Apple is finally adopting Android’s flexibility

For years, I’ve kept my iOS homescreen minimalistic, with just a few rows of icons at the top, arranged by color, and three apps in the dock.

Due to Apple’s limitations on customizing the homescreen, I couldn’t make it as simple as I wanted. I’ve envied the customizable Android homescreens. Since the first iPhone, Apple has forced me to organize my apps from the top down for 17 years.

My homescreen usually looked nice, but I craved more customization options, similar to those available to Android users, even if it made my phone look worse. iOS 14’s widgets were a step forward, and Siri Shortcuts allowed for some theming.

However, with iOS 18, Apple is finally allowing users to customize app icons without jailbreaking or using Siri Shortcuts.

You can now tint all app icons the same color, dim them in dark mode, and place them anywhere on the screen, making them easier to reach or better fitting your wallpaper.

With these new features, I created my ideal minimalist homescreen. It took just a few minutes to set up.

First, I made my app icons gray to match my wallpaper, adding friction to my phone usage and reducing time wasted. Then, I moved my apps to the bottom of the screen for easier access on my iPhone 12 Mini, with new apps sticking out at the top as reminders to organize or delete them.

I also hid app labels, aiming for a text-free screen, though I wish I could remove the “Search” label above the dock. Using iOS 18’s Control Center, I added a toggle for the Color Filters accessibility setting, turning my phone grayscale to make it less interesting and remind me to focus on other things.

I can quickly switch back to color when needed.

The changes I’ve made are intentionally unattractive and sometimes annoying, but they’re my choices, and I’m glad Apple has provided these tools. When iOS 18 is released, I expect to see many creative and unique homescreens. If I get tired of my current setup, it’s now easier than ever to create something new.