Hands down, StandBy mode is one of the best new features to roll out with iOS 17. When your iPhone is in StandBy mode, it can display various clock faces, your favorite widgets, notifications, Live Activities, and other useful stats. While this feature seems quite useful, many users complained about the iOS 17 StandBy mode not working.
If you’ve also encountered a similar issue, don’t worry! In this guide, I’ll take you through a handful of effective solutions that can help you restore StandBy mode on your iPhone.
- Check if your iPhone supports StandBy mode
- Ensure iPhone is updated to iOS 17
- Ensure StandBy mode is enabled
- Ensure you’re using StandBy correctly
- Ensure that Low Power Mode is off
- Use an MFi-certified MagSafe charger or Lightning cable
- Ensure Portrait Orientation Lock is off
- Force restart your iPhone
- Reset your iPhone settings
1. Check if your iPhone supports StandBy mode
One of the first things you should check if StandBy mode doesn’t work for you is if your iPhone supports this feature. StandBy mode is only available on iPhone models that support iOS 17, which includes the following devices:
- iPhone 15 series
- iPhone 14 series
- iPhone 13 series
- iPhone 12 series
- iPhone 11 series
- iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, iPhone XR
- iPhone SE (2nd generation or later)
It’s also worth noting that even though StandBy mode works on all iPhone models that can run iOS 17, the ability to use always-on StandBy mode is only limited to iPhone 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max. If you own an older model of iPhone, you’ll need to tap the screen to access StandBy.
2. Update to iOS 17
As I’ve mentioned earlier, this is a new feature incorporated by Apple in iOS 17. Therefore, one of the first prerequisites to use this feature on your supported iPhone is that you must update it to iOS 17.
3. Ensure StandBy mode is enabled
StandBy mode comes enabled by default in iOS 17. However, this feature won’t work if you might have accidentally turned it off within the Settings app. Here’s how to ensure this isn’t the case with your iPhone.
- Go to Settings → StandBy.
- Toggle on StandBy.
You may also enable the Always On toggle if your iPhone supports it.
4. Ensure you’re using StandBy correctly
If StandBy mode doesn’t work even after you’ve enabled it from the Settings app, there’s a chance that you’re not using it correctly.
In order to access StandBy mode, you must connect your iPhone to power and place it at an inclined angle in landscape orientation, preferably using a charging dock.
5. Ensure that Low Power Mode is off
Besides helping you preserve your iPhone’s battery, Low Power Mode can also help your iPhone charge quickly. While that’s handy, this stops several critical services that are necessary for StandBy mode to function correctly. Here’s how you can disable Low Power Mode on your iPhone to prevent this.
- Go to Settings → Battery.
- Toggle off Low Power Mode.
6. Use an MFi-certified MagSafe charger or Lightning cable
If you still can’t access StandBy mode on your iPhone, you must check if the Lightning cable or MagSafe charger you’re using to charge it is MFi certified.
If your Lightning cable or MagSafe charger is uncertified, there’s a chance that StandBy mode will not work on your iPhone, and you may occasionally encounter the annoying ‘This accessory may not be supported’ error.
7. Ensure Portrait Orientation Lock is off
Apart from being connected to power, one of the primary perquisites to use StandBy mode in iOS 17 is that you need to place your iPhone in landscape mode. However, if you have the orientation lock enabled on your iPhone, it may interfere with StandBy mode and prevent it from working as expected.
To ensure that this isn’t the case with your iPhone:
- Launch the Control Centre and see if you can find the orientation lock icon in the status bar up top.
- If you see the given icon, toggle off Portrait Orientation lock.
8. Force restart your iPhone
If the previous solutions don’t work, force restarting your iPhone can help you fix software-related glitches that may prevent features like StandBy mode from working as expected. But, if you’re unsure about how you can do that, check out this guide on how to hard reboot any iPhone or iPad.
9. Reset your iPhone settings
If none of the solutions helped resolve the issue, your best bet would be to reset all settings on your iPhone. This action will restore all settings to their default values while leaving your data untouched.
- Go to Settings → General → Transfer or Reset iPhone.
- Tap Reset → Reset All Settings.
- Enter your passcode.
- Tap Reset All Settings again to complete the process.
StandBy mode on iPhone fixed!
StandBy mode is a pretty handy feature in iOS 17 that can help you keep up with the latest information even when you’re not actively using your iPhone. However, if StandBy mode doesn’t work on your iPhone, the solutions listed in this guide should help you restore the feature quickly. Let us know which solution worked out for you in the comments section.
Read more:
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Ayush is a tech enthusiast turned tech journalist and how-to writer with a knack for explaining complex topics clearly and concisely. When he's not writing, you can find him studying the latest trends in consumer technology, binge-watching videos from his favorite tech YouTubers, or diving into immersive open-world games.
I have an iPhone 12. I tap the screen and the StandBy screen comes on. However, it soon shuts off and the screen goes black. How can I keep the StandBy screen on all the time?
Unfortunately, the ability to keep the StandBy screen on at all times is limited to iPhone 14/15 Pro and Pro Max models that support the Always On display functionality.
If you’re using any other model of iPhone, the screen will automatically turn itself off after three seconds every time you tap on the screen to access StandBy mode.
I have an iphone 13 and have tried every one of your suggested steps including the reset but StandBy just doesn’t seem to work on my phone, although I can see in General that it is listed.
Sorry to hear that StandBy mode is not working on your iPhone. If you’ve tried all of the fixes mentioned above with no success, I would highly suggest that you wait for a future update for iOS 17, and see if installing it helps you fix the issue.