This Free App Breathes New Life Into One of Your iPhone’s Most-Used Features

If you’re like me, you use your iPhone in StandBy mode every day (or night). It’s the feature that turns your iPhone into a digital clock or digital photo frame when you place it horizontally on a wireless charging stand.

Apple introduced StandBy mode with iOS 17, just a year and a half ago, and while it’s neat and useful, it’s also pretty limited in that there are only a few clock options.

The new app, Clocks, aims to change that. Sort of.

The Clocks App

Photo by Tucker Bowe for Gear Patrol

A “more fun” Standby mode

Clocks is an iOS app that works a lot like Standby mode, but adds 10 new digital clock faces and 28 animated backgrounds, the latter of which essentially function as screensavers.

But more than just more options, the most unique thing about Clocks is that works on iPad and Mac, as well, and allows you to sync the animations or clock faces across all your devices so you have one unique setup.

According to the company, the Clocks app “transforms your phone, tablet, or mac into a beautiful clock display, perfect for any home office, bedroom, or studio.”

There’s a bit of a big catch, however, in that Clocks doesn’t work with Standby mode, so you have to use Apple’s Shortcuts app to set it up — the app has a tutorial that walks you through it.

Photo by Tucker Bowe for Gear Patrol

Price and availability

Clocks is a free app that’s available now. However, the free version only allows you to use Clocks on your iPhone.

If you want Clocks to work and sync across your devices (iPhone, iPad and Mac), you have to buy the Pro Pack. That costs $3.99.

Clocks

Clocks

• $0 at Apple App Store
• $4 at Apple App Store (Pro Pack)

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