The Now Playing interface that greets music listeners on the iPhone’s Lock Screen works, but it’s not quite as aesthetically pleasing as many would like. Interestingly, it receives minor changes with each major iteration of iOS, but none that really stand out to someone who’d like a total redesign.
Listening to music is a popular activity among iPhone owners, but regardless of what music streaming app you use to jam out to your favorite tunes, one thing is certain: the Now Playing interface can be downright boring.
MusicBackground is a new jailbreak tweak by iOS developer Ethan Whited that hopes to solve this longstanding problem by incorporating eye-catching background effects, and it does this for the Now Playing interfaces in the Apple Music app, Spotify Music app, Tidal app, and even those found in Control Center and on the Lock Screen.
After you begin listening to music on your iPhone, iOS automatically kicks the Now Playing widget into high gear by displaying it on the Lock Screen and in Notification Center.
There’s just one problem: it’s rather big any clunky, and such qualities don’t jibe well with an interface that’s also designed to show the user all of their missed notification banners.
Anyone who listens to a lot of music on their iPhone will be familiar with what iOS’ Now Playing widget looks like. Found on both the Lock Screen and in the Notification Center interface, iOS’ Now Playing widget has retained generally the same look and feel albeit with minor aesthetic changes over the years.
Anyone who uses their iPhone for frequent media consumption will inevitably interact with the handset’s Now Playing widget under various circumstances. It can be useful for pausing the Now Playing track in a pinch or resuming playback when it has already been paused. Moreover, it makes skipping to the next or returning to the previous one without unlocking your device a breeze.
Despite just how useful the iPhone’s Now Playing widget can be, I still find myself desiring more when I see it. It could be that the widget is merely too plain for my taste; or perhaps that I feel that Apple could’ve done so much better than they did when designing it. If you agree, then a newly released jailbreak tweak dubbed Arkita by iOS developer P2KDev may offer a hint of refuge.
If you’re jailbroken and you’re interested in adding a splash of color or personality to your iPhone or iPad’s Now Playing widget, then we’ve got just the thing for you!
Playour is a newly released jailbreak tweak by iOS developer popsicletreehouse that lets users customize the background, color, and border properties of the Now Playing widget.
If you have a pair of AirPods Pro or AirPods Max at your disposal, then chances are you’ve become somewhat fond of their Active Noise Cancellation and Transparency modes. The only problem? – Switching between those modes in a pinch, especially in rapid succession, tends to be a cumbersome two-step process.
Recognizing that this process could do with some refinements, iOS developer exodia9610 conceived a new and free jailbreak tweak known as QuickANC.
Given that iOS devices continue to be some of the best music players on the market today, it’s not surprising that we continue to see more and more jailbreak tweaks for pwned handsets that try to out-do Apple at their own game, or at the very least, offer a level of personalization for the end user that otherwise wouldn’t be available on a stock handset.
For those wanting to expand on Apple’s award-winning music player experience, a new jailbreak tweak dubbed Spectral by iOS developer Beckett O’Brien just might be of interest.
Apple knows that its largest handsets can be unwieldy for one-handed usage, and that’s the primary reason why all modern iPhones come equipped with an accessibility feature dubbed Reachability.
I take advantage of Reachability somewhat frequently on my massive 6.7-inch iPhone 12 Pro Max, and while doing so, I often think to myself about just how much potential screen real estate is being wasted at the top of the display. After all, Apple could at least show device information of some sort in the unused Reachability space so that it isn’t occupied by a whole lot of nothing.
If you’re jailbroken and listen to lots of music, then chances are you interface with the Lock Screen’s Now Playing widget rather often and might take an interest in customizing it.
iOS developer Nico Carbone has just released a new and free jailbreak tweak called aquarius that permits jailbreakers to personalize the Now Playing widget with minimal effort.
I’ve got nothing against the iPhone’s Now Playing widget; after all, it’s a convenient tool for controlling media playback from the Lock Screen without going through the process of unlocking your device and launching the Now Playing app every time you want to make a small adjustment.
Praise aside, I also agree with anyone who says that the Lock Screen’s Now Playing widget is larger than it needs to be, and that’s one reason why I’m excited about a new and free jailbreak tweak release dubbed Vinyl by iOS developer Lightmann.
Most iPhone users are familiar with the Now Playing widget. It’s the thing that pops on your Lock Screen whenever you have any type of media playing in the background.
While it’s useful for granular playback controls, the Now Playing widget certainly takes up a lot of vertical screen real estate on the Lock Screen, which severely limits available space for missed notification banners. Fortunately, a new and free jailbreak tweak dubbed TinyWidget14 by iOS developer P2KDev puts the Now Playing widget on a diet.