10 Ways to Personalize iPhone Home Without Jailbreak

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Replacing icons, hiding the dock and other features that will give the iOS interface individuality.

1. Change application icons

Unlike Android, iOS is not rich in interface customization options. Nevertheless, you can still change the annoying icon. True, for this, such a function must be provided in the application itself.

Some developers add several alternative icons in addition to the main one, which can be switched if desired. This is in Bear, Carrot Weather, Overcast and other programs. Check the settings of your favorite apps and try replacing those annoying icons.

2. Create your own icons using bookmarks

If the application does not support changing icons, you can always do it yourself using the bookmarks function. True, you need to install the Apple Configurator utility and tinker a little. But the result is worth it.

The process consists in creating a shortcut with a link to the application, which is assigned the desired icon. After that, the original icons can be hidden in a folder and new ones can be used. Read more about creating icons via bookmarks here.

3. Install the iSkin Icon Sets

If you don't want to bother with creating your own icons, use ready-made sets from the collection of the iSkin service. The installation method is the same as with Apple Configurator, but more automated.

1. Go to the site from the iPhone.

2. Select the theme you like and open the page with it.

3. Select the Applications icons section and mark the desired icons.

4. Click Generate theme and allow opening the settings.

5. Confirm the installation of the profile.

The selected icons appear on the desktop, which will launch the corresponding applications. You can get rid of the added icons both through the standard editing mode, and by deleting the installed profile in the "General" → "Profiles" section of the settings.

4. Customize your desktop via Apple Configurator

Right after upgrading or buying a new device, arranging a bunch of application icons is quite tedious. You can simplify this process using the Apple Configurator utility.

Install the app, connect iPhone to Mac, and then open the device menu and select Actions → Modify → Home Screen Layout. You will see desktops with icons - you can drag and drop them, place them in folders.

Any changes you make are automatically synchronized with the device after you click Apply.

5. Move multiple icons at once

If you don't have a computer at hand, you can simplify the task a little with the help of the function of grouping icons into stacks, which appeared in iOS 12. It will save you the hassle of dragging and dropping shortcuts one at a time and will allow you to move more than 20 at a time.

To do this, in editing mode, drag one of the icons, and then, without releasing it, touch the next one with another finger. They will be collected in a pile, which can be placed in a folder or transferred to another screen.

6. Change the order of the icons

Apple doesn't allow icons with spaces or empty rows at the top, but if you really want to, you can still do it. The trick is to create "invisible" dummy icons that blend in with the wallpaper and are indistinguishable from the background.

This customization method looks quite realistic. True, when flipping through the screens, the "dummies" are still visible. We wrote in detail about how to implement this method in a separate article.

7. Hide the folder names

The icons on the folder icon make it clear which applications are inside, so the names do more harm than good. If you also think that the names spoil the look of the desktop, hide them.

To do this, you just need to rename the folder using an invisible space character from braille. Here it is, between the square brackets [⠀]. Read more about this here.

8. Hide application names

You can go ahead and do the same with the program names. Since the original application icons cannot be renamed, you first have to create separate shortcuts, as described in the second and third paragraphs.

The principle is the same - we take the invisible space character [⠀] and use it instead of a name when creating bookmark shortcuts in Apple Configurator or iSkin.

9. Make the dock transparent

There are no dock settings in iOS, but it can be personalized a little. With custom wallpapers and changing accessibility settings, it's easy to make the bottom panel completely transparent.

There are several display options, color palettes, and camera cutout hiding. Choose any and install!

10. Leave the desktop blank

For real minimalists, there is a more interesting option - a completely clean home screen, on which nothing prevents you from admiring the wallpaper. It's pretty easy to do this.

It is enough to switch to the mode of editing icons on the main desktop, collect them all in a pile, as described in the fifth paragraph, and then transfer them to the next or any other screen. After that, it remains to press the Home button or make a swipe up on iPhone X and newer devices.