iOS 16.3 can now edit a locked screen imported from iOS 15

As noted 9TB5 Mac, iOS 16.3 contains a minor new feature not documented by Apple. With this version of the system, it is now possible to modify the wallpaper that you had under iOS 15… provided that you have not deleted it since. A few additional explanations will probably not be too much.

The default iOS 15 wallpaper, changed to iOS 16.

iOS 16 introduces a whole new system for its lock screen, with the ability to configure multiple screens combining a background image and widgets. When installing the update, the system kept your old locked screen, the one you had in iOS 15, but you couldn’t touch it. Indeed, since the release of the first beta of iOS 16 released last junethe only option to change the lock screen was to create a new one, so you lose the one you had before.

These screenshots from the first beta of iOS 16 show the behavior that remained until iOS 16.2: the locked screen imported from iOS 15 could not be modified, a new one had to be created to lose the associated wallpaper.

With iOS 16.3, this is no longer the case. If you wish, you can change the locked screen from iOS 15… provided you haven’t deleted it since switching to the new version. The system still offers to create another locked screen and keep the original intact, but a new option also allows you to modify it by keeping the background image, but adding widgets or changing the time font and even changing the style of the background image.

I kept on this iPhone the default lock screen of iOS 15 which was imported in the system update process (left). With iOS 16.3, I can now change it keeping the background image (right).

Better, if you used one of the wallpapers offered by Apple, you will always have access to its advanced options, such as automatic adaptation to the system theme. This is the case for the default wallpaper of iOS 15 on my example, I can activate the dark or light mode automatically as before, or else force the display of one of the two. For the other images, you will have all the customization options of iOS 16, to change the colors or switch to black and white.

Choosing how to display the default iOS 15 wallpaper on the left, changing the color and style of the time font on the right.

However, all these options are only available if you had kept the locked screen imported from iOS 15 and only for it. If you have deleted it since upgrading to the new version, you will not find it again and there will be nothing more to do.

The collection of wallpapers offered by Apple has reduced a lot with iOS 16, although there are more options now, thanks to all the new things added with this version. You can learn everything about this locked screen in our book What’s new in iOS 16 who has recently been updated for iOS 16.3.