Apple Seeds Fourth WatchOS 2 Beta to Developers - MacRumors
Skip to Content

Apple Seeds Fourth WatchOS 2 Beta to Developers

by

Apple-Watch-Midnight-Blue-250x299Apple today seeded the fourth watchOS 2 beta to developers, build 13S5305d, just under two weeks after seeding the third watchOS 2 beta and more than a month 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 the first version of 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.

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.

Related Roundup: Apple Watch 11
Buyer's Guide: Apple Watch (Don't Buy)

Popular Stories

Apple Watch Ultra 2 Complications

What to Expect From Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4

Sunday July 26, 2026 8:07 am PDT by
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman has outlined what to expect from the Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4 this year. Spoiler alert: not very much. While it was rumored that Touch ID may be coming to the Apple Watch Series 12, Gurman said he does not expect the Series 12 or Ultra 4 to have any major design changes compared to the current Series 11 and Ultra 3 models. Touch ID probably counts ...
Read Full Article • 105 comments
Apple Watch Ultra 2 Complications

Apple Watch Rethink Could See Debut of Round Model, Screenless Fitness Tracker, and More

Sunday August 9, 2026 8:37 am PDT by
Apple is re-evaluating the Apple Watch lineup and considering a host of radical new designs, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. In today's edition of his "Power On" newsletter, Gurman compared plans for the Apple Watch's evolution to the "revolutionary design change" that the foldable iPhone represents. It will be "something that...
Read Full Article • 132 comments
Apple Watch series 2 ceramic

Ceramic Case Could Return With Apple Watch Series 12

Sunday August 9, 2026 9:21 am PDT by
Apple is planning to reintroduce its striking ceramic Apple Watch casing as soon as this year, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Writing in his "Power On" newsletter, Gurman explained that the ceramic case option is expected to return either this year or in 2027. Apple first introduced a ceramic Apple Watch Edition with the Series 2...
Read Full Article • 78 comments

Top Rated Comments

TimUSCA Avatar
TimUSCA
145 months ago
The activity complication is now colored on this watch face. It was B&W in Beta 3.

Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MrGimper Avatar
MrGimper
145 months ago
speaking of this, what combination did you use to get it to install... I can't get mine to go. currently sitting at 8 hours download time...
I updated my phone to 9 beta 4, and then checked for a watch OS update in the watch app and it found it, downloaded it and is now installing on the watch. I didn't install the profile again or anything. I'm shocked. I had put aside 7 hours to get it installed, and now i'll have to do housework n stuff :(
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
HarryT Avatar
HarryT
145 months ago
Ok so overall this beta is much faster. The animations are smoother and the app load times are slightly better (workout app loads a bit faster for sure).

Siri is a lot faster!!! Christ what a difference.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
GIZBUG Avatar
GIZBUG
145 months ago
I've been using Beta 4 since the afternoon and it seems to be definitely worse than Beta 3. Many times my screen won't turn on until a hard reset, and battery seems to be drained faster. I'll likely try to re-pair tomorrow.
If these issues are happening in Beta 4, seems like Apple has a long ways to go until they get this stable enough for public release / daily use.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
T
tumtumtum
145 months ago
This is the beta I've been waiting for. Beta 3 was a disaster for me. Random reboots, really slow animations and screen brightness was low.

Here's things I've noticed already:

[LIST=1]
* Apple Pay works.
* Animations are very smooth. Beta 3 was extremely slow.
* UI bug with customising a watch face while time travel is enabled fixed.
* Apps appear to load faster.
* Siri isn't as slow as Beta 3 but isn't as fast as watchOS1 or iOS9
* Wrist detection for turning the screen on now works when you're lying down.



Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TimUSCA Avatar
TimUSCA
145 months ago
Not sure how I feel about that.
I don't like it. I really liked the subtle colors in this watch face, but now this complication sticks out like a sore thumb. I'd like it if they offered two options. Also, the alarm, time, stopwatch, calendar, and sunrise complications all have orange in them too.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Read All Comments