What if the landscape Home screen returns to iPhone? With the Pro Max models and their very generous screens, Apple may be thinking about re-enabling the horizontal Home screen.
Fourth beta of iOS 16.5 and iPadOS 16.5 to developers
Years ago, Apple offered a horizontal Home screen interface on iOS exclusively on “Plus” models. With the advent of the iPhone X and later devices, Apple decided to abandon this option altogether, which means that you can only view the iPhone home screen in portrait orientation. What if things changed with iOS 17?
Basic The Apple Guy has posted a new concept for what a landscape Home screen might look like on the iPhone 14 Pro Max.
The novelty could arrive with iOS 17 (or, at least, we hope so!) and would offer support for Widgets, the Dynamic Island and other horizontal home screen elements. Widgets, for example, automatically adjust to the horizontal interface, similar to what Apple has already done for the iPad.
Such a screen could be useful for people who place their iPhone on the stand on the desk, since using the device horizontally can be more comfortable for many functions. The horizontal interface could also be useful for the holders present in the car.
Basic Apple Guy also shows how the horizontal home screen design could be useful for video and multitasking capabilities:
Video overlays and multitasking become ideal use cases for a landscape Home screen. Videos now have a greater scope to expand while retaining access and interactivity with the home screen.
Also, because the height of the iPhone is more than double its width, a landscape orientation provides the optimal environment for delivering side-by-side multi-tasking apps. Like on the iPad, iPhone apps can be swiped to the left or right of the display, swiped to the side, or ignored altogether. This gives the iPhone more options for multitasking.
Whether or not Apple plans to add a landscape Home screen option to the iPhone Pro Max remains to be seen.
