The iPhone 14’s best new feature has already been copied by Android

Apple unveiled its latest line-up of devices during its big ‘Far Out’ event last week with the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max getting an all-new upgrade called the Dynamic Island. This clever interactive notch is able to change its shape and size allowing users to answer calls, see timers and even view what music is playing played without opening specific apps.

The Dynamic Island is an exciting blend of hardware and software, which iPhone fans will get to try out for the first time when the iPhone 14 line-up hits shelves on Friday, September 16.

But ahead of the iPhone 14 release date one Android developer has already managed to copy it.

Before the first retail iPhone 14 gets into fans’ hands, a Dynamic Island-style feature has already appeared on a Chinese-made Xiaomi phone.

As highlighted on Twitter by TechDroider founder Vaibhav Jain, a newly created theme for Xiaomi phones – called Grumpy UI – is able to offer Dynamic Island-style context-sensitive notifications.

Only a short video was revealed of this Android imitation in action, but it showed the Dynamic Island copycat displaying information like messages and details on the music being played.

The developers of the theme have said it is still under review by Xiaomi, but if it does get approved it will be available on the MIUI Themes store.

Sadly for anyone in the UK that likes the look of it, this Android update is only available in one language – Chinese.

Throughout the years, many innovations Apple pioneered have made their way from iPhones to Android devices, including dropping the 3.5mm headphone jack to focus on wireless headphones, as well as helping to popularise the notch.

But whether Android phones by and large imitate Dynamic Island going forward remains to be seen.

Dynamic Island helps mask how intrusive pill-shaped notches can be and uses it as the basis of some exciting software features. But since Android devices these days mainly have pin-hole selfie cameras – which aren’t as intrusive – it may feel like a feature that Android flagships won’t really benefit from.