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Your Apple Watch is about to feel (and look) a lot fresher. Apple just gave us a sneak peek at its latest software update, WatchOS 26, during the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in Cupertino. The first surprise came from the name, which was slated to be WatchOS 12 based on chronological order, but Apple decided to blanket all of its updates with the number 26 (2026) to unify the experience from iOS, MacOS, iPadOS and VisionOS. In addition to the name change, the update brings a redesigned interface, smarter fitness tracking, and more unexpected announcements. Here's everything coming to your wrist this fall.
WatchOS 26 has an updated UI that incorporates design elements from VisionOS.
ScreenshotDesign and interface
The Apple Watch is getting a fresh coat of paint that with Apple's new UI interface called "Liquid glass" which is based off the look and feel of the Vision Pro. This new design features translucent elements that meld into the shape of the watch with more circular icons that adapt dynamically. to the content and context.
Redesigned rounded icons on WatchOS 26.
Apple ScreenshotFitness features
Workout buddy has entered the chat. Apple's new Apple Intelligence powered fitness coach will feed you live data to enhance your workouts and take action as you go. It simultaneously gathers workout data, paces, miles logged, activity rings close, and training load to identify meaningful insights and suggest changes. This includes giving you a pep talk as you start a run, or telling you when you've reached certain milestones as you go or even nudging you to speed up to reach your goals. The workout buddy voice can also be customized to match one of the Fitness+ trainers and will only come to certain workouts like running.
The Apple Watch has a new AI powered "Workout Buddy" that uses your personal metrics to give you insights live as you go.
Apple ScreenshotSmartstack
The smartstacks from your front page are about to get smarter, with better recommendations that help prioritize information for you to see at a glance. This includes predicting actions that will be useful to you based on your trends, like floating a weight training workout widget when it detects you've entered the gym. It can also float a hint to start the 'backtrack' feature when you've gone off the grid.
The smarter features extend beyond just smartstack and can also be used to interpret your environment and adjust things like alert volume according to ambient noise around you.
New flick gesture
The Apple Watch is getting more gesture control with a flick gesture that can be used to do things hands-free like mute a call, or snooze an alarm. This is in addition to the existing double tap gesture that you can use for navigation control.
Other features
With WatchOS 26 the Apple Watch will also support live translations on your similar to what we'll get on the iPhone. Another iPhone feature coming to the watch is the Notes app. You'll now be able to access all your notes or create new ones directly from your wrist.
The developer beta of WatchOS 12 is available starting today, with a public beta expected to roll out mid July [TK???]. The official release will land later this fall alongside the next Apple Watch and iPhone after Apple's September launch event (which still hasn't been announced). In the meantime, be sure to check out all our WWDC coverage, including everything new coming to the iPhone with iOS [TK], as well as updates for the Mac, iPad, and Vision Pro.
This is a developing story.
Watch this: WatchOS 12 Wishlist: Top features we want on the Apple Watch
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