"Hey Siri" support and possibly wireless charging case alongside AirPower charging mat.
Apple Seeds Second WatchOS 2 Beta to Developers
Apple today seeded the second watchOS 2 beta to developers, just over two weeks after announcing the new operating system update at its Worldwide Developers Conference.
watchOS 2 requires iOS 9 and can be downloaded over-the-air through the Apple Watch app on the iPhone by going to General --> Software Update.
watchOS 2 is the first major update to watchOS, the software that runs on the Apple Watch. The new software brings many new features that Apple Watch developers can take advantage of, including native apps that run on the Apple Watch itself instead of the iPhone.
It also allows developers to access the Taptic Engine and a number of other sensors in the Apple Watch, including the heart rate monitor, the microphone, and the accelerometer.
Along with these features for developers, which will lead to much more complex and full-featured third-party Apple Watch apps, the update introduces new watch faces (photo albums and time-lapse), third-party Complications, Time Travel for viewing upcoming events in a watch face Complication, and a Nightstand mode that's activated when the watch is charging, displaying the time.
New communication features include the ability to add more than 12 friends to your friends list and the ability to create sketches in multiple colors. Mail's also being updated, making it possible to reply to Mail messages using dictation, and FaceTime Audio support is included.
watchOS 2 is currently only available to registered developers who have also installed iOS 9 on their iPhones. Apple plans to release the software to the public in the fall.
Update: Apple has temporarily pulled watchOS 2 beta 2.
Update 2 6:30 p.m.: watchOS 2 beta 2 is available for download again.
Related Roundups: Apple Watch, watchOS 5
Tag: watchOS 2
Buyer's Guide: Apple Watch (Buy Now)
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44 months ago
Does anyone know if the heart rate monitor is going to be returned to it's original function? This watch is useless as an activity tracker at this point. Just wondering if anyone using the 2.0 Beta has tested this out.
44 months ago
Trust me when I tell you that none of this beta process has been fun so far, especially iOS 9. Worst beta 1 release I've seen since iPhone OS 3.0 beta.
Sorry to hear about your experience but the consensus is that you're wrong. Plus iOS 7 beta all of the were almost unusable not to mentioned how bad the final release was.
44 months ago
SMS IS BACK :D!
oh and everything seems snappier. Animations, app loads, everything. So far i lost taptic feedback once and it was where i was losing it before when choosing the motion watchface and then forcetouching to choose a different face from the motion face was causing me to lose taptic; it did when i first installed but i restarted and have tried several times since, all good.
Siri was causing taptic feedback loss too and so far so good there as well.
Bugs still notice Notifications are still weird some scroll some show up some dont scroll some are empty; but thats on the release notes---not noticing much not on the new notes.
edit: just lost taptic when choosing timelapse watch face and then forcetouching to choose another one.-----Bug submitted
Switching directly between the motion watch-face and the time-lapse watch-face causes a whole bunch of issues--taptic feedback loss + UI freeze for a good 15-25 seconds, worse if a notification comes in during.--Bug submitted
oh and everything seems snappier. Animations, app loads, everything. So far i lost taptic feedback once and it was where i was losing it before when choosing the motion watchface and then forcetouching to choose a different face from the motion face was causing me to lose taptic; it did when i first installed but i restarted and have tried several times since, all good.
Siri was causing taptic feedback loss too and so far so good there as well.
Bugs still notice Notifications are still weird some scroll some show up some dont scroll some are empty; but thats on the release notes---not noticing much not on the new notes.
edit: just lost taptic when choosing timelapse watch face and then forcetouching to choose another one.-----Bug submitted
Switching directly between the motion watch-face and the time-lapse watch-face causes a whole bunch of issues--taptic feedback loss + UI freeze for a good 15-25 seconds, worse if a notification comes in during.--Bug submitted
44 months ago
I'm at my wits end!
I've tried to install it like 4 times now... (after fresh restarts). Each time it has me put in my passcode, works for a little while, then says "unable to verify update because you are not connected to the Internet".
Wtf????????
44 months ago
Downloaded but unable to verify when clicking install in the watch app here
Dave
Dave
44 months ago
I just got the OTA update in my "Watch" App, for beta 2. It hasn't been there all day, but just checked and there it was!
Seconded, Thanks!
I've had the "Cannot Verify" error all day. I just checked again and it's downloading a new version of the beta.
44 months ago
Beta 2 will play video from, for example, a conversation in messages. I don't recall this being possible on WatchOS 1 or WatchOS 2 Beta 1. Can anyone confirm that this is a new Beta2 addition?
Been there all along
44 months ago
The OTA was pulled because it was released to everyone, not just developers.
Looks like we may get that downgrade option soon after all...[ Read All Comments ]
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