Widgets and Controls
Add Octarine notes, calendars, capture actions, and workspace shortcuts to iPhone
Octarine offers Home Screen and Lock Screen widgets for seeing notes and starting common actions without navigating through the app. Widgets show information from the workspace currently selected in Octarine.
Open Octarine once after installing or updating it so iOS can load the current workspace data.
Add a Home Screen widget
- Touch and hold an empty area of the Home Screen until the apps jiggle.
- Tap Edit → Add Widget.
- Search for Octarine.
- Choose a widget and size, then tap Add Widget.
Home Screen widgets
| Widget | Size | What it shows or opens |
|---|---|---|
| Today's Note | Medium or Large | A preview of today's Daily note. Tap it to open the note. |
| Daily Calendar | Medium or Large | Medium shows the current week; Large shows the current month. Dots mark dates with writing. Tap a day to open its Daily note or a week number to open its weekly note. |
| Recent Notes | Medium or Large | Recently opened notes with content previews. Tap a note to return to it. |
| Pinned Notes | Medium or Large | A pinned note and its preview. On iOS 17 or later, use the arrows to move between pinned notes without opening the app. Tap the preview to open the selected note. |
| Inbox | Medium or Large | The latest Inbox items and total count. Tap an item to open it, the Inbox heading to see everything, or + to start Quick Capture. |
| Quick Actions | Small | Buttons for Quick Capture, New Note, and Search. |
The calendar follows the Start of the week preference configured under Settings → Date & Time.
Lock Screen widgets
Octarine provides circular New Note and Quick Capture widgets. Add them while customizing the iPhone Lock Screen, then tap one to open its action in Octarine.
Control Center controls
On iOS 18 or later, add Octarine's New Note and Quick Capture controls to Control Center:
- Open Control Center and touch and hold an empty area.
- Tap Add a Control.
- Search for Octarine and choose a control.
The same controls can also be assigned where iOS offers system controls, including the Lock Screen controls and supported Action Button configurations.
Choose widget colors
Open Settings → Appearance → Widget Color and choose Dawn, Gruvbox, Rosé Pine, Vesper, Ayu, or Forest. The selected palette applies to Octarine's Home Screen widgets for the current workspace.
Refresh widget content
Octarine refreshes its widget snapshot as notes and workspace data change. If a widget is empty or still shows another workspace, open Octarine and leave the intended workspace selected so the latest data can be shared with iOS. Widget refresh timing is ultimately managed by iOS.
Quick Answers
Which Octarine widgets are available on iPhone?
Home Screen widgets include Today's Note, Daily Calendar, Recent Notes, Pinned Notes, Inbox, and Quick Actions. New Note and Quick Capture are also available for the Lock Screen and, on iOS 18 or later, Control Center.
Can I change the color of Octarine widgets?
Yes. Choose a palette under Settings → Appearance → Widget Color.
Why is an Octarine widget showing old data?
Open Octarine, select the intended workspace, and allow the app to update its widget data. iOS controls when the widget itself refreshes.
Can the calendar widget open daily and weekly notes?
Yes. Tap a date for its Daily note or the week number for its weekly note.