iOS 18 Could Bring More Ways to Customize the Home Screen

Apple is reportedly planning to add more ways to customize the iPhone Home Screen on iOS 18, which will be released later this fall. This could include the ability to rearrange app icons freely, something that Android users have been able to do since probably forever.

Over the weekend, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman was first to report in his Power On newsletter that iOS 18 could bring “a new home screen that’s more customizable.” However, a separate report from MacRumors has since provided a bit more details about what to expect, citing sources familiar with the project.

“While app icons will likely remain locked to an invisible grid system on the Home Screen, to ensure there is some uniformity, our sources say that users will be able to arrange icons more freely on iOS 18. For example, we expect that the update will introduce the ability to create blank spaces, rows, and columns between app icons,” the report reads.

Again, these Home Screen improvements will likely sound like a very basic addition to Android users who have been able to customize their home screens with widgets and more for years. iOS finally added Widgets support with iOS 14 back in 2020, and these Widgets received interactive capabilities with iOS 17 last year. However, the ability to leave blank areas on the iOS Home screen is still absent.

iOS 18, which is expected to be one of the biggest updates for the iPhone OS in years, is also expected to introduce new generative AI features. Apple is reportedly in talks with Google and OpenAI to find the perfect balance between on-device and cloud-based AI capabilities.