How to Use Night Shift on iPhone, iPad, and Mac

Night Shift is an iOS and macOS feature that adjusts the colors of your display to the warmer end of the spectrum after sunset. This helps reduce exposure to blue light, which can disrupt sleep patterns. Using Night Shift regularly can help you fall asleep more easily and get better rest.

What is Night Shift?

Night Shift shifts the colors of your iPhone, iPad, or Mac display to the warmer end of the color spectrum. Studies show that exposure to blue light in the evenings can disrupt your circadian rhythms and make it harder to fall asleep. Blue light exposure after sunset tricks your brain into thinking it’s daytime, suppressing the release of melatonin and delaying sleepiness.

By shifting display colors to the warmer spectrum, Night Shift reduces the amount of blue light emitted. This helps you wind down at night and prepares your body and mind for sleep. The warmer colors put less strain on your eyes as well.

Benefits of Using Night Shift

Here are some of the benefits you can enjoy by enabling Night Shift on your Apple devices in the evenings:

• Fall asleep faster and enjoy better sleep quality. With less blue light exposure, your body naturally starts releasing melatonin earlier, helping you feel sleepy at your desired bedtime.
• Avoid disruption of your circadian rhythms. Night Shift ensures you get exposure to warmer colors in the evening, preventing blue light from trickling your brain into feeling alert and awake.
• Reduce eye strain. The warmer colors are easier on your eyes, especially if you need to use your devices at night before bed.
• Wake up feeling more refreshed. Better sleep means higher energy levels and improved focus and productivity during the day.
• Potentially reduce risk of disease. Some research suggests blue light exposure at night may be linked to increased risks for cancer, heart disease, obesity, and depression.

How to Turn on Night Shift on iPhone and iPad

Turning on Night Shift on your iPhone or iPad is simple and just takes a few taps. Here’s how to do it:

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Tap Display & Brightness.
3. Tap Night Shift to open the Night Shift settings.
4. Turn on the Scheduled switch. This will shift colors automatically based on sunrise and sunset.
5. Alternatively, set a Custom Schedule if you want Night Shift to activate and deactivate at specific times.

That’s all there is to it! Night Shift will now automatically enable each evening and adjust screen colors to be warmer and reduce blue light.

You can also manually toggle Night Shift on or off at any time by swiping down from the top right of your screen to open Control Center. Just tap the icon that looks like a crescent moon.

Customizing Night Shift on iPhone and iPad

Once you have Night Shift enabled, you can customize it to your preferences:

• Adjust color temperature. Drag the slider toward More Warm to increase the yellow/orange colors or toward Less Warm for more blues.
• Set a Dark Room switch. This will remove all blue light and maximize warm colors for total night viewing comfort.
• Switch scheduling to Sunset to Sunrise. This bases shift times on your location’s natural light cycle.
• Choose a Custom Schedule with your ideal Night Shift start and end times.
• Enable Night Shift on a Per-App Basis. You can have Night Shift activate only when using certain apps.

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Play around with the settings to find your optimal configuration for easy evening use and restful sleep.

Using Night Shift on Mac

Using Night Shift on a Mac is very similar to iPhone and iPad:

1. Click the Apple menu icon.
2. Select System Preferences > Displays.
3. Click the Night Shift tab.
4. Check the box for Turn on Night Shift. This will shift colors based on your location’s sunset/sunrise.
5. To customize, click Options to adjust color temperature and scheduling like on iOS.
6. You can also toggle Night Shift on or off manually by clicking the moon icon in your Mac’s menu bar.

Night Shift should now work automatically on your Mac in the evenings and deactivate in the mornings according to your settings.

Tips for Making the Most of Night Shift

Here are some tips to optimize your Night Shift experience on Apple devices:

• Use it daily in the 1-2 hours before bedtime to maximize positive impacts on sleep.
• Try enabling Dark Mode on iPhone, iPad, and Mac as well to filter out all blue light.
• Reduce brightness levels at night along with Night Shift for added relief.
• Keep iOS and macOS updated for any enhancements made to Night Shift.
• Consider blue light filtering glasses if using devices before bed. These provide protection similar to Night Shift.
• Avoid bright overhead lights before bed and use dimmer lamps to reinforce circadian rhythms.
• Establish a consistent pre-bed routine like reading to signal sleepiness to your body.

Conclusion

Using Night Shift regularly in the evenings provides valuable benefits like better sleep, reduced eye strain, and avoidance of blue light’s negative effects. It’s an easy feature to enable on iPhone, iPad, and Mac. Customize temperature and scheduling to find your ideal settings for restful nights. Pair Night Shift with other good sleep hygiene habits for optimal results. Your mind and body will thank you!