Apple Releases First Beta of New watchOS 5 Operating System to Developers

by

Apple this morning announced watchOS 5, a new version of the software that runs on the Apple Watch. The first developer beta of watchOS 5 has now been released to developers for testing purposes.

To install the beta, you'll need the proper configuration profile, which can be obtained through the Apple Developer Center. Once the profile is in place, the watchOS 5 beta can be downloaded using the dedicated Apple Watch app on the iPhone by going to General --> Software Update.

applewatchwalkietalkie
To install the beta, the Apple Watch must have 50 percent battery, it must be placed on the charger, and it must be in range of the iPhone. It would be wise to install the beta on a secondary device instead of a primary device given that this is an early version of the watchOS 5 software that still has bugs to be worked out.

watchOS 5 is a huge update that brings Activity Competitions so you can compete on workouts with friends, Walkie-Talkie with push-to-talk functionality for quickly communicating with the people you talk to most, and auto workout detection to make it easier than ever to start and stop workouts.

Other new features include an improved Siri watch face with support for third-party apps, a dedicated Apple Podcasts app, new Workout types that include Yoga and Hiking, new features for runners, and enhanced notifications, which will make notifications on the Apple Watch interactive.

watchOS 5 is only available to developers and will not be provided to public beta testers (because there's no way to downgrade Apple Watch software), so non-developers will need to wait until the software is officially released in the fall to try it out.

Related Roundup: Apple Watch 11
Buyer's Guide: Apple Watch (Buy Now)

Popular Stories

apple store down feature

Here's Why the Apple Store is Going Down

Thursday November 27, 2025 1:01 pm PST by
Apple's online store is going down for a few hours on a rolling country-by-country basis right now, but do not get your hopes up for new products. Apple takes its online store down for a few hours ahead of Black Friday every year to tease/prepare for its annual gift card offer with the purchase of select products. The store already went down and came back online in Australia and New Zealand, ...
Read Full Article • 17 comments
Apple Foldable Thumb

Foldable iPhone to Debut These Three Breakthrough Features

Tuesday November 25, 2025 7:09 am PST by
Apple's first foldable iPhone is expected to launch alongside the iPhone 18 Pro models in fall 2026, and it's shaping up to include three standout features that could set it apart from the competition. The book-style foldable will reportedly feature an industry-first 24-megapixel under-display camera built into the inner display, according to a recent JP Morgan equity research report. That...
Read Full Article • 122 comments
iPhone Pocket Short

iPhone Pocket is Now Completely Sold Out Worldwide

Tuesday November 25, 2025 7:16 am PST by
Apple recently teamed up with Japanese fashion brand ISSEY MIYAKE to create the iPhone Pocket, a limited-edition knitted accessory designed to carry an iPhone. However, it is now completely sold out in all countries where it was released. iPhone Pocket became available to order on Apple's online store starting Friday, November 14, in the United States, France, China, Italy, Japan, Singapore, ...
Read Full Article • 136 comments
streaming black friday 2025

Black Friday Streaming Deals Include Big Savings on Disney+, Hulu, Apple TV, and More

Monday November 24, 2025 8:03 am PST by
We've been focusing on deals on physical products over the past few weeks, but Black Friday is also a great time of year to purchase a streaming membership. Some of the biggest services have great discounts for new and select returning members this week, including Disney+, Hulu, Paramount+, Peacock, and more. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a...
Read Full Article • 27 comments
streaming black friday 2025

Best Black Friday Streaming Deals - Save Big on Apple TV, Disney+, Hulu, and More

Thursday November 27, 2025 1:14 pm PST by
We've been focusing on deals on physical products over the past few weeks, but Black Friday is also a great time of year to purchase a streaming membership. Some of the biggest services have great discounts for new and select returning members this week, including Apple TV, Disney+, Hulu, Paramount+, Peacock, and more. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When...
Read Full Article • 20 comments
General Apps Messages Redux

Singapore Orders Changes to iMessage by December

Tuesday November 25, 2025 6:39 am PST by
Singapore has ordered Apple to block or filter messages on iMessage that impersonate government agencies, requiring the company to implement new anti-spoofing protections by December as part of efforts to curb rising online scams, the Straits Times reports. Singapore's Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said that it had issued an Implementation Directive to Apple under the Online Criminal Harms...
Read Full Article • 31 comments
General Black Friday Deals 25 Red Green

The 30+ Best Black Friday Apple Deals on AirPods, iPads, MacBooks, and More

Thursday November 27, 2025 6:46 am PST by
Black Friday is in full swing, and as always this is the best time of the year to shop for great deals, including popular Apple products like AirPods, iPad, Apple Watch, and more. In this article, the majority of the discounts will be found on Amazon. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment,...
Read Full Article • 10 comments
iphone air camera

iPhone Air Flop Sparks Industry Retreat From Ultra-Thin Phones

Thursday November 27, 2025 3:14 am PST by
Apple's disappointing iPhone Air sales are causing major Chinese mobile vendors to scrap or freeze their own ultra-thin phone projects, according to reports coming out of Asia. Since the ‌iPhone Air‌ launched in September, there have been reports of poor sales and manufacturing cuts, while Apple's supply chain has scaled back shipments and production. Apple supplier Foxconn has...
Read Full Article • 203 comments

Top Rated Comments

ErikGrim Avatar
ErikGrim
98 months ago
No support for the first generation of the Apple Watch. Looks like early adopters get abandoned again.
That’s literally the accepted risk of being an early adopter.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
mcdj Avatar
mcdj
98 months ago
Still no 3rd party faces. Wow. They would make a killing on a face store. Instead, they’re putting the screws to MacBook screw vendors.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
gsmornot Avatar
gsmornot
98 months ago
No support for the first generation of the Apple Watch. Looks like early adopters get abandoned again.
Use it as motivation to update. I held out until a few months ago with the original and man, Series 3 is a huge difference. I assume Series 4 will be along in the fall and I hear it might have a bigger display but 3 is a big leap. I forget to charge so every other day roughly I get a reminder that I'm at 10%. It used to be a nightly charge at bedtime.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
macduke Avatar
macduke
98 months ago
No support for the first generation of the Apple Watch. Looks like early adopters get abandoned again.
Yeah, but us on Series 0 are also short on battery life and watchOS 4 is already running pretty slow. I've got my settings stripped down to a minimum and still struggle with battery life and performance. I'm looking forward to upgrading this autumn to the newer models which hopefully have a bigger display option or redesign of some sort.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
RamGuy Avatar
RamGuy
98 months ago
The whole daily activity/exercise/calorie goal need a re-design. Its one of the few things I feel doesn't really work on my Apple Watch.

I love the Apple Watch. I have tried Fitbit, Garmin and Samsung and I find the Apple Watch to just be better in pretty much every possible way. And Apple keeps on improving the Activity and Workout-app at phase that no one else seems to be even close to match.

But I fully agree. The whole approach to daily goals feels somewhat awkward to me. Having this set amount of calories and exercise mirrored and identical for every single day doesn’t make much sense. I don’t plan exercises for every single day, and no one really should unless they count things like walking for 30 minutes as a exercise.. If I was going to do my exercises every single day it would not be good for my body..

What does this result into? Well, it makes it impossible for me to set activity goals on the watch. Either I have to set a low calorie goal so watchOS won’t be nagging me all day for the days I’m not exercising and completely demolish said goal every day I actually do exercise or I have to set a more realistic goal, something more close to my average daily calorie goal but then have watchOS counting all days without exercises as "fails"… Its rather annoying… And it doesn’t really help motivate or anything when its done in the way its currently working.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
123 Avatar
123
98 months ago
('https://www.macrumors.com/2018/06/04/apple-releases-first-watchos-5-beta/')

watchOS 5 is a huge update that brings Activity Competitions...
Umm, huge update? More like a point release.

I don't know a single person who uses the Siri face and this is not going to change anytime soon. This stuff must blend in unobtrusively. Instead, it comes across as if it was the sole reason for the watch's existence. Bah

And when it comes to competitions, this is certainly a feature that 2 peope would like to use, if not 3. great.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Read All Comments