Resolved watchOS 11 Timers not saving recently used? Solved - use Edit to pin to top

[rnb2]

On watchOS 10, your most recently used timers were kept in a group at the top. I settled on just keeping the 1, 3, 5, and 30-minute options, since I can create just about any interval by combining those, and so never have to scroll the list.

On watchOS 11, thus far, it's not saving any timers when they're used - I just get the whole list every time I start the app. Is this normal?

 

[rnb2]

Just in case anybody else encounters this, I think it was me not remembering how those timers got to the top of the interface after doing the update. If you click the Edit button at the bottom of the list, you can pin certain timers to the top, and this was probably also the case with watchOS 10, but since I didn't have an old watch to check against, I thought it was something that was created on the fly. In my defense, it had been a long time since I pinned the timers in watchOS 10, and the Edit button doesn't actually give any hints as to what it does.

Still, this was almost certainly my aging brain mis-remembering things.

Edit: thanks to @Curtterp for confirming that my original impression was correct: the group at the top used to auto-populate as timers were used, with no pinning needed.

 

[dburkhanaev]

On watchOS 10, your most recently used timers were kept in a group at the top. I settled on just keeping the 1, 3, 5, and 30-minute options, since I can create just about any interval by combining those, and so never have to scroll the list.

On watchOS 11, thus far, it's not saving any timers when they're used - I just get the whole list every time I start the app. Is this normal?

It's even worse for me. Timer keeps pausing before it is finished. Not because I paused it. An alert pauses it. Working in another app pauses it. And sometimes for no reason, it's just paused. On WatchOS 10 and below I could reliably set the timer on my watch for one hour and be faithfully alerted when it's time to clock back in from lunch; not anymore.

Apple watch is supposed to be my workplace helper, while my iPhone largely sits in the corner of my desk untouched. I find it useful get meaningful notifications from Teams and Outlook and messages on my watch during the day when my phone is not being touched.

If I can't keep the time working or keep the watch face from constantly flicking to Smart Stacks, then Apple Watch Series 9 will have to be my last Apple watch. iOS 18 is disappointing in the myriad ways that it misses the mark. I'd hate to think it's time to reconsider Android and Microsoft.

 

[Curtterp]

Just in case anybody else encounters this, I think it was me not remembering how those timers got to the top of the interface after doing the update. If you click the Edit button at the bottom of the list, you can pin certain timers to the top, and this was probably also the case with watchOS 10, but since I didn't have an old watch to check against, I thought it was something that was created on the fly. In my defense, it had been a long time since I pinned the timers in watchOS 10, and the Edit button doesn't actually give any hints as to what it does.

Still, this was almost certainly my aging brain mis-remembering things.

The used timers used to surface on their own as you used them prior to watchOS 11. Never had to pin them to the top.

Thanks for this post. I was starting to get frustrated, since I use timers when I wash clothes, I get the timer (based on how long it takes the washing machine to go through all the cycles) so it would remind me when a load of clothes was done. Since I have 4-5 loads to do on Sunday, I need to use the timers to keep it rolling so I am done.

I had to turn my current timer off to get the edit button, but then it was easy to figure out how to pin the two timers I use the most. Then I just activated the timer again (it was only 5 minutes into the cycle) to continue with my work today.

have a great day.

 

[rnb2]

The used timers used to surface on their own as you used them prior to watchOS 11. Never had to pin them to the top.

Thanks for this post. I was starting to get frustrated, since I use timers when I wash clothes, I get the timer (based on how long it takes the washing machine to go through all the cycles) so it would remind me when a load of clothes was done. Since I have 4-5 loads to do on Sunday, I need to use the timers to keep it rolling so I am done.

I had to turn my current timer off to get the edit button, but then it was easy to figure out how to pin the two timers I use the most. Then I just activated the timer again (it was only 5 minutes into the cycle) to continue with my work today.

have a great day.

Good to hear it wasn't just me - after I updated, I didn't have anything to compare it to, and when nobody confirmed that something had changed, I convinced myself that I had pinned my timers previously and just forgot. Glad my post helped you, and thanks for letting me know that I had it right in the first place.