Apple Seeds First Beta of watchOS 9.4 to Developers

Apple today seeded the first beta of an upcoming watchOS 9.4 update to developers for testing purposes, with the software update coming a little over two weeks after the launch of watchOS 9.3.

Apple watchOS 9 Feature
To install the watchOS 9.4 update, developers will need to download the configuration profile from the Apple Developer Center.

Once installed, ‌watchOS 9.4 can be downloaded through the dedicated Apple Watch app on the iPhone by going to General > Software update. To update to new software, an Apple Watch needs to have 50 percent battery life, it has to be placed on the charger, and it will need to be in range of the ‌‌iPhone‌‌ it is paired with.

We don't know what's included in the watchOS 9.4 update as of now, but we'll update this article if anything notable is found in the beta.

Related Roundup: watchOS 11
Related Forum: Apple Watch

Popular Stories

iphone 16 display

iPhone 17's Scratch Resistant Anti-Reflective Display Coating Canceled

Monday April 28, 2025 12:48 pm PDT by
Apple may have canceled the super scratch resistant anti-reflective display coating that it planned to use for the iPhone 17 Pro models, according to a source with reliable information that spoke to MacRumors. Last spring, Weibo leaker Instant Digital suggested Apple was working on a new anti-reflective display layer that was more scratch resistant than the Ceramic Shield. We haven't heard...
apple watch ultra yellow

What's Next for the Apple Watch Ultra 3 and Apple Watch SE 3

Friday April 25, 2025 2:44 pm PDT by
This week marks the 10th anniversary of the Apple Watch, which launched on April 24, 2015. Yesterday, we recapped features rumored for the Apple Watch Series 11, but since 2015, the Apple Watch has also branched out into the Apple Watch Ultra and the Apple Watch SE, so we thought we'd take a look at what's next for those product lines, too. 2025 Apple Watch Ultra 3 Apple didn't update the...
iPhone 17 Air Pastel Feature

iPhone 17 Reaches Key Milestone Ahead of Mass Production

Monday April 28, 2025 8:44 am PDT by
Apple has completed Engineering Validation Testing (EVT) for at least one iPhone 17 model, according to a paywalled preview of an upcoming DigiTimes report. iPhone 17 Air mockup based on rumored design The EVT stage involves Apple testing iPhone 17 prototypes to ensure the hardware works as expected. There are still DVT (Design Validation Test) and PVT (Production Validation Test) stages to...
Beyond iPhone 13 Better Blue

20th Anniversary iPhone Likely to Be Made in China Due to 'Extraordinarily Complex' Design

Monday April 28, 2025 4:29 am PDT by
Apple will likely manufacture its 20th anniversary iPhone models in China, despite broader efforts to shift production to India, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. In 2027, Apple is planning a "major shake-up" for the iPhone lineup to mark two decades since the original model launched. Gurman's previous reporting indicates the company will introduce a foldable iPhone alongside a "bold"...
iPhone 17 Air Pastel Feature

iPhone 17 Air Launching Later This Year With These 16 New Features

Thursday April 24, 2025 8:24 am PDT by
While the so-called "iPhone 17 Air" is not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the ultra-thin device. Overall, the iPhone 17 Air sounds like a mixed bag. While the device is expected to have an impressively thin and light design, rumors indicate it will have some compromises compared to iPhone 17 Pro models, including only a single rear camera, a...
iPhone 17 Pro Blue Feature Tighter Crop

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 13 New Features

Wednesday April 23, 2025 8:31 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. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of April 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
iPhone 17 Pro on Desk Feature

All iPhone 17 Models Again Rumored to Feature 12GB of RAM

Tuesday April 29, 2025 3:36 am PDT by
All upcoming iPhone 17 models will come equipped with 12GB of RAM to support Apple Intelligence, according to the Weibo-based leaker Digital Chat Station. The claim from the Chinese leaker, who has sources within Apple's supply chain, comes a few days after industry analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said that the iPhone 17 Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max will all be equipped with 12GB of RAM. ...

Top Rated Comments

surfzen21 Avatar
29 months ago
Someone please post whats new!

Maybe they added a notes section in the workouts app ?
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Matsamoto Avatar
29 months ago
I would really appreciate a "day off" in the activity rings.
A day that you could choose for your own needs to just rest, and don't have to close the rings 7 days a week?

When you work 5 days a week and also go to the gym you could really use a resting day on Saturday or Sunday?
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
xDKP Avatar
29 months ago

I would really appreciate a "day off" in the activity rings.
A day that you could choose for your own needs to just rest, and don't have to close the rings 7 days a week?

When you work 5 days a week and also go to the gym you could really use a resting day on Saturday or Sunday?
As a marathon runner, this has been on my wish list for years!

The day after a super tough workout, I need it to focus on recovery and not “Let’s do that again!”
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
surfzen21 Avatar
29 months ago

I would really appreciate a "day off" in the activity rings.
A day that you could choose for your own needs to just rest, and don't have to close the rings 7 days a week?

When you work 5 days a week and also go to the gym you could really use a resting day on Saturday or Sunday?
I was thinking something similar or even this as an alternative:

Instead of daily activity you have the option for weekly activity. So I could set a weekly goal of 4000 move calories for the week and 7 hours of workouts for the week. This would allow you to workout 4-5 days a week with necessary rest and still close your move rings. Leave standing as it is. Not sure Apple would do something like that but it would be nice.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
benkellis Avatar
29 months ago

I am sorry this is happening to you as well, but I am happy I am not alone here. I've submitted the following question and information to Apple's Dev Forum: https://developer.apple.com/forums/thread/725120

Is anyone having major issues with this watchOS 9.4 beta (Build 20T5222g) on the AppleWatch Ultra?

Here are some of the issues I am running into:


* random resets
* unresponsive touchscreen
* charging issues
* zero notifications, including timers and alarms, calls, and messages

Thanks for filing this in Developer Forums, I've added some of the issues I've been experiencing too (e.g., Apple Pay not working, Action button causing the AW Ultra to freeze); looks like these issues are mainly affecting the Apple Watch Ultra, from what I can see alone.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
benkellis Avatar
29 months ago

Is anyone having issues with this Beta build? It’s made the Apple Watch Ultra unusable for me.
Same here -- I couldn't find mentions of it anywhere but here: I can't scroll anymore, 3rd party widgets aren't loading, and the watch completely freezes up when trying to use Control Center. I've already tried resetting the watch, no luck. I'm hard-rebooting the watch every two hours now, which I'm sure doesn't help with battery drain either.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)