Apple Releases watchOS 26.1 With Bug Fixes

[MacRumors]

Apple today released watchOS 26.1, an update to the watchOS 26 operating system that came out in September. watchOS 26.1 comes a month and a half after Apple launched watchOS 26.

watchOS 26.1 can be downloaded for free on an iPhone running iOS 26.1 by opening up the Apple Watch app and going to General > Software Update, or initiating an update in the Settings app on the watch. To install the new software, the Apple Watch needs to have at least 50 percent battery and it needs to be placed on a charger.

No new features were discovered in watchOS 26.1 during the beta testing process, and Apple's release notes say the update includes unspecified "improvements and bug fixes."

Article Link: Apple Releases watchOS 26.1 With Bug Fixes

 

[jz0309]

1.4GB on my Ultra 2 ... download int watch now while iPhone is in upgrade mode ... in other words, initiated the download on the watch while iPhone is in "boot mode, or install mode" and thus not connected to anything, much faster than using the method mentioned in the article.

 

[ATmahe]

1.4GB on my Ultra 2 ... download int watch now while iPhone is in upgrade mode ... in other words, initiated the download on the watch while iPhone is in "boot mode, or install mode" and thus not connected to anything, much faster than using the method mentioned in the article.

yep, I also disconnect my watch(es) from the iPhone (turning off Bluetooth) before starting the update.

 

[RA1N1]

My god, 1 hour+ for my watch to update, servers are getting hammered, looks like everyone is fed up with 26.0.2 🤣

 

[Fortimir]

I hope this dramatically improves battery life and fixes texts showing only replies and showing them out of order. 26.0 absolutely decimated my series 9.

 

[jz0309]

My god, 1 hour+ for my watch to update, servers are getting hammered, looks like everyone is fed up with 26.0.2 🤣

see my post above, took just over 5 min to download

 

[BigMcGuire]

see my post above, took just over 5 min to download

WOW. This actually works. Went from a 6 hour download time (even after 20 mins) to ... instantly showing 7 mins left.

Thank you.

 

[RA1N1]

see my post above, took just over 5 min to download

Ya, I guess found it funny and ridiculous how long it takes for the watch to update the normal why.

 

[BigMcGuire]

Ya, I guess found it funny and ridiculous how long it takes for the watch to update the normal why.

Amazing to me Apple would be ok with showing 1-6 hours via bluetooth for an update of this size and not default it to Wifi. lol. That is crazy. Dropped from 6 hours to 7 mins for me, LOL.

 

[RA1N1]

Amazing to me Apple would be ok with showing 1-6 hours via bluetooth for an update of this size and not default it to Wifi. lol. That is crazy. Dropped from 6 hours to 7 mins for me, LOL.

Boy, is a mind-boggling how apple thinks!

 

[jz0309]

Amazing to me Apple would be ok with showing 1-6 hours via bluetooth for an update of this size and not default it to Wifi. lol. That is crazy. Dropped from 6 hours to 7 mins for me, LOL.

yea, they haven't touched the AW OS upgrades since 1.0

 

[verdi1987]

yea, they haven't touched the AW OS upgrades since 1.0

About a year ago I remember thinking, “Surely, they must have changed software updates to default to Wi-Fi by now.” Nope.

 

[stars_fan]

My god, 1 hour+ for my watch to update, servers are getting hammered, looks like everyone is fed up with 26.0.2 🤣

That’s not how that works

 

[ctg7w6]

Now not all my calendar events are showing up. They’re there on other devices. But on one of my calendars only half the events show up on the watch. What gives?

 

[verdi1987]

Now not all my calendar events are showing up. They’re there on other devices. But on one of my calendars only half the events show up on the watch. What gives?

Did you try the Reset Sync Data setting in the Watch app?

 

[svish]

Will be updating my Series 10 soon. Sometimes screenshots taken on watch fail to appear in Photos in the iPhone. Hopefully this update fixes the problem.

 

[indefinite]

The Liquid Glass buttons on every app are much easier to interact with in the new update.

 

[Octavius8]

This fixes something?.
The lagging issue in control center is fixed?.
Battery life improved?

 

[Aggedor]

I hope this dramatically improves battery life and fixes texts showing only replies and showing them out of order. 26.0 absolutely decimated my series 9.

Yes! Battery life on my series 9 is absolutely awful on 26. It makes the watch almost useless, as it'll run out of juice by mid-evening, when I am often still out at work.

 

[RA1N1]

This fixes something?.
The lagging issue in control center is fixed?.
Battery life improved?

No, not exactly — I’m still encountering consistent latency issues on CC along with intermittent UI anomalies. The only noticeable improvement has been in the battery performance of my AWU3, though it’s unclear whether that’s device-specific or more broadly applicable.

 

[ELman]

Apple must be trying to set a record for the longest update time of a .1 release. My series 11 took at least 1.5 hrs between downloading, preparing,verifying, and installing.

 

[ELman]

Yes! Battery life on my series 9 is absolutely awful on 26. It makes the watch almost useless, as it'll run out of juice by mid-evening, when I am often still out at work.

I was having the same issue. Do you happen to have cellular enabled on yours? It got better once that was turned off. I also had an issue where the watch was connected to my phone but wasn't syncing properly.

 

[DB2k]

anyone know if it fixes the music pausing for announcements during workouts? such a pita

 

[ignatius345]

1.4GB on my Ultra 2 ... download int watch now while iPhone is in upgrade mode ... in other words, initiated the download on the watch while iPhone is in "boot mode, or install mode" and thus not connected to anything, much faster than using the method mentioned in the article.

How do you put a phone into “boot mode or install mode”?

 

[jz0309]

How do you put a phone into “boot mode or install mode”?

When the Apple logo shows during the upgrade, which takes several minutes, that’s what I was referring to.
You can also just turn BT off on the phone and then start the update on the watch