Dynamic Island: what is it, interactive iPhone notifications

What is Dynamic Island on iPhone?

Dynamic Island is an iPhone 14 Pro, 15 Pro and newer interface element that uses the area around the front camera and Face ID sensors to display notifications and Live Activity. Unlike the old notch, which was a static black element, Dynamic Island dynamically changes shape and size: it expands to show a timer, shrinks for a connected AirPods icon, turns into a rectangle for sports scores.

Technical implementation of Dynamic Island is based on the hardware pill-shaped cutout of the OLED display and software pixel processing around it. The system increases the pixel refresh rate to 120 Hz in the Island area and uses anti-aliasing for smooth transitions between content and the black camera area. The developer does not program the Island directly — they create content through ActivityKit, and the system places it around the cutout automatically.

User perception — Dynamic Island turns a hardware drawback into a functional element. According to Apple research, users perceive Island as a natural part of the screen after just a few days of use. Highlighting and attention-switching animations — for example, an incoming notification shifts the Island and shows content with an expansion effect at 120 frames per second.

Dynamic Island Display Modes

Dynamic Island supports three content display modes, which the system selects automatically based on the type and number of activities. The developer defines the UI for each mode in WidgetBundle but does not control which mode is currently active. The system can also display two activities simultaneously: one to the left of the cutout, the other to the right.

Transition between modes is performed with a system animation lasting 0.4–0.6 seconds with an ease-in-out curve. When a new Activity appears, the Island expands from compact to expanded mode. When it ends, it shrinks back. The user can forcefully collapse the expanded mode by swiping left — the Island transitions to compact or minimal. The system also collapses the expanded mode after 5 seconds of inactivity if no updates are expected.

Two activities — if two apps have active Live Activities, Dynamic Island shows them on both sides of the cutout. The left side is the first started Activity, the right side is the second. If there is only one activity, it occupies the left side, the right remains empty. Tapping either side expands the Island and shows the content of that Activity. The system itself decides which Activity takes priority in case of conflict.

Creating Content for Dynamic Island

Dynamic Island content is created exclusively through Live Activity with the ActivityKit framework. The developer defines four areas in code: compact leading (compactLeading), compact trailing (compactTrailing), minimal (minimal), and expanded (expanded). Each area is a SwiftUI View that receives the current Activity state through context. If an area is not defined, Island does not display that Activity in the corresponding mode.

struct DeliveryIsland: DynamicIsland {
    var body: some DynamicIslandContent {
        DynamicIslandExpandedContent {
            VStack(alignment: .leading) {
                Text(context.state.status)
                    .font(.headline)
                ProgressView(
                    value: context.state.progress
                )
                Text("ETA: \(context.state.minutes) min")
                    .font(.caption)
            }
        } compactLeading: {
            Image(systemName: "box.truck")
        } compactTrailing: {
            Text("\(context.state.minutes) min")
                .monospacedDigit()
        } minimal: {
            Image(systemName: "box.truck")
        }
    }
}

SwiftUI limitations in Dynamic Island — available components: Text, Image, HStack, VStack, ZStack, Spacer, ProgressView, Button (via Link only), Gauge. Prohibited: ScrollView, List, TabView, animations, gesture recognizers. Color palette — only System Colors (label, secondaryLabel, tint). Fonts — system sizes from .caption to .title3. Custom fonts and SF Symbols work correctly.

Testing Dynamic Island — Xcode provides a simulator with Dynamic Island support. Select iPhone 14 Pro or 15 Pro as the target device. ActivityKit simulates different Island modes: the Dynamic Island Mode button in Xcode Debug menu switches between compact, minimal, and expanded. To test multiple Activities simultaneously, use schemes with different ActivityIDs or launch two instances of the app.

System Events in Dynamic Island

System events — calls, AirPods, Face ID, charging, and others — take priority over custom Live Activities. When a system event occurs, Island pauses the display of custom content and shows the system one. After the system event ends, Island returns to custom content with an animation. The developer cannot cancel or modify system events — they are managed at the iOS operating system level.

Incoming call — the most important system event. Dynamic Island shows the caller's name to the left of the cutout and the duration/status to the right. During an active call, Island does not display any custom Live Activities. The user can expand Island to open the call screen or collapse it to continue working in the app with the active call in the background.

AirPods connection — when opening the case near the iPhone, Dynamic Island animates the connection and shows the charge of each earbud and the case. The animation lasts 2–3 seconds, after which Island returns to its previous state. If the user had no active Live Activities, Island remains empty. AirPods Pro 2 also display volume and noise cancellation mode when pressing the stem.

Best Practices for Dynamic Island Development

Dynamic Island best practices from Apple should be followed to ensure a quality user experience. The compact mode should display only the most important information — an icon and a single number or short label. The expanded mode — only key information without redundant elements. Avoid placing text in compact mode if it exceeds 20 characters — the system truncates text with an ellipsis.

Push updates for Dynamic Island — use ActivityKit push for rare updates (order status, sports results) and local updates for frequent timers or stopwatches. Push notifications go through APNs and take 0.5–2 seconds to appear in Island. StaleDate — set content expiration date: if an update does not arrive on time, the system shows a gray background instead of content, signaling outdated data to the user.

func updateDelivery(activity: Activity<DeliveryAttributes>) {
    Task {
        let newContent = ActivityContent(
            state: DeliveryAttributes.ContentState(
                status: .delivered,
                estimatedMinutes: 0
            ),
            staleDate: Date().addingTimeInterval(300)
        )
        await activity.update(newContent)
        // Ending Activity in 2 seconds
        try? await Task.sleep(nanoseconds: 2_000_000_000)
        await activity.end(newContent)
    }
}

Energy consumption — Dynamic Island and Live Activities have minimal impact on battery thanks to OLED display hardware optimization. Black pixels around the cutout are turned off, and content is rendered on a dedicated coprocessor. Average Live Activity consumption is less than 1% battery per hour of use when updating every 5 minutes. The system automatically pauses Island when the battery is low (below 20%) or in power saving mode.

Design for Dynamic Island does not require adapting the main app UI — Island operates independently of the active screen. Live Activity colors should match the system theme (light/dark) through system Color Assets. SF Symbols are preferred over custom icons — they are guaranteed to display correctly in any Island mode and have built-in Dynamic Type support.