Hi everyone,
I’m currently implementing Live Activities in my music app to display real-time lyrics on the Lock Screen.
The app works fully offline, so I’m not using push updates or push tokens. Instead, I’m updating the Live Activity locally as each new line of lyrics is played (essentially near real-time updates synced with the song).
However, I’m running into an issue where the Live Activity UI is not updating reliably or frequently enough. Even though I’m calling the update method for each lyric line, the changes are either delayed or not reflected at all.
Here’s some additional context: • The app runs fine in the background (verified via battery usage and playback behavior) • Live Activity is successfully created and initially displayed • Updates are triggered locally (no push notifications involved) • Updates are happening quite frequently (per lyric line) • No crashes or errors are observed
My questions: 1. Is there a system-imposed throttling limit on how frequently Live Activities can be updated locally? 2. Are there recommended update intervals for smooth UI updates (e.g., for use cases like lyrics or timers)? 3. Does Live Activity deprioritize updates for offline apps or background execution? 4. Are there any additional configurations or capabilities required to ensure consistent updates? 5. Is using something like AsyncStream or other concurrency patterns helpful in this case? 6. Are there any undocumented limitations or best practices for high-frequency updates? 7. Is there any private or internal API used by Apple apps (like Music) that allows smoother real-time updates?
My goal is to achieve smooth, near real-time lyric updates similar to Apple Music’s Now Playing experience.
Any guidance, best practices, or clarification would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks in advance!