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Last week Apple started selling its Apple Watch Series 4, with a larger screen and new health and safety features.
Apple also last week released Watch OS 5, the latest version of the operating system for Apple Watches. If you have an Apple Watch Series 1, 2 or 3, you should update your Watch to Watch OS 5 in order to get the new features. If you own the original Apple Watch, you may be disappointed to learn that your Watch is not able to update to Watch OS 5.
Watch OS 5 is filled with fun and useful features to make your existing Apple Watch feel like a new one. Note that you must have updated your phone to iOS 12 to update your Watch to Watch OS 5.
Not sure which model Apple Watch you have? Check the Apple Watch support page to find out.
New Watch Faces
Watch OS 5 comes with some fun new watch faces you may want to try. The Breathe app, that lets you practice controlled breathing to calm yourself, has new watch faces.
The Breathe watch faces come in three designs, Classic, Calm, and Focus. and can remind you to pause your day and do deep breathing. The tranquil rhythm of the Breathe animation can help you focus your breathing and relax your mind.
Fire, Water and Vapor are three new animated watch faces to give your Watch a new look. The Liquid Metal face is mesmerizing and comes in silver, gold, black or a combination of all three colors.
The Photos watch face now can show Memories, a curated selection of special photos from the Photos app on your iPhone.
Note that the Infographic watch face announced by Apple at its event earlier this month is only available on the Apple Watch Series 4.
Improved Siri Watch Face
The Siri watch face has been improved and can show more information such as sports scores, maps, directions, third-party app shortcuts and more.
Siri Raise to Talk
With Watch OS 5, you no longer have to say “Hey, Siri” to summon her. Instead you can raise your Watch to your face and start speaking.
Walkie-Talkie
If you’re a fan of Dick Tracy, you’ll love the new walkie-talkie feature of Watch OS 5. Like a traditional walkie-talkie, the Apple Watch can connect to other Apple Watches . Push to talk to others Watch-to-Watch in range, even if you’re not connected to the Internet.
Some watch faces have Walkie-Talkie as a complication so you can access it easily.
Workout Competitions
Challenge your friends to a 7-day workout competition to see who can get the most activity points. Get updates throughout the week showing who is ahead. The winner gets a special award.
Automatic Workout Detection
Have you ever started exercising, but forgot to start a Workout on your Apple Watch? Now with Watch OS 5, that frustration disappears.
Your Watch will know when you start and stop exercising and suggest that you start and stop a Workout. You even get retroactive credit for the exercise you did before you were reminded to turn on Workout.
Automatic Workout Detection works with Outdoor Run, Indoor Run, Outdoor Walk, Indoor Walk, Elliptical, Rower, Pool Swim, and Open Water Swim.
You’ll also get a reminder to stop a workout if the Watch detects inactivity while a Workout is active.
Heart Rate Measurement Improvements
Watch OS 5 gives more information about your heart rate. Now you can view your heart’s resting rate, walking average, and recovery rate over time.
=> Don’t miss 7 Ways to Monitor Your Heart Rate Using Apple Watch
You can also have your Watch notify you if your heart rate drops below 40 beats per minute for more than 10 minutes.
Viewing Websites on Your Watch
Previously, when a notification on your Watch had a link you had to go to your phone to open the link. Now the Watch can open websites from a link in Notifications or sent to you in a Message.
Reading a website on your Watch may be a bit of a challenge, but you can at least see what website is being linked.
Re-Arrange Control Center
Swipe up from the bottom of your Watch screen to open Control Center, a handy hub that lets you perform functions easily. Ping your phone, turn on Do Not Disturb, check your battery level and more.
As the number of functions in Control Center has grown, the icons no longer fit on one screen. You may find yourself scrolling to find your favorite function.
Now you can scroll to the bottom of Control Center and find an Edit button that lets you re-arrange the functions so you can put your favorite ones at the top of the screen (for me that’s pinging my iPhone).
Tap the Edit button to make the icons shake, similar to the icons on an iPhone when you want to move them. Drag and drop them to where you want them to be, then tap Done.
Podcasts
Podcasts can now be downloaded onto the Apple Watch so you don’t need your phone nearby to listen to the latest episodes. Subscribe to podcasts on the Apple Podcasts app on your iPhone, then have the latest episodes download onto your Watch.
You can listen to podcasts directly from your Apple Watch using Bluetooth headphones.
Watch faces now offer a Podcast complication so you can access podcasts easily.
FaceTime Video Calls
No, you can’t make or receive FaceTime video calls on your Watch (yet), but you can answer FaceTime video calls as audio calls on your Watch. Previously you had to use your iPhone, iPad or Mac computer to answer FaceTime video calls.
Your Thoughts
Which new features of Watch OS 5 are the most exciting to you? Have you tried any of the new watch faces? Are you reading this article on your Apple Watch?
Hi Carolyn,
It is good to know about these features. This new Apple watch seems to have got some cool features. I like the one where you can click the link of website sent to you. That is cool.
Thanks for sharing, have a good day. 🙂
Hi Sajid, Yes, this is a very cool feature. When you see a link on your Watch now, you no longer to grab your phone to see where the link leads. You probably won’t read an entire web page from your Watch, but at least you can see where the link goes.
I hope you enjoy these Apple Watch updates, Sajid.
I won’t lie, I still don’t understand why people want these Apple watches at all. What do the people who have them even use them for? Even if I was given one for free I wouldn’t even know what to do with it. It seems like the screen is too small for like 99% of the things I use my phone for, but maybe I’m wrong?
Hi Dustin, Great comment, you’re right, if you think of the Apple Watch as a replacement for your iPhone you will be disappointed. But it’s a different device than your phone.
The Watch can notify you of text messages, phone calls and notifications. It can also be an activity tracker, smart home controller, heart rate monitor, and much more.
The Apple Watch isn’t for everyone, but many people are fans. If you see someone wearing an Apple Watch, you may want to ask them what they like about it.