Photo: Ekaterina Dema (Shutterstock)
Myopia, also known as nearsightedness, is on the rise for today’s kids. One risk factor theorized to be partially to blame is holding a screen too close to the face—an iPhone or iPad screen, for example.
Apple made a point of highlighting this issue during its WWDC event back in June, and, as the manufacturer of the iPhones and iPads that are so popular with kids, wants to help. With iOS 17, Apple is introducing a new feature called Screen Distance that prompts you to move your device farther away from your face when you’ve held it too close for too long.
How iOS 17's Screen Distance works
Screen Distance uses your device’s TrueDepth camera to check if you’re holding it at least 12 inches away from your eyes, which is why the feature requires an iPhone or an iPad with Face ID: Only those devices have the sensors needed to check this distance. Apple says it doesn’t capture any photos or videos in the process, and that Screen Distance data remains on your device, never to be shared with the company.
If you or your child holds their iPhone or iPad too close to their face, they’ll see a warning on screen, and will be unable to use the device until they move it farther away and press the Continue button. This warning doesn’t show up immediately, however: You’ll need to keep the phone or tablet too close to your face for about five minutes for the warning to appear.
How to enable Screen Distance in iOS 17
At the time of writing, Screen Distance is available in the iOS 17 or iPadOS 17 public beta—an easy installation. As always, we recommend backing up all the data on your iPhone before you update it; ideally, we suggest you try it on a spare iPhone or iPad rather than your primary device. Beta software is unfinished and in testing, and you never know exactly what you’re going to get when you install it.
Once running iOS 17 or iPadOS 17, you can go to Settings > Screen Time > Screen Distance and enable Screen Distance. If you’ve set up a Screen Time passcode, you’ll have to key it in to enable Screen Distance.
