StandBy Mode: How to Turn Your iPhone Into a Smart Bedside Display
You probably spend money on a bedside alarm clock or a dedicated smart display when your iPhone can do the same thing — and do it better. StandBy Mode transforms your charging iPhone into a glanceable screen that shows clocks, widgets, photos, and live activities. Set it up once, and it works automatically every night.
What Is StandBy Mode?
StandBy is a full-screen experience that activates when your iPhone is charging, locked, and placed in landscape orientation. Apple introduced it with iOS 17 and it has gotten smarter with each update since.
Instead of staring at a black screen while your phone sits on a nightstand or desk, StandBy turns it into something genuinely useful. You get a customizable display that can show the time, weather, your calendar, reminders, photos, music controls, and even live scores from sports apps — all in a format designed to be readable from across the room.
On iPhones with always-on display (the 14 Pro lineup and later), StandBy stays visible continuously at a very dim brightness. On older supported models, the screen turns off after about 20 seconds but wakes back up when it detects motion nearby or when you tap the screen.
How to Enable and Set Up StandBy Mode
StandBy is enabled by default on iOS 17 and later, but here’s how to make sure everything is configured properly:
1
Confirm It’s Enabled
Open Settings → StandBy and make sure the main toggle is switched on. You’ll also see options for Night Mode, notifications, and always-on display here.
2
Connect Your iPhone to a Charger
Any charger works: MagSafe, Qi wireless pad, Lightning cable, or USB-C cable. A MagSafe stand is ideal because it holds the phone upright in landscape, but a propped-up cable works fine too.
3
Lock Your iPhone and Turn It Sideways
With your phone locked and charging, rotate it to landscape orientation. After a moment, the screen will transition into StandBy Mode automatically. No button press needed.
4
Navigate Between Views
Swipe left and right to switch between the three main views: Widgets, Photos, and Clock. Within each view, swipe up and down to cycle through different styles and layouts.
The Three StandBy Views Explained
StandBy organizes its content into three distinct screens, each with multiple customizable styles. Here’s what you get:
Widgets View
Displays two widget stacks side by side. Shows clock, weather, calendar, reminders, stocks, batteries, and any third-party widget. Swipe up or down on each stack to change widgets. Long-press to customize and add new ones.
Photos View
Turns your iPhone into a digital photo frame. Automatically picks from Featured photos, or you can select specific albums and people. Photos rotate periodically with smooth transitions. Long-press to choose which albums appear.
Clock View
Full-screen clock with five styles: Digital, Analog, World, Solar, and Float. Each has a distinct aesthetic — from bold neon digits to a minimalist sun-position dial. Swipe up and down to switch between them.
Customization Tips Most People Miss
StandBy looks great out of the box, but a few minutes of customization makes it significantly more useful:
Add third-party widgets. Long-press the Widgets view and tap the plus (+) button. Apps like Widgetsmith, Fantastical, Carrot Weather, and many others offer StandBy-optimized widgets that look far better than the defaults.
Pick specific photo albums. The default “Featured” selection is decent, but it sometimes surfaces awkward screenshots or random images. Long-press the Photos view and choose a specific album — like “Favorites” or a custom album of family photos — for a much better slideshow experience.
Enable Night Mode. In Settings → StandBy → Night Mode, turn this on. When your room is dark, StandBy switches to a deep red tint that won’t light up your bedroom at 2 AM. It’s a small detail that makes a huge difference for sleep quality.
Set up location-based views. StandBy remembers which view you were using at each location. If you always use the Clock view on your bedside table and the Widgets view on your desk at work, your iPhone will remember and switch automatically once it recognizes the MagSafe charger at each spot.
Show notifications. Under Settings → StandBy → Show Notifications, you can choose to display incoming notifications. They appear briefly and then disappear, so your screen isn’t cluttered with alerts. There’s also a “Show Preview on Tap Only” option for privacy when other people are around.
Live Activities in StandBy Mode
One of the most underrated aspects of StandBy is how it handles Live Activities. When you have a food delivery order, a sports game, or a timer running, it shows up as a compact widget on the StandBy screen. You can see your Uber Eats driver approaching, a Premier League score updating in real time, or your cooking timer counting down — all from across the room without picking up your phone.
Which iPhones Support StandBy Mode?
StandBy works on every iPhone that runs iOS 17 or later. However, the experience varies by model:
Always-on StandBy: iPhone 14 Pro, 14 Pro Max, 15 Pro, 15 Pro Max, 16 Pro, 16 Pro Max, 17 Pro, 17 Pro Max — the screen stays visible at all times.
Motion-activated StandBy: iPhone 14, 14 Plus, 15, 15 Plus, 16, 16 Plus, 17, 17 Air, SE (3rd gen) — the screen turns off after ~20 seconds but wakes with motion or a tap.
All supported models get the full customization features. The only difference is whether the display stays on permanently or turns off between interactions.
Troubleshooting StandBy Mode
StandBy doesn’t activate? Make sure your phone is (1) charging, (2) locked, and (3) in landscape orientation. All three conditions must be met simultaneously. Also verify it’s enabled under Settings → StandBy.
Screen goes black too quickly? On non-Pro iPhones, StandBy turns off the screen after about 20 seconds. This is normal and saves power. The screen wakes when it detects motion or a tap. On Pro models, check that always-on display is enabled under Settings → Display & Brightness.
Widgets not updating? Some widgets need background app refresh enabled to show current data. Go to Settings → General → Background App Refresh and make sure the relevant apps are toggled on.
Frequently Asked Questions
No. StandBy only activates while your iPhone is plugged in and charging, so there’s zero impact on your usable battery. On Pro models with always-on display, the LTPO screen drops to 1Hz and very low brightness, using minimal power.
Absolutely. Any charger works — Qi wireless, Lightning cable, USB-C cable. A MagSafe stand is convenient for holding the phone upright, but you can prop your phone against a book with a regular cable and it works the same.
Yes. Any app that supports iOS widgets can display in StandBy. Popular choices include Widgetsmith, Carrot Weather, Fantastical, Home, and Spotify. Long-press the widget area and tap + to browse available widgets.
Always-on StandBy requires iPhone 14 Pro or later Pro models. On other supported iPhones, the screen turns off after ~20 seconds but wakes on motion or tap.