The iPhone 14 Pro always-on display has a neat little party trick: the always-on display still works when you are using the phone as your Apple TV Remote, as reported by CNBC in their review.
On existing phones, you can activate the Apple TV Remote from Control Center if you don’t have the actual remote handy.
Apart from being found in Control Center rather than a home screen icon, on iOS 16, it works like an app — it will even appear in your multitasking app switcher so you can get back to it easily if you switch to surf the web or check social media.
However, unlike other apps, the Apple TV remote is special in that if you lock the phone with it open, it will still be waiting for you on the lock screen when you next wake the phone.
This convenience is amplified even more with the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max. The Apple TV remote controls work with the always-on display, so while your phone is technically ‘asleep’, it still looks like a TV remote with all the controls visible (if a little dimmed).
The always-on display on the iPhone 14 Pro series is uncharacteristically bright for an always-on mode, potentially making this the preferred way for users to navigate their Apple TV. This will especially be true when watching TV at night in the dark. The iPhone remote buttons will be easily visible compared to the actual Apple TV Siri Remote, which does not have a backlight of any kind.
See our iPhone 14 Pro review roundup for more information about all the new features of the iPhone 14 Pro. The iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max will start arriving in customers’ hands this Friday.
