Apple Watch: 15 Tips Every Owner Needs to Know

[MacRumors]

Apple Watch is now eleven generations in, and packed with useful features that are easy to miss at first glance. To help you get more out of your device, we've rounded up 15 practical tips you might not have discovered yet, including a few that long-time users often overlook.

Bounce Between Two Apps

On your Apple Watch, double-press the Digital Crown to see a deck of all currently open apps, and turn it to scroll through them. From this view, you can jump back to the last app you were using. Simply tap on an app screen to switch to it, or swipe left on its card and tap the red X button to quit it.

Switch App Views

If the app grid feels messy, switch to List View. Open the Watch app on iPhone, tap App View, and choose List View. From then on, pressing the Digital Crown will show your apps in a simple, scrollable list.

Rearrange Apps

You can rearrange your apps so that the ones you use most are closer to hand. Simply press and hold on any app in the grid view, then drag it where you want. Alternatively, open the Watch app on your iPhone, go to App View ➝ Arrangement, and move things around there instead.

Ping Your iPhone

If you've misplaced your iPhone but you're sure it's nearby, open Control Center with a press of the Side button, then tap the phone icon to make it ping. Press and hold that icon and the iPhone's camera flash will blink too, which can help if it's hidden under something.

Skip the Countdown

If you're eager to start a workout, the three-second countdown before it starts can be skipped. Just tap the screen when the countdown begins and your workout will start immediately. If you find yourself doing this regularly, consider turning on Precision Start in Settings ➝ Workout.

Customize Vibration Strength

If you keep missing notifications, go to Settings ➝ Sounds & Haptics ➝ and change from Default to Prominent. This adds an extra tap pattern before alerts so they're harder to ignore.

Perform Precision Timing

The Chronograph Pro watch face transforms into an actual chronograph. Tap the outer edge surrounding the main 12-hour dial on this watch face to record time on scales of 60, 30, 6, or 3 seconds. Alternatively, select the tachymeter timescale to measure speed based on time travel over a fixed distance.

Jump to the Top

If you've scrolled way down in an app and want to jump back to the top, just tap the time in the top corner of the screen. It works in most apps and saves a lot of scrolling.

Remove Apps

Clearing out apps you don't use on your Apple Watch is easy. In the List or Grid View, press and hold on the screen until the apps jiggle, then tap the small x in the corner of the app icon to delete it. This works for most system apps and all third-party apps.

Customize Control Center

By default, Control Center (accessed via the Side button) gives you quick access to things like Wi-Fi, battery, and Do Not Disturb. But it's worth seeing what else you can add to it that you'd like quick access to. Tap the Edit button at the bottom, then tap the + icon in the top-left corner of the screen. System options such as New Note and Lights are particularly handy, and you might see some third-party options listed too, depending on your installed apps.

Speak the Time Out Loud

If you're using the Mickey or Minnie watch face, tap on the character and they'll speak the time out loud. Just make sure your sound is turned on. In fact, you can also have Siri read the time on any watch face by tapping and holding with two fingers on the display. Again though, sound needs to be enabled.

Customize Smart Replies

Smart Replies are handy when you want to reply with just a few words. In the Watch app on iPhone, go to Messages and tap Default Replies to customise what shows up. Then when a message comes in, simply swipe down to pick one of your preset replies.

Pause Activity Rings

Feeling unwell but hoping to keep your streak intact? In the Activity app, select your rings to access the option to suspend them for the day, or set a pause that lasts until a chosen date up to 90 days ahead.

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Article Link: Apple Watch: 15 Tips Every Owner Needs to Know

 

[vertsix]

Also for athletes… turn on Reduce Motion in accessibility.

That way the animations are actually tolerable when you need to move between the interface while working out.

 

[r2shyyou]

i've had an Apple Watch for the past 7 or 8 years and only figured out the last one (accidentally) a couple of weeks ago 😅

 

[ab2c4]

I just wish notifications worked all the time. I would say for incoming text messages my watch only alerts me with sound and vibration alert about 1/3 of the time. VERY FRUSTRATING as I don't find out about text messages until much later when I happen to look at my watch or phone. Believe me I have gone through the settings many times. I'm probably better off doing away with the watch totally and just use my phone for alerts.

I like having a smart watch for a few things but it seems worthless for notifications.

Good info in articles like this, I'm sure it will help some people be aware of things they didn't know about.

 

[chrono1081]

Anyone know how to remove the workout countdown? There's nothing labeled "Precision Start" under Settings -> Workout.

 

[akb]

Here's my personal tip: Turn your phone off before you start a run if you don't want your AirPods and even your watch trying to play your podcasts from your phone that you've left at home.

 

[spartan1967]

Anyone know how to remove the workout countdown? There's nothing labeled "Precision Start" under Settings -> Workout.

It looks like this feature is only available on the Ultra models. This countdown infuriates me & I can't believe it is limited to this model. If I am wrong, I will dutifully apologize.

JC Apple! You think we are going to upgrade to the Ultra just to get this feature?? We can easily click the side bar or crown instead of the action button to get the same result. It's crap like this that really turns me off to upgrading anything that is Apple hardware.

 

[CLS9]

The "wrist flick" only works about half the time if I'm lucky.

 

[therunningman]

One other cool feature (it works on iPhone, too) is you can tell Siri to "restart my watch." Siri will confirm, and then the watch restarts. It beats the shut down and manual power back up (which, I admit, I sometimes forget to do; I'll shut down my watch with the intention of powering it back up, but then I get distracted with other things and then remember to power it back up 15 minutes later 😛).

 

[antcor]

What tips do you have for cruisers? My Ultra 3 never records my sleep correctly even when I adjust sleep times and activate sleep mode. My respiratory rate is always out of whack too.

 

[Saturn1217]

I feel like the watch needs a master silent switch. I don’t want a focus mode that alters other things and is synced with my phone. I just want a way to unambiguously mute JUST my watch. There are certain times when I cannot handle constant notifications on my wrist but all the different ways to “silence” the Apple Watch require way too much cognitive load. A simple “silent” button would be really nice. Again something that isn’t synced to iCloud and has all these exceptions I need to worry about. Just for my watch a manual, I need to quickly not have my wrist buzz button is what I want.

 

[ipedro]

On your Apple Watch, double-press the Digital Crown to see a deck of all currently open apps, and turn it to scroll through them. From this view, you can jump back to the last app you were using. Simply tap on an app screen to switch to it, or swipe left on its card and tap the red X button to quit it.

I can’t believe this misunderstanding has persisted for almost 20 years and then you see tech writers propagating the incorrect information which explains the widespread error.

These are not open apps. They’re recent apps. This is an App Switcher (no longer called the Dock”) and it shows, and I quote Apple “recently used apps”.

The App Switcher is a visual history of recently used apps, not a task manager of active processes.

iOS and certainly watchOS with its very limited memory and battery do not run multiple apps at once, they run background processes which are limited in scope and in time. When the process ends, no part of the app is running when out of view. You do not need to “close” them because they’re not “open”.

 

[abowlby]

When I am running and want to scroll through the different information screens, meaning go from the default screen to the one with the cardio zones on it, why does the watch (Ultra) often "freeze?"

I have tried tapping to "wake," I have tried scrolling the crown to wake...clicking the crown dumps you out of exercise view entirely...am I doing something wrong? It's a royal PITA when out on a technical trail and trying to accomplish Zone 2 for distance tracking.

Anyone know?

 

[McScooby]

I feel like the watch needs a master silent switch. I don’t want a focus mode that alters other things and is synced with my phone. I just want a way to unambiguously mute JUST my watch. There are certain times when I cannot handle constant notifications on my wrist but all the different ways to “silence” the Apple Watch require way too much cognitive load. A simple “silent” button would be really nice. Again something that isn’t synced to iCloud and has all these exceptions I need to worry about. Just for my watch a manual, I need to quickly not have my wrist buzz button is what I want.

Is that not just the Apple Intelligence mode in focus & turn off sync 'share across devices' in settings-focus on the phone - it nukes the watch without changing the phone/Mac? & for good measure turn on theatre mode also.

 

[Nekronos]

I can’t believe this misunderstanding has persisted for almost 20 years and then you see tech writers propagating the incorrect information which explains the widespread error.

These are not open apps. They’re recent apps. This is an App Switcher (no longer called the Dock”) and it shows, and I quote Apple “recently used apps”.

The App Switcher is a visual history of recently used apps, not a task manager of active processes.

iOS and certainly watchOS with its very limited memory and battery do not run multiple apps at once, they run background processes which are limited in scope and in time. When the process ends, no part of the app is running when out of view. You do not need to “close” them because they’re not “open”.

That isn't really accurate either, apps in the app switcher that are not "active" are in a suspended state which allow you to resume where you left off and can run background processes if enabled. If you close out the app from the app switcher, it will not run background processes.

 

[AusMness]

i've had an Apple Watch for the past 7 or 8 years and only figured out the last one (accidentally) a couple of weeks ago 😅

Tbf, it's a watchOS 11 feature so it's only been around for a year and a half

 

[ipedro]

That isn't really accurate either, apps in the app switcher that are not "active" are in a suspended state which allow you to resume where you left off and can run background processes if enabled. If you close out the app from the app switcher, it will not run background processes.

They're not open, they're not active. A suspended state is inherently "not running". Background processes are temporary and the app itself isn't running nor allowed to run when not on screen.
The App Switcher can be used to terminate background processes if there are any. The point remains: these are not "open apps", the general public might not understand this but a tech writer should know better than to propagate the misunderstanding of how the App Switcher works or what it is.

 

[robprins]

I always love these articles, a helpful reminder to features I forget over time 🙂

 

[Nekronos]

They're not open, they're not active. A suspended state is inherently "not running". Background processes are temporary and the app itself isn't running nor allowed to run when not on screen.
The App Switcher can be used to terminate background processes if there are any. The point remains: these are not "open apps", the general public might not understand this but a tech writer should know better than to propagate the misunderstanding of how the App Switcher works or what it is.

They can run for a short while and in cases such as maps or workout are in fact actively running. Apps in the app switcher are recently used apps that may or may not all be in a suspended state - apps in a suspended state can run background processes - that's not temporary its ongoing as it deems necessary.

So saying they are not open apps is still not entirely accurate. Also, Apple's own iphone user guide on its support site: "You can quickly switch from one open app to another on your iPhone. When you switch back, you can pick up right where you left off." Now it doesn't explicitly say "open" on the watch guide but it doesn't say in context of the app switcher: "Note: Apps that are currently running a session—a Maps navigation session or a Workout session, for example—appear at the top of the list of apps."

I wouldn't call the folks here tech writers and in this day and age, much of the "writing" is copy and paste, or AI assisted re-writes.

 

[t0rqx]

The "wrist flick" only works about half the time if I'm lucky.

You’re probably flicking your wrist wrong.

 

[ipedro]

They can run for a short while and in cases such as maps or workout are in fact actively running. Apps in the app switcher are recently used apps that may or may not all be in a suspended state - apps in a suspended state can run background processes - that's not temporary its ongoing as it deems necessary.

So saying they are not open apps is still not entirely accurate. Also, Apple's own iphone user guide on its support site: "You can quickly switch from one open app to another on your iPhone. When you switch back, you can pick up right where you left off." Now it doesn't explicitly say "open" on the watch guide but it doesn't say in context of the app switcher: "Note: Apps that are currently running a session—a Maps navigation session or a Workout session, for example—appear at the top of the list of apps."

I wouldn't call the folks here tech writers and in this day and age, much of the "writing" is copy and paste, or AI assisted re-writes.

One last time: these apps are not running. Limited background processes, from a very specific allowed set can run temporarily (push notifications, scheduled background refresh) or extended if explicitly called on by the user (audio playback, maps) but the app itself isn't running. It's important to understand the distinction: an app has its own logic and UI but it runs on Apple's own APIs when what you think is the app is running is the OS running background processes for the app. Those APIs can be called on to run extended background Operating System resources like continuing a stream or tracking a user on a map.

When an app is switched away from, it gets a few seconds at most to clean up and hand off any open processes but the app is near immediately snapshotted and suspended.

developer.apple.com​

watchOS in particular is very aggressive in taking back resources from the app that was switched away from to the current on screen app. iOS is a little more lenient, only taking back memory and processing resources as it needs it because iPhones have much larger batteries, processors and memory. iPad does let multiple apps run at once since multiple apps can be on screen simultaneously.

Steve Jobs talked about this on stage. Apple did such a good job of creating the illusion of multi tasking that to this day, almost 20 years later people still get this wrong and I still see people on the bus swiping away apps, not knowing that they're making it worse by eliminating app screenshots, using up resources to boot the app back up later from scratch.

 

[Nekronos]

One last time: these apps are not running. Limited background processes, from a very specific allowed set can run temporarily (push notifications, scheduled background refresh) or extended if explicitly called on by the user (audio playback, maps) but the app itself isn't running. It's important to understand the distinction: an app has its own logic and UI but it runs on Apple's own APIs when what you think is the app is running is the OS running background processes for the app. Those APIs can be called on to run extended background Operating System resources like continuing a stream or tracking a user on a map.

When an app is switched away from, it gets a few seconds at most to clean up and hand off any open processes but the app is near immediately snapshotted and suspended.

View attachment 2630148

developer.apple.com​

watchOS in particular is very aggressive in taking back resources from the app that was switched away from to the current on screen app. iOS is a little more lenient, only taking back memory and processing resources as it needs it because iPhones have much larger batteries, processors and memory. iPad does let multiple apps run at once since multiple apps can be on screen simultaneously.

Steve Jobs talked about this on stage. Apple did such a good job of creating the illusion of multi tasking that to this day, almost 20 years later people still get this wrong and I still see people on the bus swiping away apps, not knowing that they're making it worse by eliminating app screenshots, using up resources to boot the app back up later from scratch.

I don't know what you are basing your response off of but Apple's own user guides seem to paint a different picture than you.

Tell me, if workouts and music are running simultaneously and a third app is pulled up - are you going to really claim they aren't running? I feel you may be a bit pedantic here or getting into semantics.

Let's assume you are correct, to the average person, if the "OS" is running processes for the app, for simplicity sake, the app is effectively running and again, assuming you are correct perhaps that is why Apple's own guides present it as such.

 

[Hillstones]

I sold my Watch 5. Stopped wearing it, especially with working from home. After 10 years, the Watch still requires daily charging. After all these years, why hasn't Apple improved battery life? The $800 Ultra is not the answer. Most developers abandoned the watch. Doing anything on the watch felt tedious, and much easier to do on the phone with the larger display. So it became a redundant extension of the phone. Even now, Apple only advertises it as a fitness device, and the fitness apps are very well done, but still not worth it. The progression of the watch is pretty much stagnant. Not much improvement or change between the Watch 6 to the 11. So, I'll never buy another one.

 

[JM]

Precision start is only for Ultra.

*looks like someone already mentioned this above

 

[I7guy]

Love my AW S10. Have a few classic watches that sit in the safe and only get used for formal events. Otherwise my AW is my digital companion, and I want an ultra.

Looking forward to more health related metrics.

As far as the tips, good article but I knew about them.