Music widgets

Lets you use a stack of widgets. This screen supports two stacks of widgets. Tap and hold it to edit the stack on the left or right. You can rearrange widgets, remove widgets in the stack, or add new ones.Check out some of the best widgets for StandBy Mode on iPhone to get more out of the feature.Now that you know the basics of using widgets on the iPhone, here are some top iPhone widgets you should give a try.1. WidgetSmith: All-in-one widget appWidgetSmith lets you add a custom widget on your iPhone. You can create and add any widget of your choice – whether it is a productivity widget like a task list or a fitness-related widget that shows your workout stats. The app is free to download – it’s a must-have if you love using widgets on your iPhone.2. Music app widgets: Spotify, YouTube Music, Apple MusicIf you want to quickly play music on your iPhone – consider adding a widget from the app you use. All popular apps, such as Spotify, YouTube Music, and Apple Music, support widgets. You can add a widget that shows your recently played playlist or a mini music player where you can start or control the playback.3. Reminders and To-do Lists: Reminders, Google Tasks, TickTickMy favorite feature from last year’s iOS 17 update is interactive widgets. I use the default reminders app to check off my tasks directly from the widget on my home screen. Popular third-party apps such as Google Tasks, Todo List, and TickTick offer widgets on your iPhone. If you want to keep a check on your pending tasks or reminders, then consider adding one of these widgets to your home screen.4. Sports: FotMob, NBA, F1If you’re like me and follow more than one sport – then you’d love to add a set of sports widgets on your iPhone. I follow Formula 1, NBA, and soccer and the apps I use – such as FotMob, the default NBA app, and the F1 app support widgets on the home screen. It’s a lifesaver when multiple sports events happen at the same time!5. Fitness: Apple Health, Starva, Nike HealthIf there’s one gadget that has tremendously improved my health – it’s the Apple Watch. You can add a widget that lets you keep track of your daily rings. Added to that are a few apps that help me track my runs and

Key TakeawaysYou can add widgets to the Home Screen, Lock Screen, and the Today View to the left of your Home Screen on the iPhone.You can use a Smart Stack of widgets to combine multiple widgets into one scrollable widget on your Home Screen.You can also add widgets in the StandBy mode on your iPhone.When you have many apps installed on your iPhone, keeping up with all the updates and information they provide may get overwhelming. An easy solution to work around this is to use widgets on your iPhone.In this guide, I’ll cover everything you need to know about using widgets on your iPhone in iOS 18 to help you get the most out of them.Become an iOS 18 Master:Get our exclusive iOS 18 eBook 📚 for FREE when you sign up for our newsletter below. Table of ContentsWhat are widgets on an iPhone?How to add widgets on your iPhoneAdd widgets to your iPhone Home ScreenAdd widget to your iPhone Lock ScreenAdd widgets to the Today View on your iPhoneHow to edit widgets on your iPhoneEdit widgets on the iPhone Home ScreenEdit widgets on your iPhone Lock ScreenEdit widgets on the Today View on your iPhoneHow to use the Smart Stack on your iPhoneCreate a Smart Stack of widgetsEdit a Smart Stack on your iPhoneHow to add widgets to StandBy mode on iPhoneTop widgets to try on your iPhone1. WidgetSmith: All-in-one widget app2. Music app widgets: Spotify, YouTube Music, Apple Music3. Reminders and To-do Lists: Reminders, Google Tasks, TickTick4. Sports: FotMob, NBA, F15. Fitness: Apple Health, Starva, Nike HealthHow to remove widgets on your iPhoneiPhone widgets are cards that display a piece of current information from apps at a glance. This lets you see updates from apps without having to open them. Furthermore, many widgets also offer quick actions and functions, so you can execute them going into the apps.Apple introduced widgets on the iPhone in 2020 with iOS 14, and they have received a range of upgrades since. Your iPhone supports adding widgets on both the Home Screen and the Lock Screen, along with the Today View and widget stack.Widgets are supported by most built-in apps on the iPhone. Further, a wide range of third-party apps from the App Store also pack in a set of widgets.If all of that sounds exciting, here’s how you can add widgets on the Home Screen, Lock Screen, or the Today view

Widgets are probably one of the best things invented in the software space. They’re small and yet capable of delivering important information at a glance and allow interactions too. Widgets started getting mainstream attention in the mobile space after Google introduced them in the very first Android version in 2008. Now, nearly all mature OS has widgets. With such wider adoption, I would like to see widgets on ChromeOS too.I’ve been an avid ChromeOS user since it was introduced and it still puzzles me to this day that Google hasn’t considered adding desktop widgets. It’s more surprising because Chromebooks already have Android support via ARCVM (Android Runtime Container using VM). Sure, Android’s way of handling widget overlays would require ChromeOS shell to support the widget stack but it’s not entirely impossible.There are two main reasons why I want widgets on ChromeOS — firstly, it’d be cool to have interactive widgets on both Desktop and Lockscreen and secondly, Android widgets could come in handy just like they’re extremely useful on smartphones.Imagine having YouTube Music, Gmail, Focus Mode, or a Calendar widget on your ChromeOS desktop. You could change music, add events, enable Focus Mode, and check emails on the fly. Not to mention, combined with the Material You aesthetics that ChromeOS got not too long ago, widgets would look aesthetically pleasing.Image Credits: Abubakar Mohammed/BeebomSome would argue that the ChromeOS taskbar already does a lot of what I mentioned above. It brings Calendar, Google Tasks, media player controls, and Quick Settings. But widgets are better because they display glanceable information that could make you productive by helping you remember things or giving you the latest insights. That’s not something the taskbar can do unless you have Taskbar widgets, but I would say that the ChromeOS taskbar is already cluttered. Moving some of the elements from the taskbar to desktop widgets would make things even better.Widgets on the lockscreen have obvious privacy issues, but some widgets can be supported. With the current trend of lockscreen widgets, ChromeOS would benefit from having them. Google brought lockscreen widgets to the Pixel tablet after a long

Restart your iPhone:1. Press and hold either of the Volume buttons and the Side button on your iPhone simultaneously.2. Once the sliders appear on the screen, tap and hold the Power Off slider and drag it from left to right to turn off your iPhone.3. Wait for the device to completely turn off and then press and hold the Side button once again until the Apple logo appears.Following the restart, wait a few moments before unlocking your iPhone and check whether the interactive widgets not working issue has been fixed or not.3. Make Sure You Are Using Interactive Widgets RightAs the interactive widgets are pretty new to the whole iOS experience on iPhones, it might be a tad bit difficult for users to fully understand how they work at first. Personally speaking, after getting iOS 17, I also did not get them to properly work initially. I was not able to add the call and message buttons to a Contact widget on my iPhone.You see, after adding certain interactive widgets to the Home screen on your iPhone in iOS 17, you can edit the widgets themselves to show buttons, change the data source, and more.For instance, the Music widget on the iPhone in iOS 17 has various versions such as Recommendations, Recently Played, and Top Charts. Although you cannot edit the Recently Played version of the Music Widget, you can edit the Top Charts and Recommendations versions of it and change the data source.You can simply tap and hold the Music widget to access the context menu and select the Edit Widget option.On the following UI, tap the current source to access the other available options.Once they show up, tap your desired one to select it.Once you change the source, the Music widget will automatically update to show the change.Much like this, you can edit a Contact widget of a specific contact to show the Call and Message buttons on the widget itself. This way, you will be able to call or send a message to the selected contact right from the widget itself.So, when you add an interactive widget to the Home screen on your iPhone in iOS 17, always tap and hold it to check whether there is an Edit Widget option available for it or not. If there is one, tap it to explore what you can edit about the widget.We’d recommend you check out our in-depth guide on how to use interactive widgets on your iPhone in iOS 17 to know more about them.4. Re-Install Third-Party AppsAfter updating your iPhone to the latest iOS 17 update, if you find that the interactive widgets of third-party apps like Facebook, Instagram, Documents, YouTube, and others are not working, you can try re-installing them on your device. Sometimes third-party apps might need to be re-installed to adapt to the new iOS features. Hence, there is a high chance that uninstalling these apps and installing them on your device once again will fix the interactive widgets for the flawed apps.

Widgets for Windows 11 is poor. There are only a few dozen widgets available on Windows 11 at this time, and that includes widgets made by Microsoft. The library of widgets includes Tic-Tac-Toe and other widgets that aren't especially useful.There are some interesting widgets available, such as battery meter, but it's clear that developers do not value making widgets for Windows 11. The Spotify widget just shows a couple of trending playlists and does not even include music controls, let alone your personal library of content.RELATED: How to use widgets on Windows 11All the latest news, reviews, and guides for Windows and Xbox diehards.While options for widgets on Windows 11 are limited, that affects an unlocked PC more than a locked one. I assume the widgets people place on the lock screen will focus largely on glanceable information. If that is the case, widgets for the weather, traffic, trending news, and a few other basic widgets cover most of the bases.Sean Endicott is a tech journalist at Windows Central, specializing in Windows, Microsoft software, AI, and PCs. He's covered major launches, from Windows 10 and 11 to the rise of AI tools like ChatGPT. Sean's journey began with the Lumia 740, leading to strong ties with app developers. Outside writing, he coaches American football, utilizing Microsoft services to manage his team. He studied broadcast journalism at Nottingham Trent University and is active on X @SeanEndicott_ and Threads @sean_endicott_.