The new customisable lock screen, which not only offers widgets but also allows users to add animated wallpapers and change the colour of the text, is one of iOS 16's most notable new features.

The new lock screen is currently only available on the iPhone, but iPadOS 16 contains a secret debug option that allows you to enable it on the iPad — sort of.

Springboard, the mechanism that runs both the lock screen and the home screen on iOS, hasn't yet been updated to include the new lock screen features. Instead, Apple has built 'PosterBoard,' a new internal software that connects users to the lock screen customization possibilities.

This app, like many others on iOS, is hidden by default and may only be accessed with certain settings. By tapping the iPhone's lock screen in this situation. Despite the fact that iPadOS 16 lacks the new lock screen, it is present in the system and may be accessed.

Apple forgot to remove PosterBoard from the list of apps accessible via Shortcuts, as found by Federico Viticci. As a result, all you have to do is build a shortcut that launches the PosterBoard app to gain access to the iPad's lock screen personalization choices.

Opening the PosterBoard app from the Shortcuts app brings up a debug menu, which Apple designers and engineers use to test all of the new lock screen options available in iOS 16.

You can see how options like adding new animated wallpapers or altering the colours might operate on the iPad in action there. There is, however, a catch.

At this point, it's evident that the new iPad lock screen has a basic implementation. It works with new wallpapers, allows users to modify the typeface and colours, and can blend the backdrop photo with the time. However, a number of functionality are broken, particularly widgets, which do not function at all.

The only thing this debug menu allows you to do is modify the font and colour of the time in the default lock screen. Any other lock screen choices are ineffective.

Apple appears to have run out of time to have the new iPad lock screen ready, but they're working on it. Unfortunately, I don't believe lock screen customizations will be included in iPadOS 16, even if they are included in a subsequent version.

Apple is likely to keep the feature in iPadOS 17, as they have done in the past with home screen widgets and App Library.

They would have announced it at WWDC or displayed marketing graphics featuring the feature if they hadn't done so. Apple has stated that the new lock screen will be available to iPhone owners this year.

You may try out the hidden debug settings yourself if you're running iPadOS 16 beta 1 on your iPad. However, with the next beta of iPadOS 16, Apple is likely to eliminate all of these choices, which are designed for internal development.