26 New Features to Try in watchOS 26

[MacRumors]

Apple released watchOS 26 yesterday, and if you have a Series 9 or later or an Ultra 2 or later, there are a surprising number of useful new features. Apple could have limited new additions like Sleep Score and Hypertension notifications to the newest Apple Watch models, but now you don't need to buy a new watch to get helpful features.

Design

• Liquid Glass - watchOS 26 adopts Liquid Glass, with translucent, glass-like buttons and interface elements. It's most visible with select watch faces, the Smart Stack, and Control Center.
• Control Center - Control Center is customizable, and you can rearrange it and add third-party app controls. If you don't like your changes, you can revert to the original design.
• Smart Stack - The Smart Stack uses a new prediction algorithm and it will prompt you if there is a suggestion that's immediately useful.
• Widgets - Widgets in the Smart Stack are customizable, so you can rearrange them to show what's most important to you first. Third-party apps are supported.

Gestures

• Wrist Flick - There's a wrist flick gesture for things like silencing incoming calls and dismissing notifications one-handed.

Health

• Hypertension Notifications - watchOS 26 adds hypertension notifications based on heart rate, letting you know if high blood pressure is detected over time. It's available on the Series 9 and later and Apple Watch Ultra 2 and later.
• Sleep Score - Sleep Score gives you a number-based evaluation of your sleep quality. It takes into account sleep duration, the number of times you woke up in the night, and when you went to bed.

Fitness

• Workout Buddy - There's an AI-powered Workout Buddy that motivates you during workouts and provides helpful insights.
• Workout app - Apple redesigned the Workout app with an updated layout that makes options like custom workout, Workout Buddy, and Pacer easier to get to.
• Media - There's an Autoplay Media option that will automatically play music that matches your workout. You can also select your own media to have autoplay when a workout is started.

Messages

• Smart Actions - The Messages app can suggest smart actions like location sharing, providing an address, and more based on the context of a text.
• Smart Replies - Smart replies have been improved so you should get more relevant one-tap responses for incoming messages.
• Live Translation - The Messages app supports Live Translation, so incoming texts in another language can be translated to your language.
• Backgrounds - Personalized backgrounds that you create for conversations on iPhone sync to the watch.

Phone

• Call Screening - Call Screening asks callers for more information before your phone or Apple Watch rings.
• Hold Assist - You can use the Hold Assist feature on the Apple Watch. It waits on the line for you so you can do other things.

Watch Faces

• Photos - The Photos watch face uses Liquid Glass for the time, and the size and location of the time adjust based on the image that's being displayed. The shuffle option also uses Featured content from Photos.
• Flow - Flow is a watch face designed for Liquid Glass. It features an orb of color with Liquid Glass numbers.
• Exactograph - Exactograph has hour, minute, and second dials for precise time keeping. If you tap on the face, it zooms in on the minutes and seconds dials so you can measure in even smaller increments of time.
• Waypoint - Waypoint is only for the Apple Watch Ultra, but it shows points of interest in relation to where you are.
• Hermes - There's a Hermes Faubourg Party watch face for Hermes watches. It displays different animations based on the time of day.
• Ticking Seconds - More watch faces support the 1Hz refresh rate on the Apple Watch Series 10 and later, showing a ticking second hand even when your wrist is down.
• Gallery - The watch face gallery has a new design that groups faces into collections.

Other Features

• Volume Adjustment - The volume of incoming calls and notifications adjusts based on the ambient sound around you. So if you're in a quiet room, your watch won't have a super loud ring.
• Live Listen - When using Live Listen on a connected iPhone, a transcript of what's being said is displayed on the watch.
• Notes - The Notes app is available on the Apple Watch, so you can view existing notes and create new ones.

Read More

For more on the features available in watchOS 26, we have a dedicated watchOS 26 roundup.

Article Link: 26 New Features to Try in watchOS 26

 

[ipedro]

I feel so much better about holding off another year. Series 6 and Ultra 2 have gotten me value for my money. To Apple’s credit, software updates have continued for older Watches. All the new features have come to both of mine.

I planned to upgrade this year but this is clearly a year to skip. Let’s see if the Series 12 has a chip capable of the new upcoming Siri and Apple Intelligence.

 

[Johnny907]

Not a fan of the redesigned workout app, which was implicitly changed to support “features” my Series 8 doesn’t.
Apple used to give Android grief over the stratified rollout of features based on how old your device was, but in the last few years has seemed to perfect that brand of nonsense.

 

[ELman]

Why can't they allow the wrist temperature to be used all time. It appears it only works while your using your watch to track sleep.

 

[DVD Plaza]

Not that I've found any of the watch faces exciting, but I'm really bored of them to be honest. I was really hoping for some gorgeous ones based on liquid glass, but alas the selection is just so blehhhhh.....

Apple need to stop being so stubborn like they used to be with alert tones, colours, etc and just give us a watch face store. They'd not only make a killing but we could get some actually nice faces. Apple can vet every single one of them if they like to ensure they meet standards, but for heavens sake I'm really bored of these designs.

 

[foliovision]

Most of this seems counter-productive and fluff. Example: wrist gestures. I'm doing some yard work and hang up on someone while trying to answer the call. Example 2: liquid glass makes seeing anything on already tiny screen still more difficult.

Glad I gave away my Series 7 Steel and moved to Garmin, which tells time, includes timers and keeps track of my fitness indicators without putting it on iCloud for the NSA to thumb through.

 

[robfoll]

I haven't heard much from all the conspiracy theorists who whine all the time about Apple holding back features for their new products only 😆

Not a fan of the redesigned workout app, which was implicitly changed to support “features” my Series 8 doesn’t.
Apple used to give Android grief over the stratified rollout of features based on how old your device was, but in the last few years has seemed to perfect that brand of nonsense.

It's not nonsense at all. The newer watches have faster processors, much upgraded performance, new sensors, and a lot of extra technology to handle a lot of the new features. It's like complaining your 5-year-old TV can't handle Dolby Atmos or 4K.

 

[ZoeLou]

Two questions:
1. Is wrist flick also series 9 and above?
2. Which watch faces now support the second ticking? I thought there was only one or two

 

[Radeon85]

Wrist flick is the best quality-of-life feature they've added in years. Being able to quickly close notifications, stop timers or alarms when they go off just with a quick flick of the wrist is so much more convenient.

 

[BlackPhoenix64]

Not a big fan of the new workout app on ultra 2. They added a play/start button on screen which isn’t a start button. Start used to be pushing the action button, but when you do that when you’re in the workout app you just go to the workout app again. Now you need to select your workout, push the start button on screen, then push the action button to actually start your workout. Then, what’s the point of the start button on screen? It’s not a start button! I missed a couple of workout starts already because of this stupid design.

 

[Wando64]

Most of this seems counter-productive and fluff. Example: wrist gestures. I'm doing some yard work and hang up on someone while trying to answer the call. Example 2: liquid glass makes seeing anything on already tiny screen still more difficult.

Glad I gave away my Series 7 Steel and moved to Garmin, which tells time, includes timers and keeps track of my fitness indicators without putting it on iCloud for the NSA to thumb through.

I was going to ask if any of this has actually happened to you, but then I noticed that you have sold your AW for a Garmin, so let me ask you instead: what are you talking about?

 

[DMG35]

The watch face selection on the Apple Watch is nothing short of embarrassing at this point. Apple is essentially making the same watch face over and over again and touting it as new because it has a new background or color scheme.

I honestly really don't see much of a difference in this update, pretty weak overall.

 

[svish]

Will update and try out wrist flick. Should be useful. Glad that it is on my Series 10. Will also try out the new watch faces. However will miss some of the old ones. Apple should not have removed them.

 

[The Banker]

Not a big fan of the new workout app on ultra 2. They added a play/start button on screen which isn’t a start button. Start used to be pushing the action button, but when you do that when you’re in the workout app you just go to the workout app again. Now you need to select your workout, push the start button on screen, then push the action button to actually start your workout. Then, what’s the point of the start button on screen? It’s not a start button! I missed a couple of workout starts already because of this stupid design.

Exactly this, very strange design change for the Ultra, looks like a complete oversight. Also my watch is constantly switching to lock mode, so I think they have changed something in the wrist detection algorithm.

 

[88tatz]

The latest option in WatchOS 26. I can’t make calls using the watch. Does anyone else have this problem? Before, it was enough to click on one of the recent calls to dial.

 

[btrach144]

Why can't they allow the wrist temperature to be used all time. It appears it only works while your using your watch to track sleep.

You need a constant environment in order for it to work. They take the trend assuming your ambient temp in your room remains safe.

During the day, you might step outside where it’s 90 degrees. Then go to your basement a few minutes later where it’s 65 degrees.

 

[t2jd1967]

Exactly this, very strange design change for the Ultra, looks like a complete oversight. Also my watch is constantly switching to lock mode, so I think they have changed something in the wrist detection algorithm.

It is really hard to understand how Apple manages to make the workout app less usable with a total redesign. The double start is a nuisance that probably only makes sense if you want to use some extra feature, but I just run and get on the bike virtually every day and this is something you should be able to disable. What is worse, is that the summary has gone. When I end a workout and cooldown the screen goes back to the start where you can select a workout again. The summary was a proper confirmation of completion including the stats. Dumbfounding, really, for Apple to get is so wrong.

 

[Godspeed8230]

The watch face selection on the Apple Watch is nothing short of embarrassing at this point. Apple is essentially making the same watch face over and over again and touting it as new because it has a new background or color scheme.

I honestly really don't see much of a difference in this update, pretty weak overall.

It’s honestly frustrating that, apart from the Photos watch face, there isn’t a single option on the regular Apple Watch with a centered digital time — that feature is reserved exclusively for the Ultra. Some of the existing watch faces are, frankly, objectively poor in design. It feels limiting and disappointing, to the point where I’m seriously considering switching to Garmin or another brand.

 

[t0rqx]

The watch face selection on the Apple Watch is nothing short of embarrassing at this point. Apple is essentially making the same watch face over and over again and touting it as new because it has a new background or color scheme.

I honestly really don't see much of a difference in this update, pretty weak overall.

At least its consistent with the release of Series 11. There is no 11, they basically selling the same Series 10 under a new 11 name.

 

[t0rqx]

It is really hard to understand how Apple manages to make the workout app less usable with a total redesign. The double start is a nuisance that probably only makes sense if you want to use some extra feature, but I just run and get on the bike virtually every day and this is something you should be able to disable. What is worse, is that the summary has gone. When I end a workout and cooldown the screen goes back to the start where you can select a workout again. The summary was a proper confirmation of completion including the stats. Dumbfounding, really, for Apple to get is so wrong.

It needs an S11 chip to summarise. Oh wait...

 

[ZoeLou]

I was going to ask if any of this has actually happened to you, but then I noticed that you have sold your AW for a Garmin, so let me ask you instead: what are you talking about?

Yeah series 7 didn't get the wrist flick, so they're hypothesizing at best.

 

[ZoeLou]

It is really hard to understand how Apple manages to make the workout app less usable with a total redesign. The double start is a nuisance that probably only makes sense if you want to use some extra feature, but I just run and get on the bike virtually every day and this is something you should be able to disable. What is worse, is that the summary has gone. When I end a workout and cooldown the screen goes back to the start where you can select a workout again. The summary was a proper confirmation of completion including the stats. Dumbfounding, really, for Apple to get is so wrong.

That's really odd. I've been using the beta for a while and always had a summary after a workout. I don't know if I've noticed since the RC. Will try it out today.

 

[DMG35]

At least its consistent with the release of Series 11. There is no 11, they basically selling the same Series 10 under a new 11 name.

Lol, very true.

 

[t2jd1967]

It needs an S11 chip to summarise. Oh wait...

Yeah, more like a $0.11 chip. I am not saying that Apple skimps on this kind of stuff ordinarily, but some of the choices are really hard to understand.

Edit: thought you wrote $11 instead of S11. Yeah, you're probably right.

 

[t2jd1967]

That's really odd. I've been using the beta for a while and always had a summary after a workout. I don't know if I've noticed since the RC. Will try it out today.

I have stopped running betas since Apple would not investigate my iPhone 6 with a clearly failing battery (cold weather would kill the battery) "because it was running beta and therefore I was not eligible for support". That said, the summary reappeared today. I am not hopeful that it stays that way, but will keep an eye out.