iPhone trick: Dim the display even further than the controller allows

Have you missed my niche tricks for the iPhone yet? I still have one in stock. Because you can darken the iPhone display even further than the lowest level of the brightness control allows. So if you take photos of the starry sky with your camera at night and you don't want your iPhone display to show any light pollution in the photo, you can use the trick. Even if you are blinded by the slightest light when you wake up at night when checking the time, you can dim the iPhone display even further than iOS allows by default. For this we once again use an operating aid.

Dim the iPhone display further than the brightness control allows

The procedure is – as is almost always the case with these niche tips – completely counter-intuitive. In order to make the iPhone screen even darker than possible by default, we use the “Zoom” operating aid. This is not about the video conferencing app, but rather the tool with which screen content can be zoomed in or enlarged.

Here are the step-by-step instructions:

1. Opens the Settings on your Apple iPhone
2. Choose in it Accessibility from
3. Then type the point Zoom an
4. Opens zoom range and select “Full Screen Zoom”
5. Then return to the Zoom overview
6. Now open underneath zoom filter and selects “Dark Environment”
7. Then return to the Zoom overview
8. Turn on the zoom accessibility at the top by activating the switch next to “Zoom”.
9. Double-tap the screen with three fingers to display it at normal size
10. Open that control center and moves the brightness control all the way down

The display brightness is now generally reduced. This means that no matter what level the brightness control is at, not its normal brightness but a reduced brightness is used. If you want to use the regular brightness settings again, deactivate the zoom operating assistance. However, it can help you avoid blinding yourself and others in dark environments (e.g. in the cinema) and conserve your battery. You can keep the trick in mind for individual areas of application.

Note: Accessibility features up to iOS 12 in the “General” area

If you want to dim the display to the maximum to save the battery of an old iPhone, then this note may be important for you: up to iOS 12, the operating aids are located below Settings -> General; So you don't have your own list item in the settings yet. But you can also do it here Settings -> General -> Accessibility -> zoom Select and use the “Dark Environment” filter. Apple smartphones whose latest operating system is iOS 12 are the iPhone 5s, the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus.

Johannes Domke

[On vacation] After graduating from high school, Johannes completed training as a business assistant specializing in foreign languages. But then he decided to research and write, which led to his independence. He has been working for Sir Apfelot, among others, for several years now. His articles include product introductions, news, instructions, video games, consoles and much more. He follows Apple keynotes live via stream.