Amazed iPhone fans discover secret ‘red mode’ to help you ‘see better in the dark’ – but there’s a trick to finding it

YOUR iPhone has a secret “red mode” that you might never have seen – but it has some big perks.

An amazed Apple fan stumbled upon the feature and posted about it on Reddit.

The thread received hundreds of upvotes, and was titled: “Any ideas why my widgets are red on Lock Screen?”

Their image showed an iPhone Lock Screen with just a clock face and a weather widget – all displayed in a red colour.

It turns out that this is a combination of several features, all linked to something called StandBy.

This is a fairly new feature, so you’d be forgiven for not knowing that it exists.

WHAT IS IPHONE STANDBY?

StandBy is a mode that your iPhone can drop into, turning it into a useful bit of furniture.

Apple explains: “You can use StandBy to turn your iPhone into a bedside clock, a photo frame, a display for viewing widgets or Live Activities in full screen, and more.”

StandBy was added in Apple’s iOS 17 update, which came out in 2023.

To check that you’ve got iOS 17 or later, go to Settings > General > Software Update.

Then go to Settings > StandBy and make sure that the feature is toggled on.

Now connect your iPhone to a charger and set it down on its long side, so that it’s in a landscape position.

If it’s not properly angled like this – or it’s moving – then it won’t work.

Now press the side button and StandBy should be active.

This will also work if you have a magnetic wireless charger that lets the iPhone float in a landscape position too.

Once you’ve got StandBy active, you can customise it to your heart’s content.

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“Swipe left or right to switch between widgets, photos, and clocks,” Apple explains.

“Swipe up or down to scroll between options for each of these views.”

StandBy works best on Always-On iPhone models, which include:

• iPhone 14 Pro
• iPhone 14 Pro Max
• iPhone 15 Pro
• iPhone 15 Pro Max
• iPhone 16 Pro
• iPhone 16 Pro Max

If your iPhone model isn’t on that list, you’ll need to activate StandBy by tapping the screen, nudging the surface that your iPhone is on, or by using Siri.

It’s also worth noting that if you’re using an iPhone MagSafe charger, your iPhone can remember your preferred view for where it is.

“For example, you can have it set up for family photos in the kitchen or an alarm clock at your bedside,” Apple explains.

You can change the length of time that your iPhone screen stays on while in StandBy too.

IOS 17 SUPPORTED MODELS – DOES YOUR IPHONE HAVE STANDBY?

Here’s Apple’s official list…

• iPhone SE (2nd generation)
• iPhone SE (3rd generation)
• iPhone XR
• iPhone XS
• iPhone XS Max
• iPhone 11
• iPhone 11 Pro
• iPhone 11 Pro Max
• iPhone 12 mini
• iPhone 12
• iPhone 12 Pro
• iPhone 12 Pro Max
• iPhone 13 mini
• iPhone 13
• iPhone 13 Pro
• iPhone 13 Pro Max
• iPhone 14
• iPhone 14 Plus
• iPhone 14 Pro
• iPhone 14 Pro Max
• iPhone 15
• iPhone 15 Plus
• iPhone 15 Pro
• iPhone 15 Pro Max

Picture Credit: Apple

Just go to Settings > StandBy > Display and then choose one of the three options.

This includes: Automatically, After 20 Seconds, and Never.

WHY IS IPHONE STANDBY RED?

You might find that sometimes, your iPhone’s StandBy mode turns totally red.

That’s what happened to a Reddit user, who asked “how can I fix it to normal?”.

Well it turns out that this is feature that kicks in when your iPhone is in a dark room.

“When Night Mode is turned on for StandBy, the screen adapts to low ambient light at night,” Apple explains.

“And displays items with a red tint so that it’s not intrusive while you’re sleeping.”

Reddit users replied to the original post saying that the red colour was a great way to preserve your “low-light vision” at night.

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Another replied: “The screen is red so it won’t bother or hurt your eyes and screw up your night vision when you’re in the dark.”

And one added: “You already got your answer, but FYI red is the most comfortable light color that you can look at without squinting. Basically its the most accommodating colour to look at in the dark.”

So don’t panic if you see the red colour at night: it’s not a bad omen, but a handy iPhone perk.