Apple today seeded the first beta of an upcoming watchOS 6.1 beta to developers, a little under a week after releasing the watchOS 6 update with full App Store, new Apple Watch faces, and more.

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.

applewatchseries5
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.

It's not yet clear what features will be introduced in the watchOS 6.1 update, but we'll be updating this article when we find out.

Related Roundup: Apple Watch Series 9
Buyer's Guide: Apple Watch (Neutral)

Top Rated Comments

1989MacSE30 Avatar
1989MacSE30
60 months ago
Hopefully it offers the ability to return to managing apps through the iPhone. It’s great to have a separate app store, but the larger screen is still the right place to find the apps in most cases.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
btrach144 Avatar
btrach144
60 months ago
Please don’t forget about series 1&2 owners Apple!
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
zhaoxin Avatar
zhaoxin
60 months ago
Can someone confirm watchOS 6.1 supporting Shortcuts or not? Thanks.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TheScoot68 Avatar
TheScoot68
60 months ago
So 13.1 for iOS is tomorrow. iPadOS 13.0 is tomorrow? WatchOS 6.1 is obviously a ways away and TVOS may come out tomorrow or on the 30th? MacOS is just "October"? This has all gotten very confusing suddenly.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Banglazed Avatar
Banglazed
60 months ago
Support Series 1 & 2
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
QCassidy352 Avatar
QCassidy352
60 months ago

Hopefully it offers the ability to return to managing apps through the iPhone. It’s great to have a separate app store, but the larger screen is still the right place to find the apps in most cases.
Worth noting that you can still find apps for the watch on the iPhone App Store app. I wish it were still in the watch app, as that seems the logical place for it, but you can still find watch apps on the iPhone if need be.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Read All Comments

Popular Stories

Delta Feature

Delta Game Emulator Now Available From App Store on iPhone

Wednesday April 17, 2024 9:58 am PDT by
Game emulator apps have come and gone since Apple announced App Store support for them on April 5, but now popular game emulator Delta from developer Riley Testut is available for download. Testut is known as the developer behind GBA4iOS, an open-source emulator that was available for a brief time more than a decade ago. GBA4iOS led to Delta, an emulator that has been available outside of...
Read Full Article • 210 comments
iPhone 15 Pro Action Button Translate

All iPhone 16 Models to Feature Action Button, But Usefulness Debated

Tuesday April 16, 2024 6:54 am PDT by
Last September, Apple's iPhone 15 Pro models debuted with a new customizable Action button, offering faster access to a handful of functions, as well as the ability to assign Shortcuts. Apple is poised to include the feature on all upcoming iPhone 16 models, so we asked iPhone 15 Pro users what their experience has been with the additional button so far. The Action button replaces the switch ...
Read Full Article • 104 comments
Provenance Emulator

PlayStation, GameCube, Wii, and SEGA Emulator for iPhone and Apple TV Coming to App Store

Friday April 19, 2024 8:29 am PDT by
The lead developer of the multi-emulator app Provenance has told iMore that his team is working towards releasing the app on the App Store, but he did not provide a timeframe. Provenance is a frontend for many existing emulators, and it would allow iPhone and Apple TV users to emulate games released for a wide variety of classic game consoles, including the original PlayStation, GameCube, Wii,...
Read Full Article • 123 comments
maxresdefault

Hands-On With the New App Store Delta Game Emulator

Wednesday April 17, 2024 12:19 pm PDT by
A decade ago, developer Riley Testut released the GBA4iOS emulator for iOS, and since it was against the rules at the time, Apple put a stop to downloads. Emulators have been a violation of the App Store rules for years, but that changed on April 5 when Apple suddenly reversed course and said that it was allowing retro game emulators on the App Store. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel ...
Read Full Article • 225 comments
iOS NES Emulator Bimmy Feature

NES Emulator for iPhone and iPad Now Available on App Store [Removed]

Tuesday April 16, 2024 11:33 am PDT by
The first approved Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) emulator for the iPhone and iPad was made available on the App Store today following Apple's rule change. The emulator is called Bimmy, and it was developed by Tom Salvo. On the App Store, Bimmy is described as a tool for testing and playing public domain/"homebrew" games created for the NES, but the app allows you to load ROMs for any...
Read Full Article • 229 comments