI the first time, the new iOS is more powerful and versatile than ever with phenomenal performance, all new App colors, and better App placement. The groundbreaking new iOS takes a huge leap forward with the new Ultra Retina XDR App colors and next-level performance of the new exclusive colors — all in an incredibly snappy and intuitive design that makes it the best iOS ever. You're going to love it.

 

[Apple_Robert]

I hope there is much more to iOS 18 than the Home Screen feature. Being able to set app icons anywhere I want on the Home Screen isn't a priority for me like it is for many others.

 

[JosephAW]

Just give us skin capabilities

 

[Biro]

True innovation, this. Genius... sheer genius. /s

 

[hovscorpion12]

Assuming this will be up to the given app developers to enable? Would be very interesting if it’s a forced global option.

More customization is awesome, but I think about other major necessities like a keychain.app to compete against dedicated password managers etc

100% chance it will be built in similar to Android phones. No Developer APIs required.

 

[hovscorpion12]

but I think about other major necessities like a keychain.app to compete against dedicated password managers etc

iOS already has a password manager.

 

[maxrest]

Damn seems like some can never be satisfied in these threads.

Anyways, I’m really looking forward to this WWDC. Can’t believe it’s only 2 weeks away.

 

[JSDK]

Better that iOS and iPadOS adopted the icons from MacOS.

But it is wise of Apple to release a few simple functions at a time, so there is also some content for the next iOS. I only use the App Library, so custom colors of the apps are not relevant, but now you are in business (Apple) - can you give us the opportunity to customize the App Library, for example remove the latest folder (for those of us who do not downloads apps all the time), and let us move various apps into the desired categories ourselves.

 

[SW3029]

Honestly I'd rather have the ability to recolor icons than half this AI ******** coming up

 

[loekf]

Macrumors is forgetting about AI generated emojis we seem to get in iOS18

Where would we be without emojis

 

[Ralfi]

Changing colours of Apps would be a surprise move. Not sure I’ll be using it.

Custom positioning of Apps may be handy.

 

[JSDK]

Honestly I'd rather have the ability to recolor icons than half this AI ******** coming up

When you can talk "normally" to Siri, rather than having to bend syllables, and reformulate sentences into "robot language", then you will be really happy with the AI. But you (maybe) get both.

 

[scorpio vega]

Gross it’s becoming android like.