HACKER Q&A
📣 yakubin

Is there a way to get previous iOS timer behaviour back?


In iOS 17 Apple changed the Clock app in such a way that if you adjust the timer without starting it and then enough time passes that the screen locks, or you just switch away to a different app for a moment and switch back, the timer will reset itself to previous value.

It's infuriating. Nothing else behaves this way. When I prepare utensils in the kitchen, they don't jump back into drawers the moment I turn my eyes away from them. Microsoft Word also won't delete your last paragraph, if you Alt-Tab before saving the document.

On multiple occasions this caused me to start the timer with an unintended value.

Is there a way to get the old behaviour back?

  👤 Jtsummers Accepted Answer ✓
You don't need to switch to a different app, just a different view in the same app. Switch from timer to stopwatch and back and it'll reset to 5 minutes (default timer).
👤 runjake
Why are you frequently switching away from the timer after setting it but before starting it?

If I understand correctly, you change the timer, but don't hit start, then switch away and back and you see it reset to the last successful (mine reverts to 19:00) timer value?

But, to answer your question: no, there's not a way to get the old behavior back within the app.

This was willfully done this way, probably due to another customer's Feedback submission. Observe that the process is the same when you activate Control Center and press and hold on the timer icon to change the time.

👤 RulerOf
It's not the answer to your question, but setting timers with Hey Siri is often the only thing I've seen people actually use Siri for, particularly in the kitchen.
👤 COOL_DUDE_2112
i don't like how this leaks data -- a list of timers can say a lot depending on the lengths, timers used to be liminal
👤 tpmx
Let's guess, they rewrote the clock app using SwiftUI (probably without the original main developer around), because like, how hard/risky could it be?

https://www.macrumors.com/2023/10/04/apple-stops-signing-ios...

Following the release of iOS 17.0.3 earlier today, Apple has stopped signing iOS 16.6.1, iOS 17, and iOS 17.0.1, preventing iPhone users from downgrading to any of those software versions.