Apple today released watchOS 26.3, an update to the watchOS 26 operating system that came out in September. watchOS 26.3 comes two months after Apple released watchOS 26.2.
watchOS 26.3 can be downloaded for free on an iPhone running iOS 26.3 by opening up the Apple Watch app and going to General > Software Update, or initiating an update in the Settings app on the watch. To install the new software, the Apple Watch needs to have at least 50 percent battery and it needs to be placed on a charger.
According to Apple's release notes, watchOS 26.3 includes unspecified bug fixes and security updates, and there were no new outward-facing features discovered during the beta testing process.
Thursday September 10, 2026 11:57 am PDT by Juli Clover
Some Apple Watch users who upgrade to the Series 12 or the Ultra 4 might temporarily lose access to hypertension notifications.
On the watchOS feature availability page, Apple says notifications might not be available on the Series 12 or Ultra 4 at launch because regulatory clearances are in process.
Hypertension Notifications may not be available on Apple Watch Series 12 or Ultra 4 in your ...
Wednesday September 9, 2026 12:06 pm PDT by Juli Clover
Apple today seeded the release candidate versions of watchOS 27, visionOS 27, and tvOS 27 to developers and public beta testers. The release candidates are the final versions of the updates that will be seeded to the public as long as no final bugs are found during this last round of testing.
The updates can be installed through the Software Update section in the Settings app on each...
Monday August 31, 2026 10:12 am PDT by Juli Clover
Apple today seeded the eighth beta of watchOS 27 to developers, with the update coming a week after the launch of the seventh beta.
The beta can be downloaded through the Watch app on the iPhone with a free developer account. The Apple Watch will need to be on the charger, connected to Wi-Fi, and have a battery level of 50 percent or above for new software to be installed.
watchOS 27...
intiate the download from the apple watch app on my phone then turn off bluetooth on my phone
It should not matter too much but if you start the download over BT and then kill the BT it will switch to Wifi and try re-regulate the speed. It might just be cleaner to do the entire thing over wifi.
I doubt it makes too much difference over the download period but optically it will likely give you incorrect "... minutes remaining" estimates.
EDIT: Just don't forget to turn BT back on after the download has finished :D
You mean the actual download itself? Mine took <5 min, don't want to know what if would have been via the phone, but yes, preparing, verifying takes another 20-30 min and install is usually about 5 min. I usually plan on the whole process taking maybe an hour, which is fine with me. Slow, sure, but the computing power in the watch is limited.
Mine’s taking longer than both my iPhone and iPad.
You mean the actual download itself? Mine took <5 min, don't want to know what if would have been via the phone, but yes, preparing, verifying takes another 20-30 min and install is usually about 5 min. I usually plan on the whole process taking maybe an hour, which is fine with me. Slow, sure, but the computing power in the watch is limited.
