Apple Seeds First watchOS 8 Public Beta

Apple today seeded the first beta of an upcoming watchOS 8 update to its public beta testing group, allowing non-developers to experience the software ahead of its fall release.

watchos 8 main
The watchOS 8 update can be downloaded after upgrading your iPhone to the public beta version of iOS 15. After installing iOS 15, the proper watchOS 8 profile from Apple's beta software website must also be installed.

The software can be accessed by going to General > Software Update in the Apple Watch app on ‌iPhone‌. To update, ‌Apple Watch‌ needs to have 50 percent battery life, it must be placed on the charger, and it must be in range of the ‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌iPhone‌.

watchOS 8, like iOS 15, introduces improvements to the Wallet app with support for driver's licenses and new types of keys for homes, cars, and hotels. The Home app lets you see who is at the door with HomeKit-enabled cameras, plus the Home app has been updated to make it easier to get to HomeKit accessories and scenes.

There are new Tai Chi and Pilates workout types, and the Breathe app has been renamed to Mindfulness because it has a new "Reflect" feature that gives you thoughtful notions to consider to for mindfulness purposes. A Portrait Watch Face pulls portrait photos from the ‌iPhone‌, and the Photos app has new ways to view and navigate photos collections.

There's a new Find My app for locating lost items and devices right from the wrist, and the Messages app now supports sending GIFs. There are tons of other new features in watchOS 8, with details available in our watchOS 8 roundup.

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

Popular Stories

ios 18 4 carplay

Apple Upgrades CarPlay in Two Ways

Wednesday March 12, 2025 6:05 am PDT by
The upcoming iOS 18.4 update for the iPhone includes a smaller but meaningful improvement for Apple's in-car iPhone mirroring system CarPlay. Specifically, CarPlay now shows a third row of icons, up from two rows previously. However, this change is only visible in vehicles with a larger center display. For example, a MacRumors Forums member noticed the change in a Toyota Tundra with a...
Apple More Personal Siri Ad

John Gruber Says 'Something is Rotten' at Apple

Wednesday March 12, 2025 7:39 pm PDT by
Daring Fireball's John Gruber today shared some strongly-worded comments about Apple's delayed personalized Siri features. Gruber is a well-known Apple pundit who has been writing about the company for more than two decades. In a blog post titled "Something Is Rotten in the State of Cupertino," Gruber said Apple's credibility has been "damaged" by the delay:Keynote by keynote, product by...
airpods pro 2 gradient

AirPods Pro 3 Launch Now Just Months Away: Here's What We Know

Tuesday March 11, 2025 3:26 am PDT by
Despite being released over two years ago, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 continue to dominate the wireless earbud market. However, with the AirPods Pro 3 expected to launch in 2025, anyone thinking of buying Apple's premium earbuds may be wondering if the next generation is worth holding out for. Apart from their audio and noise-canceling performance, which are generally regarded as excellent for...
Apple Maps vs Google Maps Feature

iOS 18.4 Adds a Highly-Requested Setting to iPhones — But Not in U.S.

Wednesday March 12, 2025 1:05 pm PDT by
iPhones are finally getting a much-requested setting, but availability is limited. The upcoming iOS 18.4 update introduces an option to set a default navigation app, other than Apple Maps, but unfortunately this new setting is limited to users in the EU. There, you can now set an app like Google Maps or Waze as your default navigation app on the iPhone by opening the Settings app and tapping ...
Generic iOS 19 Feature Mock Light

iOS 19 Will Bring Biggest Design Overhaul Since iOS 7

Monday March 10, 2025 12:17 pm PDT by
Apple is planning for a major design overhaul of the iPhone, iPad, and Mac interfaces with the introduction of iOS 19, iPadOS 19, and macOS 16 later this year, reports Bloomberg. The update will "fundamentally change" the look of Apple's operating system, introducing a more consistent cross-platform experience. Apple plans to update the style of icons, menus, apps, windows, and system...
iPhone 17 Pro Render Front Page Tech

iPhone 17 Pro Machined Parts Leak Reflects Camera Redesign Rumors

Thursday March 13, 2025 3:07 am PDT by
Apple's upcoming iPhone 17 Pro models are expected to feature a significant design overhaul, and a new image apparently taken on an assembly line for the unreleased devices appears to confirm the biggest rumored change. Render of an iPhone 17 Pro model shared by Jon Prosser The iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are rumored to adopt a horizontal camera bar reminiscent of Google's Pixel...
Sad Siri Feature

Kuo: Apple Knows Apple Intelligence is 'Underwhelming' and Won't Drive iPhone Upgrades

Thursday March 13, 2025 9:32 am PDT by
The Apple Intelligence features that Apple introduced with iOS 18 are not pushing people to upgrade their iPhones, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reiterated today. Apple's recent Siri failures are also going to have an impact on 2025 iPhone shipments, which the market is beginning to realize. As early as last July, Kuo said expectations that Apple Intelligence could drive iPhone upgrades were...
iOS 18

12 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18.4

Monday March 10, 2025 9:28 am PDT by
Apple is set to release iOS 18.4 in early April, bringing further refinements to Apple Intelligence features, a neat new capability to iPhone 15 Pro devices, new emoji, and more. While not quite as packed with new features as Apple's preceding iOS 18 point releases, iOS 18.4 still introduces enhancements that aim to make your iPhone smarter and more intuitive. Below, we've listed 12 new...
macOS 16 visionOS Inspired

Major macOS 16 Redesign to Bring Biggest Changes Since Big Sur

Wednesday March 12, 2025 2:28 am PDT by
Apple is planning a radical redesign of macOS with version 16, and it could be the most significant visual refresh since macOS Big Sur was introduced in 2020, according to Bloomberg. MacRumors concept render The upcoming Mac operating system will reportedly be part of Apple's sweeping effort to create a more consistent interface across all of its platforms, including iPhone, iPad, and Apple...

Top Rated Comments

Robert.Walter Avatar
48 months ago

And feel free to skip it, because it is a huge nothing-burger of an update.
Good operative Maxim: Folks who say ‘nothing-burger” should be taken not seriously but possibly for observation… ? (maybe)
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
fenderbass146 Avatar
48 months ago

Good operative Maxim: Folks who say ‘nothing-burger” should be taken not seriously but possibly for evaluation. .
Didn't your momma teach you if you have nothing nice to say, don't say it at all.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Absolute Trainwreck Avatar
48 months ago

I don't use "Breath" and this feature nags me everytime. What a nonsensical concept. Especially when ending a workout and it nags me immediately after the workout to breath. Is it too stupid (with all that supposedly superior neural engine marketing crap) to detect, that I am on my way to the bathroom? And yes, my body breathes on its own.

And yet they add another magic thing that shall cover up the lack of useful health sensors on the apple watch: mindfulness. OMG. Stop it.

How about stop development of these cheap nonsense features and invest all your effort into
- 24h continuous blood pressure?
- 24h Body Temperature Monitoring
- Blood Oxygen at Sleep
- And someday maybe even Blood Glucose Monitoring?
“I myself don’t use these features so I demand that apple stops developing them instead of just turning them off in settings like a normal person”
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
enjoi52 Avatar
48 months ago

I demand innovation. My critique should be heard. ❄️ ❄️
LOL.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
fischersd Avatar
48 months ago
Find My won't load on AW3. Reported.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Absolute Trainwreck Avatar
48 months ago

I demand innovation. My critique should be heard. ❄️ ❄️
Right this way ? -> https://www.samsung.com/us/mobile/wearables/smartwatches/
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)