What’s new with apple watch
Wrist–friendly features
wHILE PUBLIC BETAS of macOS 10.15, iOS 13, iPadOS 13, and tvOS 13 are expected in July, watchOS 6 will be limited to registered developers until its release alongside the mobile OSes in the autumn. Like the other upgrades, it’s free of charge, and like watchOS 5 it’ll run on any Apple Watch except for the very first model.
This year’s release continues the trend of making the Watch less dependent on the iPhone. It already has its own GPS and Wi-Fi, plus optional 3G/4G. Until now, however, the only way to install apps on the Watch was through the Watch app on your iPhone; the app would then appear on both devices. In
future, you’ll be able to browse the App Store on the Watch, search it via Scribble handwriting recognition or Dictation, or just tell Siri what you want. Not all apps will need an iPhone companion.
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watchOS also gains the ability to stream audio without your iPhone’s help, which will be available to apps through a developer API. Apple’s own new Audiobooks app will sync your Apple Books from the cloud, so you can play them through your favorite Bluetooth headphones. And Shazam (which Apple acquired and integrated into iOS last year) is now available to Siri on the Watch, so you can ask what song is playing and get the details on your wrist.
The Health app offers more insight into trends over time, although you’ll need your iPhone for the full benefit. New built–in Watch apps include the potentially very handy Voice Memos as well as Calculator, Cycle Tracking and Noise (see right). To keep constant track of sound level, among other data, you can add it as a complication to your favorite Watch face: there are more of these to choose from, but still only from Apple. An option to buzz your wrist on the hour, every hour, is at least discreet, unlike the alternative — demonstrated by Kevin Lynch (Apple’s Vice President of Technology) — of emitting a coworker-enraging chirp.