Dynamic Island might have been a last-minute addition made by Apple

Arguably the most exciting new feature on the iPhone 14 Pro models is the Dynamic Island. Judging from the reaction that this writer and others had when Apple showed off the shape-shifting "notchification center" (thanks to loyal reader MsPooks for that one), you might think that Apple knew exactly what the reaction was going to be once it showed off the most famous Island since Gilligan's.

One way that you can tell that Apple knew what it had was how locked down the Dynamic Island was before the "Far out" event took place. Not a single word about it was leaked and Apple had even the harshest critics of the "sideways i" cutout and the notch eating out of its hands after the event. It is possible that the Dynamic Island received a very late-stage greenlight according to the information posted by MacRumors.

Apple, for at least the third time, posted a new support document originally showing the two cutouts at the top of the iPhone 14 Pro display without the Digital Island. The result was the often criticized design that we saw on countless iPhone 14 renders throughout the summer. Removing the Digital Island is not an option although, in bright sunlight, you can make out the two cutouts without the black covering layered on top. Apple has since updated the page, which is titled "Use Always-On display with your iPhone 14 Pro or iPhone 14 Pro Max," and replaced the image of an iPhone 14 Pro with cutouts to one featuring the Digital Island.

FrontPage Tech's Ian Zelbo also disseminated a tweet showing that right after the unveiling, Apple uploaded product bezels for developers which showed the cutouts for the iPhone 14 Pro models. This was quickly fixed with an updated image that showed the single pill or lozenge design. Typical of how Apple works, a secret team might have been working on the Dynamic Island, and others involved in the creation of support documents, web design, and developer resources were unaware of it until the unveiling.

Regardless, it doesn't take away from the excitement created by the new feature. Some consumers who planned on holding off upgrading their iPhones for another year or two are so stoked that they are tripping over themselves looking to figure out the best deal that puts the Digital Island in their hands ASAP.