7 WatchOS 7 Features We’re Most Excited to See
Apple’s watchOS 7 brings sleep tracking, automatic hand-washing detection, additional workout options, and more to the Apple Watch.
Alongside iOS 14 and iPadOS 14, Apple previewed the next generation of its smartwatch operating system, watchOS 7, during its Worldwide Developers Conference virtual keynote on Monday.
WatchOS 7 is a significant upgrade that introduces a number of new features. “We’re energized by the positive impact Apple Watch is having on our customers and are excited to deliver meaningful new tools that support their health, fitness, and wellness,” Apple’s chief operating officer Jeff Williams said in a statement. “watchOS 7 brings sleep tracking, automatic hand-washing detection, and new workout types together with a whole new way to discover and use watch faces, helping our users stay healthy, active, and connected.”
It will be free to download this fall on the Apple Watch Series 3, Series 4, and Series 5. To get the upgrade, your Apple Watch will need to be paired with an iPhone 6 or later running iOS 14. If you can’t wait that long, a public beta will be available to watchOS users next month. For now, the developer beta is only available to members of the Apple Developer Program.
Sleep Tracking
Sleep tracking is a standard feature on most fitness trackers and smartwatches these days, so we’re happy to see that Apple is finally bringing native sleep tracking to the Apple Watch. When it’s time for bed, just set your watch to Sleep Mode, which enables Do Not Disturb and darkens the screen. Using its accelerometer to detect micro-movements that signal respiration, the watch will keep track of when you’re asleep, and how much shut eye you get.
In the morning, it can ring an alarm or gently vibrate to wake you up without disturbing your partner. The watch will then show a summary of your previous night’s sleep, including time spent awake and asleep and a chart of your sleep trends over the last week.
Face Sharing
WatchOS 7 includes a new Face Sharing feature that promises to make it easy to customize watch faces to suit your preferences, and to share them with others. You’ll be able to discover and share watch faces via Apple’s Messages, Mail, the App Store, and links on websites and social media.
Developers will be able to offer more than one complication per app on a single watch face. For instance, the Dawn Patrol watch face for surfers can show information about the tide, wind speed, and water temperature.
New Watch Faces
Apple is adding and updating a few watch faces of its own, including a Chronograph Pro stopwatch face with a tachymeter, a speed-measuring tool used by pilots and race car drivers. You’ll be able to add color filters to the Photos face (which displays a new photo every time your watch screen wakes).
Automatic Hand-Washing Detection
In the age of COVID-19, Apple is adding a new hand-washing detection feature to watchOS 7. Using motion sensors to detect hand-washing movements and the microphone to listen for the sound of running water, the watch will automatically detect when you wash your hands and show a 20-second countdown timer. If you stop washing your hands before the time is up, it will encourage you to keep going. It can also remind you to wash your hands when you return home.
New Workout Types
The Workout app is getting an update in watchOS 7. It will let you track four new types of activities, including dancing, core training, functional strength, and cool down exercises. The dance tracker, for instance, combines data from the heart rate sensor, accelerometer, and gyroscope to measure your calorie burn.
Cycling Directions
A new cycling directions feature in the Maps app will make it easy to navigate from point A to point B on your bike. If you’re in a rush, you’ll be able to select a route that gets you to your destination the fastest or takes the most direct path. It will show elevation changes so you know what kind of ride you’re in for, and you’ll be able to select a route that avoids steep hills, if you prefer. It will also direct you when to walk or take the stairs to save time, and help you navigate to a bike repair shop if you get flat tire or your chain comes loose.
Siri Language Translations
Finally, watchOS 7 brings Siri language translations, a feature that should come in handy when traveling. Powered by the Apple Neural Engine, dictations are processed right on your wrist. This feature is already available on iOS, but adding it to the Apple Watch makes it even more accessible. If you say, “How do you say ‘goodbye’ in German?” for instance, Siri will display and pronounce the translation.
Originally published at https://www.pcmag.com.
