Apple with iOS 17.2 brought the new Digital Clock widget that you can add to your Home Screen and use while your iPhone is in StandBy mode.
StandBy is a new feature in iOS 17 and later that turns your iPhone into a smart display when plugged into a charger in landscape orientation.
The feature includes several clock styles, like Analog, Solar, Float and Digital. You can also customize StandBy to show widgets from apps.
Starting with iOS 17.2, you can use a new Digital Clock widget from the Clock app in StandBy mode. Like with all widgets, you can add this one to your Home Screen, too.
iOS 17.2 brings the Digital Clock widget for StandBy and Home Screen
“A new Digital Clock Widget lets you quickly catch a glimpse of the time on your Home Screen and while in StandBy,” Apple notes in the iOS 17.2 release notes. This widget is also available on an iPad with iPadOS 17.2 but not on the Mac.
To add a Digital Clock widget to StandBy mode and your Home Screen, touch and hold the display while your iPhone is in StandBy mode or on the Home Screen, then hit the + (plus) button in the top-left corner to enter the widget gallery.
Now select Clock in the list of apps with widgets, then swipe to choose Clock Digital and hit the Add Widget button to add it to your StandBy or Home Screen.
Keep in mind that the Digital Clock widget doesn’t provide any customizable option, and it’s only available in the small size (2×2) as of yet. So, what’s the big deal with this widget? Well, StandBy only provided analog clock styles. If you use your iPhone in StandBy mode as a bedside clock, you know how challenging telling analog time can be when you’re half asleep or just woke up.
Unfortunately, the Digital Clock widget is only available in the white version. A dark version would be much more suitable for the iPhone’s Dark Mode.
Other changes in iOS 17.2
iOS 17.2 also includes three new widgets for the Weather app—Details, Daily Forecast and Sunrise and Sunset—that display weather forecasts in greater detail and show rich stats like precipitation, UV index, etc.
Other new features in iOS 17.2 include Apple’s Journal app, the ability for Siri to respond to questions about your health, the ability to record spatial videos for the Vision Pro using an iPhone 15, an easier way to share Wallet passes, and more.