Apple Seeds Fifth WatchOS 2 Beta to Developers

Apple-Watch-Midnight-Blue-250x299Apple today seeded the fifth watchOS 2 beta to developers for testing purposes, more than two weeks after seeding the fourth watchOS 2 beta and nearly two months after announcing the new operating system update at its 2015 Worldwide Developers Conference.

watchOS 2 requires the iOS 9 beta to be installed and can be downloaded over-the-air using the Apple Watch app on the iPhone by going to General --> Software Update. Caution should be used when installing this beta, as downgrading the software on the Apple Watch is not possible without help from Apple [PDF].

watchOS 2 is the first major update to watchOS, the software that runs on the Apple Watch. watchOS 2 introduces several new features that developers can use to improve their Apple Watch apps, including native apps that run on the watch itself instead of the iPhone. The software also allows developers to access the Taptic Engine and other sensors like the heart rate monitor, the microphone, and the accelerometer for the first time.

With the new tools for developers, Apple Watch apps will be more complex and full-featured. Other features in watchOS 2 include new watch faces (photo albums and time-lapse), third-party Complications, Time Travel, 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.

What's new in beta 5:

Previous watchOS 2 betas haven't added many new features, but there are several new additions in watchOS 2 beta 5, as listed below.

Timelapse - There's a new Timelapse watch face that displays the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France.

Sleep settings - There's a Settings option that will keep the Apple Watch's screen active and turned on for 70 seconds. Currently the watch face only stays on for 15 seconds.

watchos270seconds
Music - In the Music app, there's a new "Quick Play" button to access music on the iPhone more quickly. The Music app interface has also been tweaked and will display the app that's playing music.

Related Roundup: Apple Watch 10
Buyer's Guide: Apple Watch (Caution)

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro Lower Logo Feature 1

iPhone 17 Pro Coming Soon With These 14 New Features

Monday June 30, 2025 1:08 pm PDT by
Apple's next-generation iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are less than three months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. Apple is expected to launch the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max in September this year. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models:Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an...
Apple Watch Ultra Night Mode Screen

Apple Watch Ultra 3 Launching Later This Year With Two Key Upgrades

Wednesday July 2, 2025 1:13 pm PDT by
The long wait for an Apple Watch Ultra 3 appears to be nearly over, and it is rumored to feature both satellite connectivity and 5G support. Apple Watch Ultra's existing Night Mode In his latest Power On newsletter, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said that the Apple Watch Ultra 3 is on track to launch this year with "significant" new features, including satellite connectivity, which would let you...
iPhone 17 Pro Lower Logo Magsafe

iPhone 17 Pro's New MagSafe Design Revealed in Leaked Photo

Wednesday July 2, 2025 8:37 am PDT by
The upcoming iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are rumored to have a slightly different MagSafe magnet layout compared to existing iPhone models, and a leaked photo has offered a closer look at the supposed new design. The leaker Majin Bu today shared a photo of alleged MagSafe magnet arrays for third-party iPhone 17 Pro cases. On existing iPhone models with MagSafe, the magnets form a...
Wi Fi WiFi General Feature

iOS 26 Adds a Useful New Wi-Fi Feature to Your iPhone

Wednesday July 2, 2025 6:36 am PDT by
iOS 26 and iPadOS 26 add a smaller yet useful Wi-Fi feature to iPhones and iPads. As spotted by Creative Strategies analyst Max Weinbach, sign-in details for captive Wi-Fi networks are now synced across iPhones and iPads running iOS 26 and iPadOS 26. For example, while Weinbach was staying at a Hilton hotel, his iPhone prompted him to fill in Wi-Fi details from his iPad that was already...
iPhone 17 Pro in Hand Feature Lowgo

iPhone 17 Pro Max Battery Capacity Leaked

Thursday July 3, 2025 5:40 am PDT by
The iPhone 17 Pro Max will feature the biggest ever battery in an iPhone, according to the Weibo leaker known as "Instant Digital." In a new post, the leaker listed the battery capacities of the iPhone 11 Pro Max through to the iPhone 16 Pro Max, and added that the iPhone 17 Pro Max will feature a battery capacity of 5,000mAh: iPhone 11 Pro Max: 3,969mAh iPhone 12 Pro Max: 3,687mAh...
iOS 18

Apple Releases Second iOS 18.6 Public Beta

Tuesday July 1, 2025 10:19 am PDT by
Apple today seeded the second betas of upcoming iOS 18.6 and iPadOS 18.6 updates to public beta testers, with the betas coming just a day after Apple provided the betas to developers. Apple has also released a second beta of macOS Sequoia 15.6. Testers who have signed up for beta updates through Apple's beta site can download iOS 18.6 and iPadOS 18.6 from the Settings app on a compatible...
maxresdefault

New MacBook With A18 Pro Chip Spotted in Apple Code

Monday June 30, 2025 8:05 am PDT by
Apple is developing a MacBook with the A18 Pro chip, according to findings in backend code uncovered by MacRumors. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Earlier today, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reported that Apple is planning to launch a low-cost MacBook powered by an iPhone chip. The machine is expected to feature a 13-inch display, the A18 Pro chip, and color options...

Top Rated Comments

fzfpff Avatar
129 months ago
please send the watch profile
here you go:
Score: 45 Votes (Like | Disagree)
utsava Avatar
129 months ago
I don't get it, Why is it called "complication" instead of "compilation"? I think we can distinguish between a Watch compilation and a Music compilation; not only is "compilation" more precise, "complication" has a negative connotation.
"Complication" is the term used in horology to describe a secondary function on a watch face. It has a long history that Apple is just continuing.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
liuping Avatar
129 months ago
Keep the screen active for 15 seconds or.... 70 seconds? What an odd second option.

15, 30 and 60 would be a better set of choices, IMHO.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
JeffyTheQuik Avatar
129 months ago
Oh, thank ye gods!!!!
The last beta DESTROYED my battery life & I'd get random occasional reboots.
Thank you for beta testing this. I know a lot of people that don't appreciate beta testers, but I do. Without your testing, one could only imagine the bugs that'd get into the wild...
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Douglas B Avatar
129 months ago
Keep the screen active for 15 seconds or.... 70 seconds? What an odd second option.

15, 30 and 60 would be a better set of choices, IMHO.
No, they've been pretty smart about this. The nurses and paramedics who have asked for this need to be able to watch the second hand for 60 seconds. But they still need a few seconds after they have tapped the screen to get their hand on their patient's wrist for the pulse. 60 seconds wouldn't have been enough.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
andybno1 Avatar
129 months ago
Is multi-color modular face new in watchOS? As far as I can tell, my watchOS 1 Watch's modular face is all the same color, except the large center module, which is grey. So, I have it set to white, so it all pretty much looks white, to match the white Sport band. Don't know how I feel about the battery module being colored. Kind of ruins the white motif for me. More options would be nice.
this is how the multi-colour looks

Attachment Image
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)