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Apple Releases watchOS 9.1 With Battery Life Improvements and Matter Integration

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Apple today released watchOS 9.1, the first major update to the watchOS 9 operating system that came out in September. watchOS 9.1 has gone through several rounds of beta testing, and it accompanies the macOS Ventura launch, and the debut of iOS 16.1 and iPadOS 16.1.

watchOS-9-Feature.jpg

watchOS 9.1 can be downloaded for free through the Apple Watch app on the iPhone by opening it up and going to General > Software Update. To install the new software, the Apple Watch needs to have at least 50 percent battery, it needs to be placed on a charger, and it needs to be in range of the ‌‌‌‌iPhone‌‌‌‌.

Today's update introduces an extended battery life option when using Outdoor Walking, Running, and Hiking Workouts. You can opt to reduce the frequency of heart rate and GPS readings if you have an Apple Watch Ultra, a second-generation Apple Watch SE, or an Apple Watch Series 8.

Music can now download on the Apple Watch using WiFi or Cellular when it is off the charger, and the update adds support for the Matter smart home connectivity standard. Apple's full release notes for the update are below:
This update includes improvements for your Apple Watch.

- Battery life extended during Outdoor Walking, Running, and Hiking Workouts with the ability to reduce the frequency of heart rate and GPS readings on Apple Watch Series 8, Apple Watch SE (2nd generation) and Apple Watch Ultra
- Music can download while Apple Watch is off charger using Wi-Fi or cellular
- Matter, the new smart home connectivity standard, is supported enabling a wide variety of smart home accessories to work together across ecosystems

This update also includes bug fixes for your Apple Watch.
Click to expand...
More information on the new features that Apple added with the watchOS 9 update can be found in our watchOS 9 roundup.

Article Link: Apple Releases watchOS 9.1 With Battery Life Improvements and Matter Integration
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2022/10/24/apple-releases-watchos-9-1/
The headline says “battery life improvements,” but does that just refer to the workout related battery life savings for the 2022 watches? Or is there some more general battery life improvement? because my S6 sucks since watch os9.
 
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So Matter is Home integration type things? The only other home integration I have is the homepod but I guess it doesn't impact me that much. I was wondering what it was.
 
Looks like the verbiage that accompanies this update does not mention anything about the two points I'm looking forward to;
- track detection feature (for running on athletic tracks in the U.S.), and
- international roaming

I wonder if this means that we should be expecting another somewhat major WatchOS 9 update before the end of the year. (Please say yes! LOL. I'm really looking forward to both features.)
 
QCassidy352 said:
The headline says “battery life improvements,” but does that just refer to the workout related battery life savings for the 2022 watches? Or is there some more general battery life improvement? because my S6 sucks since watch os9.
Click to expand...
I had the same with my S6. Went to the Apple Store to pay them to fit a new battery. They wouldn’t do that as it was above 80% but they told me to reset it and setup as new. I really didn’t want to do that but it worked. Before I didn’t have all day life and now I do.
 
BruiserBear said:
I cannot believe they are keeping the battery saving updates from my Series 7 watch I just bought months ago. This is one of the most ridiculous things I’ve seen this company do in a long time. There is no excuse for this.
Click to expand...
I have WatchOS 9.1 installed on my Ultra and I don't see this "Lower Power Mode" other than what had already existed in the previous iteration of WatchOS 9.x

[update] I found it. It is located under Settings > Workout on the Watch. There's an option there to turn on low power mode and another option for turning on track fewer GPS and heart rate during certain workouts. I'm not sure that's the best place for this. That setting in place sets it globally for Workout, but what about if you wanted to do it on an individual basis (per workout basis)?
 
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I love these "Let's update and mingle" parties that apple Hosts. Everyone gets the update at the same time and new watch OS is released to everyone..
 
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It finally completed and I got another stand hour in. I still stand by what I said earlier, but if I were to give one suggestion on how to update the watch (other than having rest days or banking move calories for other days or specifically opting out of the monthly challenges) it's make software updates easier and allow us to wear the watch while the update process is happening.
 
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caro0911 said:
Now I have the option to enable / disable dataroaming in the tab cellular
Click to expand...
NICE! I wonder if that works internationally.

Not including the latest current WatchOS update, all previous versions, as I understand, do no enable international roaming. For example, once I'm outside of US territory (e.g., in Canada), my Watch cellular will not work even if my home carrier has international agreements with the local cell carrier.

Does WatchOS 9.1 now include international roaming?
 
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