Apple Supposedly Considering Interactive Widgets for iOS 17

Earlier today, an anonymous source who shared accurate information in the past revealed potential new features coming to the iPhone with iOS 17, including improvements to Search, the Dynamic Island, Control Center, and more. In addition, the source indicated that Apple is internally testing interactive widgets for the Home Screen and Today View, but they are unclear if this feature will make the final cut.

iOS 17 Widgets
"Active widgets are in testing, but not confirmed by any means," the source said in a tweet. If made available to the public, the source said the interactive widgets would include one-tap buttons, sliders, and other dynamic content. The source shared additional alleged details about iOS 17 in a MacRumors Forums post.

Introduced with iOS 14, Home Screen widgets currently offer very limited functionality, as noted in Apple's developer documentation. "Widgets present read-only information and don’t support interactive elements such as scrolling elements or switches," says Apple. These limitations could be related to battery life considerations.

Last year, the same source leaked accurate details about the Dynamic Island on the iPhone 14 Pro before the device was announced. However, given the source has yet to establish a long-term track record with Apple rumors, it remains to be seen if all of the latest details they have shared prove to be accurate this time around.

Apple is expected to announce iOS 17 during the WWDC 2023 keynote on June 5, and as usual, the first beta version should be made available to developers for testing later that day. The first public beta will likely be released in July.

Related Forums: iOS 17, iPadOS 17

Popular Stories

apple intelligence black

Report: Apple's AI Strategy Could Finally Pay Off in 2026

Tuesday December 30, 2025 9:01 am PST by
Apple's restrained artificial intelligence strategy may pay off in 2026 amid the arrival of a revamped Siri and concerns around the AI market "bubble" bursting, The Information argues. The speculative report notes that Apple has taken a restrained approach with AI innovations compared with peers such as OpenAI, Google, and Meta, which are investing hundreds of billions of dollars in data...
apple fitness 2026 1

Apple Teases 'Something Big' Coming Soon to Apple Fitness+

Tuesday December 30, 2025 2:11 pm PST by
The Apple Fitness+ Instagram account today teased that the service has "big plans" for 2026. In a video, several Apple Fitness+ trainers are shown holding up newspapers with headlines related to Apple Fitness+. What's Apple Fitness+ Planning for the New Year? Something Big is Coming to Apple Fitness+ The Countdown Begins. Apple Fitness+ 2026 is Almost Here 2026 Plans Still Under ...
maxresdefault

Hands-On With a Rough iPhone Fold Mockup

Monday December 29, 2025 10:55 am PST by
Apple is rumored to be introducing a foldable iPhone in September 2026, and since it will bring the biggest form factor change since the iPhone was introduced in 2007, curiosity about the design is high. A 3D designer created an iPhone Fold design based on rumors, and we printed it out to see how it compares to Apple's current iPhones. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more ...
maxresdefault

Where's the New Apple TV?

Monday December 22, 2025 11:30 am PST by
Apple hasn't updated the Apple TV 4K since 2022, and 2025 was supposed to be the year that we got a refresh. There were rumors suggesting Apple would release the new Apple TV before the end of 2025, but it looks like that's not going to happen now. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said several times across 2024 and 2025 that Apple would...
iphone 17 pro dark blue 1

iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max Users Report Static Speaker Noise While Charging

Tuesday December 30, 2025 10:39 am PST by
iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max owners are having trouble with the speakers of their devices, and have complained about a static or hissing noise that occurs when the iPhone is charging. There are multiple discussions about the issue on Reddit, the MacRumors forums, and Apple's Support Community, where affected users say there is a noticeable static noise "like an old radio." Some people report...
iPhone Top Left Hole Punch Face ID Feature Purple

iPhone 18 Pro Launching Next Year With These 12 New Features

Tuesday December 23, 2025 8:36 am PST by
While the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max are not expected to launch for another nine months, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we have recapped 12 features rumored for the iPhone 18 Pro models. The same overall design is expected, with 6.3-inch and 6.9-inch display sizes, and a "plateau" housing three rear cameras Under-screen Face ID Front camera in...
iOS 26

iOS 26.2 Adds These 8 New Features to Your iPhone

Monday December 22, 2025 8:47 am PST by
Earlier this month, Apple released iOS 26.2, following more than a month of beta testing. It is a big update, with many new features and changes for iPhones. iOS 26.2 adds a Liquid Glass slider for the Lock Screen's clock, offline lyrics in Apple Music, and more. Below, we have highlighted a total of eight new features. Liquid Glass Slider on Lock Screen A new slider in the Lock...
samsung glitter blue

Samsung's Year End Sale Introduces Major Discounts on Popular Monitors and TVs

Monday December 29, 2025 6:29 am PST by
Samsung kicked off a new end-of-the-year sale this week, introducing great deals on monitors, TVs, Galaxy smartphones, and home appliances. Many of these deals are the exact same all-time low prices we tracked during Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Samsung. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep ...

Top Rated Comments

tgwaste Avatar
36 months ago
Man I wish they would just finally let us adjust the grid size.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
RaceLover Avatar
36 months ago
Wish they'd let us arrange icons wherever !
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
eicca Avatar
36 months ago
It would only be about eight years too late...
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
CarAnalogy Avatar
36 months ago

Man I wish they would just finally let us adjust the grid size.
And just let me leave an icon where I put it instead of forcing me to play a sudoku puzzle to arrange my icons how I want them.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
redbeard331 Avatar
36 months ago
It’s about time, remember, the widgets used to be interactive, so this would just be returning functionality that we lost once you could put them on the Homescreen.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
t0rqx Avatar
36 months ago
Probably need the new 3nm A17 chipset for the interactive widgets to work on your iPhone.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)