Night Shift is a feature introduced by Apple in iOS version 9.3. It uses the clock and geolocation of your device to determine when it’s sunset in your location and adjusts the colors of the display screen to the warmer end of the spectrum, making it easier on your eyes at night.
The display color returns back to normal in the morning (if not modified otherwise).
But does night shift save any battery?
Night Shift does not save battery of your device nor does it reduce it. Shifting the screen tone from white to a yellowish hue has no impact on the battery. It consumes the same amount of power to display the white hue as it does with a warmer hue.
- Does iOS Night Shift save battery?
- Is it good to have night shift on all day?
- Does iPhone Night Shift help you sleep?
- Does night shift protect your eyes?
- Does Apple’s true tone drain the battery?
See also: Does AirDrop Waste Battery?
Does iOS Night Shift save battery?
Turning on Night Shift on your iOS device does not have any effect on the battery. Night shift adjusts the color display of your screen based on the clock and the geolocation of your device.
Shifting the color spectrum to a warmer hue does not save the battery of your device in any meaningful way.
Users often assume that night shift dims the brightness of your device so that it saves battery. The brightness is actually not affected by the night shift mode, it only changes the color spectrum of the display to make it lighter on the eyes, merely giving the illusion of dim brightness.
Some users also argue that enabling night shift puts an additional filter on top of your regular display screen resulting in reduced battery, which is also not true. The white light shines onto the pixels in the LCD screen to create a display which consumes the same amount of energy compared to blue, black and yellow pixels.
When Night Shift was initially introduced, Apple prevented the use of this functionality when Low Power Mode was enabled. This led users to believe that Night Shift may have an impact on battery life. In reality, there is no official statement or evidence from Apple supporting this claim.
With new iOS versions, you can use both features simultaneously without any issues. This suggests that enabling night shift does not have any impact on battery life.
Is it good to have night shift on all day?
The phone’s display should adapt to the surroundings to reduce the strain on the eyes and brain.
During the day when everything is bright and blue, the blue light emitting from your phone does not add more to it. Therefore, it is fine to keep the night shift turned off during the day.
However, during the night when everything is dark around you, turning on night shift adjusts the colors of the display screen to the warmer end of the spectrum which makes the display l easier on your eyes The basic purpose of night shift is to give cues to your brain to keep the natural body clock in sync with the day/night cycle. The warmer hue and the dim screen display with night shift enabled is an indication to the brain that it is time to sleep.
The body takes its cues from the change in hues around us. Keeping the night shift on all day will transform the display to a warmer hue even in day time . So the brain will not be able to differentiate between day and night using your phone display, which is the original purpose of night shift in the first place.
So, it is best to use night shift during the night as per its intended purpose.
When should I use the night shift on my iPhone?
The night shift should be used during the night when everything is dark around you to minimize strain on your eyes.
The iPhone automatically checks the geolocation and the clock of your device to turn on night shift, if enabled in settings. You can also manually enable night shift whenever you want.
To enable night shift on your iPhone through Settings.
- Go to “Settings” > tap “Display & Brightness”.
- on “Night Shift”.
- Toggle on “Scheduled” > set a time for turning on automatically at night.
You can also enable Night Shift through the Control Center:
- Open control center.
- Tap and hold the brightness button.
- Tap on “Night Shift” to enable or disable it.
Does iPhone Night Shift help you sleep?
The iPhone’s Night Shift mode does not help you sleep. It only minimizes the strain on your eyes due to the extended exposure to blue light during the day.
As the night shift transforms the screen display to a warmer hue, this reduces the pressure imposed on your eyes whilst scrolling through the phone at night and gives you better quality of sleep. Studies have shown that blue light stimulation negatively impacts the quality of sleep and increases alertness.
According to various studies done by professor Chad Jensen from BYU psychology and his research crew, Night Shift mode does not help you sleep better nor does it help to keep you stay asleep for longer. It has no effect on your sleep pattern whatsoever.
In short, the night shift may feel good to your eyes but seems to have no effect on your sleep.
Does night shift protect your eyes?
It is widely believed that night shift mode protects our eyes. However, a recent study by the University of Manchester proves this statement wrong. According to the researchers, the night shift does more harm than good to your eyes. They suggest that humans encounter warmer light during the day because of the sun, and somewhat blueish light during the night because of the moon.
This indicates our bodies are more likely to associate blue light with sleep as opposed to yellow light as with the night shift.
In previous studies conducted on mice, researchers found that blue color produced weaker effects on the circadian rhythm of mice compared to the warmer colors (yellow).
Therefore, according to Dr. Tim Brown, we should be doing the opposite of what night shift does to protect our e. turn on bright warmer colors during the day and light cooler colors during the night.
Does iPhone night mode reduce blue light?
According to Apple, the night shift mode reduces the emission of blue light from the device and shifts the display to a warmer hue based on the clock and geolocation of your device.
Technically however, the night shift screen is in reality a filtered amber version of the display and does not actually remove the blue light.
Although not all the blue light is blocked in night shift mode, there is still some reduction of blue light emitting from these devices.
Does Apple’s true tone drain the battery?
Every feature in the Iphone consumes battery to operate, however, some use microscopic amounts of power while some use larger chunks.
Apple’s True Tone uses sensors to perform its color shifting abilities so these sensors do consume some battery,
That said, only a tiny amount of battery is used by these sensors and turning true tone on won’t actually make much of a difference to the overall battery drainage of your device.
What’s the difference between True Tone and night shift?
True Tone is the feature of iOS which uses sensors to adjust the intensity and the colors of images on screen to match with the ambient light to make the images appear more natural to the user.
Night Shift, on the other hand, overrides True Tone in a sense that its main purpose is to filter blue light from the screen and shift the display to a warmer hue during night hours. It is activated at sunset and turns off automatically at sunrise.