When the iPhone 14 Pro models were announced in 2022, Apple surprised many with its innovative integration of software functions with the pill-shaped cutout at the top of the screen. Apple calls this area of the display the "Dynamic Island," and has since extended the feature to all iPhone 15 and iPhone 16 models, with the exception of iPhone 16e. This article explains what Dynamic Island is, what iPhone models support it, and how to use the Dynamic Island on iPhone.
What’s the Dynamic Island?
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.
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.
What iPhone models feature the Dynamic Island?
- iPhone 14 Pro
- iPhone 14 Pro Max
- iPhone 15
- iPhone 15 Plus
- iPhone 15 Pro
- iPhone 15 Pro Max
- iPhone 16
- iPhone 16 Plus,
- iPhone 16 Pro
- iPhone 16 Pro Max
How to use the Dynamic Island on iPhone
If you are wondering “how do you use the Dynamic Island on iPhone?” Here are a few ways to use this feature on your iPhone:
See Live Activities
You can check activity in progress in the Dynamic Island. With your iPhone unlocked and activity showing in the Dynamic Island, touch and hold the activity to expand it and see more detail. To collapse the activity and make the Dynamic Island smaller, swipe up anywhere on your screen. You can switch between multiple activities by swiping left or right on the Dynamic Island. Tap the activity in the Dynamic Island to open the corresponding app. And, to return the app activity back to the Dynamic Island, just swipe up from the bottom of the screen. To hide the activity, swipe left or right on the Dynamic Island until activity no longer appears. Then, swipe left or right on the Dynamic Island to show the activity again.
Visualize AirDrop Transfers
The Dynamic Island serves as a visual status indicator for AirDrop transfers. When items are shared with you, an indicator will appear on the Dynamic Island to show the progress of the file transfer. After the process is completed, a checkmark then pops up in the same spot.
Show Privacy Indicators
Your iPhone displays a visual privacy indicator whenever an app or service is accessing your camera or microphone. These indicator lights appear inside the Dynamic Island on phones that support the feature. Open an app with access to your camera, and a green dot pops up in the display; open one that can access your microphone, and an orange dot appears.
Control Phone Calls
When you’re on a phone call and head to the Home screen, the Dynamic Island displays the ongoing duration of the call and a gauge showing the volume level. Press down on the display to see the duration and name or number of the caller, change the audio source, and hang up the call. Tap the display to open the Phone app.
Check Apple Pay transactions
When you use Apple Pay to make a purchase at a physical or online retailer, the Dynamic Island displays a swirling green image to indicate the Face ID authentication. After your face has been authenticated and the purchase has gone through, the image turns into a green smiley face.
Play music or other audio
Fire up a song, podcast episode, audiobook, or any other form of audio content. At the Home screen, the Dynamic Island shows you a small image of album art and a volume gauge. Press down on the Dynamic Island to see a larger display with the album art, the name of the song, and the artist, as well as a control to pause, play, go back, go forward, and change the audio output.
Set a timer
You can monitor a timer through the Dynamic Island. First, open the Clock app and set a timer. The Dynamic Island then displays the countdown in minutes. Press down on the display to expand the information so you can see the timer and also pause or stop it. Tap the Dynamic Island to open the full Clock app.
Check your screen recording
If you’ve kicked off a recording of your screen activity, the Dynamic Island shows a record button that tells you the screen is being captured. Tap or press down on the Dynamic Island to show a timer and a button to stop the recording. Press the Stop button, and the display indicates that the recording was saved to your photo library.
Switch Between Apps
The Dynamic Island allows you to use the feature for multiple apps at once. If you’re running two or more apps, and each one is using the Dynamic Island, you can easily switch between them. Just swipe the Dynamic Island area to the left or right, and an icon for the other app should appear. Tap that icon to control the activity. If three or more apps are tapping into the Dynamic Island, switching among them gets a bit tricky, but you can still do it by swiping to the left or right.
Follow Apple Map Directions
When navigating with Apple Maps, you can return to the Home screen to see turn-by-turn directions in the Dynamic Island. Press down on the display to show the next turn with an option to end the route. Tap the Dynamic Island, and the Maps app opens in full screen mode.