iOS 18 may allow you to change app icons ‘color’

Apple’s iOS 18 will introduce new home screen customizations including an ability to change the color of app icons. According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, this addition will let users manage the app icon theme. You can turn in different colors to organize for increased visibility and a whole new user experience.

Such capability reminds me of Android’s themed icon feature, which may have inspired Apple to do the same for its operation system.

iOS 17 home screen (image credit: Apple)

Once enabled, these themed icons will change the icon theme based on the current wallpaper’s dominating color. Users can opt for a color from the presets or the color picker. The system allows you to revert these changes to regular icons.

Meanwhile, it’s unclear how Apple will approach new color selection for app icons. This new iOS version will also increase the ease of customizations and let you place app icons anywhere without constraints.

This freedom of movement is not available in the current iOS version and you will have to follow the constraint guidelines to place an app icon. It will relocate automatically to the available space as soon as you lose the hold.

With these two new changes, Apple will open its tightly locked customization area. There could be more waiting for us to explore at WWDC24 next month regarding these capabilities.