Apple Seeds Second Beta of watchOS 3.1 to Developers

Tuesday October 4, 2016 10:55 AM PDT by Juli Clover
Apple today seeded the second beta of watchOS 3.1, Build 14S464, to developers for testing purposes, two weeks after seeding the first beta and three weeks after releasing watchOS 3 to the public.

watchOS 3.1 can be downloaded through the dedicated Apple Watch app on the iPhone by going to General -> Software Update. To install the update, the Apple Watch must have 50 percent battery, it must be placed on the charger, and it must be in range of the iPhone. watchOS 3.1 requires an iPhone running iOS 10 to install.

apple watch series 2 2
watchOS 3.1 appears to focus on bug fixes and under-the-hood performance improvements rather than outward-facing changes, as no new features were discovered in the first beta. We'll update this post with anything new that's found in the second beta.

watchOS 3 brings a new interface to the Apple Watch, with a dedicated App Dock and instant launch apps. There are new Activity sharing features, a "Breathe" app guides you through daily deep breathing sessions to cut down on stress, and there are new Reminders, Find My Friends, and Heart Rate apps.

Three new watch faces are included, and an SOS feature can automatically call emergency services. A revamped Messages app makes it easier to reply to incoming texts, plus there's a new "Scribble" feature for writing replies on the Apple Watch face with a finger.

Related Roundups: Apple Watch, watchOS 5
Buyer's Guide: Apple Watch (Buy Now)
19 comments


Top Rated Comments

(View all)
Avatar
exkeks
28 months ago
Would love to see them getting the usability back into the Weather app. The current mode of switching between temperature, rain and conditions forecast by force touch is just annoying.
Rating: 3 Votes
Avatar
Aluminum213
28 months ago
How about they make it easy to connect the Apple Watch to the MacBook

Stupidly complex
Rating: 3 Votes
Avatar
tfigs
28 months ago

Would love to see them getting the usability back into the Weather app. The current mode of switching between temperature, rain and conditions forecast by force touch is just annoying.


OMG Yes!!! I already left feedback about this. I hope they revert it back to how it was in watchOS 2.
Rating: 2 Votes
Avatar
SockRolid
28 months ago
Not seeing too many changes from the previous beta.
In Weather, while looking at the 24-hour display for a city,
scrolling the crown animates the temp and city name now.
Didn't it used to scroll the whole display up and down between cities?
Can't remember.
Rating: 1 Votes
Avatar
domster83
28 months ago

OMG Yes!!! I already left feedback about this. I hope they revert it back to how it was in watchOS 2.

Thank god. That change was soooo annoying. And made no sense. I submitted an extensive feedback report on that.
Rating: 1 Votes
Avatar
nickcliborne
28 months ago

I did it in less than 30 seconds.

If you don't use 2-factor authentication already, then yes, it will take a little longer.


Many of us with two factor already on are getting an error message saying enable two factor first.

After more than twenty tries mine finally worked.
Rating: 1 Votes
Avatar
ErikGrim
27 months ago

(with a click and up to 5 swipes)

Use the digital crown for scrolling.
Rating: 1 Votes
Avatar
tkukoc
28 months ago
Installing the phone beta update first, then I'll do this one. Hoping they fixed the notification artifact glitch where a message would come up or email and stick for a second then show your message.
Rating: 1 Votes
[ Read All Comments ]