The minimalist sky

Picture opening your phone to almost nothing — a dark, quiet sky (your whole home screen) with no clutter to wade through. Your apps aren't gone; they stay tucked in the ring — the wheel of apps that blooms under your finger when you hold — until you reach for them. Here is how to get there.

#Keep the surface empty

The sky starts as one open surface, so the quiet is already there. The trick is to not fill it. Leave stars — the apps, folders, and shortcuts you place — off the sky and let the ring hold your apps instead. When you place almost nothing, there is almost nothing to look at.

If you've split your sky into regions — separate zones that each group their own stars — a minimalist sky usually wants only one. A single region keeps the whole surface as one calm space with nothing to cross between. See The sky — layout, regions & skies.

#Pare back how stars look

If you do place a few stars, choose a plainer look for them. In Settings › appearance › star style you can switch from "app icons" to "monochrome", "text only", or "inverted mono". "Text only" is the quietest — a name, no icon — and "monochrome" tones every icon down to a single shade so nothing shouts for attention. See Personalization — themes, icons & effects.

#Turn off the overlays you don't need

The sky can carry a clock, date, weather, and battery over the top. Each is a small piece of clutter. In Settings › sky overlays you can turn off "clock", "date", "weather", and "battery" one by one, or dim what stays with the "brightness" control. Keep only the one or two you actually glance at. See Sky overlays — clock, date, weather, battery.

One tip. Minimalism is a feeling, not a count. Turn things off until the sky feels calm to you, then stop — there's no score to chase.

See also. The sky — layout, regions & skies · Personalization — themes, icons & effects · Sky overlays — clock, date, weather, battery · The sky — your whole home screen