Apple Seeds Fourth Beta of watchOS 5.1 to Developers

Apple today seeded the fourth beta of an upcoming watchOS 5.1 update to developers, one week after seeding the third watchOS 5.1 beta and a month after releasing the new watchOS 5 operating system.

Once the proper configuration profile has been installed from the Apple Developer Center, the new watchOS beta can be downloaded through the dedicated Apple Watch app on the iPhone by going to General --> Software update.

applewatchseries4watchfaces
To install the update, the Apple Watch needs to have at least 50 percent battery, it must be placed on the charger, and it has to be in range of the iPhone.

watchOS 5.1 includes support for the Group FaceTime that's also available in iOS 12.1 and macOS 10.14.1, with Group FaceTime calls able to be answered in an audio-only capacity on the Apple Watch. Group FaceTime allows you to chat with up to 32 people at one time.

The watchOS 5.1 update brings a full-screen new "Color" watch face option for the Apple Watch Series 4, with users able to choose between multiple shades. There's also a filled-in circular color option for older Apple Watch models that joins the standard Color clock face.

applewatchcolor
Alongside macOS 10.14.1 and iOS 12.1, watchOS 5.1 introduces support for more than 70 new emoji characters like face with hearts, red hair, gray hair, curly hair, super heroes, kangaroo, peacock, parrot, lobster, cupcake, mango, and more.

No other new features were discovered in the first three betas of watchOS 5.1, but should we find something new in the fourth beta, we'll update this post.

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

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro Render Front Page Tech

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 10 New Features

Sunday March 23, 2025 10:00 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. iPhone 17 Pro's alleged design via Front Page Tech Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of March 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone...
iCloud General Feature Redux

iPhone Users Who Pay for iCloud Storage Receive a New Perk

Thursday March 20, 2025 12:01 am PDT by
If you pay for iCloud storage on your iPhone, Apple has a new perk for you, at no additional cost. The new perk is the ability to create invitations in the Apple Invites app for the iPhone, which launched in the App Store last month. In the Apple Invites app, iCloud+ subscribers can create invitations for any occasion, such as birthday parties, graduations, baby showers, and more. Anyone ...
Generic iOS 19 Feature Mock

iOS 19 Coming in June With These New Features

Thursday March 20, 2025 2:04 pm PDT by
While the first iOS 19 beta is still more than two months away, there are already plenty of rumors about the upcoming software update. Below, we recap the key iOS 19 rumors so far. visionOS-Like Design In January, the YouTube channel Front Page Tech revealed a redesigned Camera app that is allegedly planned for iOS 19. According to Front Page Tech host Jon Prosser, the Camera app...
iOS 18

Top 5 New Features Coming in iOS 18.4

Friday March 21, 2025 3:26 pm PDT by
We're not getting new Siri Apple Intelligence features in iOS 18.4 as expected, but the upcoming update does have quite a few new additions that will be worth upgrading for. We've rounded up the five best features to look forward to, and if you're not running the beta, you can expect to get access to these in early April. Priority Notifications If you have an iPhone or iPad that supports...
Generic iOS 18

Apple Seeds iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 Release Candidate With Priority Notifications, Ambient Music and More

Monday March 24, 2025 10:07 am PDT by
Apple today seeded the release candidate versions of upcoming iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 updates to developers for testing purposes, with the software coming a week after Apple released the fourth betas. iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 can be downloaded from the Settings app on a compatible device by going to General > Software Update. With iOS 18.4, Apple is adding the Priority Notifications...
airpods max 2024 colors

Don't Buy Into Apple's Hype About AirPods Max Gaining Lossless Audio

Monday March 24, 2025 4:24 pm PDT by
Apple today announced that AirPods Max with a USB-C port will be gaining support for lossless audio and ultra-low latency audio with a firmware update next month, alongside the release of iOS 18.4, iPadOS 18.4, and macOS 15.4. For context, audio files are typically compressed to keep file sizes smaller. There are lossy compression standards like MP3, and Apple's own Advanced Audio Codec...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature Iridescent Search

Foldable iPhone Expected to Launch Next Year, Costing Around $2,000

Monday March 24, 2025 3:43 am PDT by
Apple will launch its long-rumored foldable iPhone next year with a ~$2,000 premium price tag attached, expects well-connected Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman. Gurman's comments on Apple's launch plans for its first foldable device appeared in the Q&A section of his latest Power On newsletter. Earlier this month, the reporter said Apple's foldable iPhone could be arriving "as early as 2026,"...

Top Rated Comments

Maclver Avatar
84 months ago
Hopefully we get the standard app complications back..... i.e.. messages...
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Mick-Mac Avatar
84 months ago
Hopefully we get the standard app complications back..... i.e.. messages...
Yes please! It's just so totally frustrating that the Messages and Phone apps are missing in the newest watch faces e.g. Infograph. I'd happily trade a few thousand useless emoji for that functionality.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
kycophpd Avatar
84 months ago
The release says you must be running 12.1 and 5.1 to use the ECG option so unless there is a delay, it appears Apple is planning on releasing it when this is done in beta. Whether it is built in or a separate app still hasn't been released.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
bluespark Avatar
84 months ago
The fact that someone owns a different watch doesn't make their subjective beliefs more valid, so not sure what the relevance of your S3 ownership is.
His point wasn't that this made his beliefs more valid; it was that he had experienced a watch face store and therefore could offer a relevant anecdote based on that experience.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MrGuder Avatar
84 months ago
Does anyone else think that there is so much potential with various watch faces that Apple has hardly skimmed the surface? Those 2 full screen colors are bla looking. I haven’t seen any watch faces that really blow me away. The fire and ice ones are cool though but there SHOULD be hundreds and hundreds of watch faces to choose from that are spectacular. They should concentrate on better designers of faces to choose from.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
rwilliams Avatar
84 months ago
Hopefully we get the standard app complications back..... i.e.. messages...
Messages, mail, phone, home, podcasts, etc. It’s unbelievable that Apple would leave those out from two prominent new faces.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)