watchOS is the operating system for Apple Watch.

Posts under watchOS tag

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WatchOS app not downloaded from appstore
This is a bit of a headscratcher. Xcode 16 fyi. I've written a standalone watchos app (with a stub ios app). Distributes and works perfectly over Testflight. I've submitted for app store and it passed the checks an I've released it for sale. Told my brother to use a promo code to download it and show me how it looks and report me any nuisances. He tells me there's no app neither on phone (expected) nor in watch. And he checked both the Watch ios app list and the watch. I've gone through various GPTs and they've all told me the basic troubleshooting. That his watch might not be supported (wrong, it's a watch 10 ultra with latest updates and my min supported versions are hilariously low). They've suggested that I might not have the right keys for making it standalone set, also no. They suggested that skip_install shouldn't be set to no; also wrong I think they're thinking xcode 13 and below. The stub ios app has a dependency on watchos app and also has an embed directive. I also checked the archive and saw the watchos app embedded indeed. Again, the app works perfectly fine when distributed over testflight. And AFAIK that's a release build which I know for a fact because I had a problem with not giving healthkit entitlements to release (that was another but minor headscratcher at the time, when it was working over direct xcode upload). Minor detail, I've written, test(flight)ed the app in UK and in English, my brother is in Turkey. Of course now I immediately pulled the app out of sale because I don't want people paying and getting nothing, that's gonna cause a lot of trouble. So I need any help I can get to How to debug this without exposing the app and myself: is it possible to limit the release? Obviously: what could be going wrong? How the hell did I even pass app review? Is this maybe isolated to my brother's watch? I'm more than happy to share project files and/or info.plist files(end products of them, because my plists are generated from project file).
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Apr ’25
Feature Request – Bionic Reading Accessibility Setting
I’d love to see Apple implement a Bionic Reading feature as a system-wide accessibility option. This type of reading aid highlights the first part of each word in bold to help guide the eyes and improve comprehension. It’s been shown to be especially helpful for people with ADHD, dyslexia, and other neurodivergent needs. Having a toggle in Settings > Accessibility would be life-changing. Ideally, it could be: • Enabled system-wide, or per-app • Allow customization of how much of the word is bolded • Available in Safari, Messages, Books, News, etc.
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Apr ’25
Calling from Watchos
I am working with a watchOS app in SwiftUI, and I am using the following code to dial a phone number from the watch: var number = "123456789" if let telURL = URL(string: "tel:\(number)") { let wkExtension = WKExtension.shared() wkExtension.openSystemURL(telURL) } The issue is that when I try to dial a number starting with a * (asterisk) or # (hash), it doesn't work. When dialing a regular number, it works fine. Is there any way to get this to work?
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90
Apr ’25
SwiftUI/WatchOS - Picker inside a ScrollView does not work as expected
What I am trying to build Apple Watch app(written in SwiftUI, targeting watchOS 7 or higher, built with Xcode 14.1) The Problem Picker placed inside a ScrollView on an apple watch device does not work as expected I want to find out how to get the Picker to work as expected, stated below. Expected behavior On an iOS simulator, a Picker inside a ScrollView works as expected. If I try scroll interaction on the Picker area, the ScrollView part doesn’t get scrolled and only the Picker gets scrolled. whereas on the watch simulator Example, 

 If I try to scroll the Picker by touching the Picker area, the whole ScrollView reacts and moves up and down. And I am not able to control the Picker properly. The code I wrote is as follows: ScrollView { //..other view elements.. Picker(selection: $currentDay) { ForEach(weekDays, id: \.self) { Text($0) } } label: { Text("") } .frame(width: 148,height: 50) .pickerStyle(.wheel) //..other view elements.. }//: ScrollView Things I have tried putting the Picker inside a VStack/ZStack/HStack giving the Picker fixed frame values / giving other elements inside the ScrollView fixed frame values
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2k
Apr ’25
I would like to know the distribution of watchOS by OS version.
I would like to know the distribution of watchOS by OS version. Further research shows iOS version distribution, but there appears to be no mention of Watch OS. I am currently developing an App and would like to decide which version of Watch OS to start supporting due to cost issues, and would like to use the market distribution to determine this. Please help others or experts who want to do something like me! Translated with DeepL.com (free version)
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150
Apr ’25
Can HKWorkoutSession be used for a lone worker protection app for the Apple Watch?
We are developing a mobile app focused on lone worker protection, which does not include any fitness tracking features. We require the use of HKWorkoutSession solely to enable background execution of critical safety-related code. Could you please confirm whether this use of HKWorkoutSession is permitted under App Store Review guidelines, given that our app does not offer fitness or workout-related functionality?
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79
Apr ’25
HealthKit: Real-Time Sleep Tracking with Heart Rate Data
I am trying to track a user's real-time sleep state using heart rate data, but I have encountered several issues: When using HKSampleQuery on the phone to fetch heart rate data, I can only retrieve data recorded before the app comes to the foreground or before it is terminated and restarted (see related issue: https://developer.apple.com/forums/thread/774953). I attempted to get data on the Apple Watch and send updates to the phone via Watch Connectivity. However, if I use WKExtendedRuntimeSession, although I can obtain data on the watch, once the watch screen goes off, it can no longer transmit data via Watch Connectivity to the phone (since I cannot guarantee the app will remain in the foreground when lying in bed). On the other hand, using HKWorkoutSession results in interference with the activity rings and causes the heart rate sensor to run too frequently, which I worry may affect the battery life of the watch. Is there an elegant solution for tracking a user's heart rate data for sleep monitoring?
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Apr ’25
Guidance on Continuous Location & Direction Updates to watchOS App Without Screen Dimming
Dear Apple Developer Support, I am reaching out for guidance on implementing continuous directional and location updates in a watchOS app designed as part of a mapping/navigation solution. Current Scenario: We send continuous location and direction updates from our iOS app to the watchOS companion app. When viewing directions on the Apple Watch, the screen dims after a short period, and the live data stops updating consistently, even though the user is actively looking at the screen. This negatively impacts the usability of real-time navigation on watchOS. Our Objective: Prevent screen dimming (or extend screen-on time) while the user is viewing navigation directions. Ensure reliable, continuous data updates on the watch screen during active navigation sessions. Request: We would appreciate your guidance on: The recommended method to keep the watchOS screen active while displaying real-time navigation data. Proper use of APIs such as WKExtendedRuntimeSession, WorkoutSession, or any other mechanism suitable for this use case. Any best practices or App Store review considerations for apps that require extended screen time and continuous updates. How such use cases were traditionally handled on watchOS and what has or hasn’t worked. We want to ensure we're implementing this in a battery-efficient, user-respectful, and Apple-compliant manner. Thank you for your assistance and guidance.
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Apr ’25
Watch: WCSession is NOT reachable
** Facing issue for watch unreachable, I have tried for real device as well simulator** if let controller = window?.rootViewController as? FlutterViewController { let channel = FlutterMethodChannel( name: "watchconnectivity", binaryMessenger: controller.binaryMessenger) channel.setMethodCallHandler({ [weak self] (call, result) in switch call.method { case "sendToWatch": guard let watchSession = self?.session else { print("❌ Watch session not initialized") result(false) return } guard watchSession.isPaired else { print("❌ Watch not paired") result(false) return } guard watchSession.isReachable else { print("❌") print("isPaired: \(watchSession.isPaired)") print("isWatchAppInstalled: \(watchSession.isWatchAppInstalled)") print("isComplicationEnabled: \(watchSession.isComplicationEnabled)") result(false) return } guard let arguments = call.arguments as? [String: Any] else { print("❌ Invalid arguments format") result(false) return } if watchSession.isWatchAppInstalled { try? watchSession.updateApplicationContext(["forceLaunch": true]) } print("📤 Sending message to Watch: \(arguments)") watchSession.sendMessage(arguments, replyHandler: { response in print("✅ Message sent successfully") result(true) }, errorHandler: nil ) default: result(FlutterMethodNotImplemented) } }) }
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173
Mar ’25
Complications Appear Unnamed in Watch App After Syncing .watchface File
When using my app's complications with either Siri Intents or App Intents after syncing .watchface files, the complications appear without names in the iOS Watch app's complication picker. This leads to complications showing as blank entries without previews in the native watch app selector. I'm using WidgetKit to create Watch complications with both approaches: AppIntents and Siri Intents. We've tried multiple approaches with our WidgetKit watch complications: Switching between IntentConfiguration and StaticConfiguration Using different naming conventions for kind strings Ensuring display names are properly set Testing across different watchOS versions But the result is always the same: after syncing .watchface files, our complications appear unnamed in the Watch app's complication picker. Is this a known limitation with .watchface syncing, a bug in the current implementation, or is there a specific requirement we're missing to maintain complication names during the sync process?
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383
Mar ’25
App Not Appearing in "Available Apps" List in Watch App
I’ve developed an Apple Watch extension for an existing iOS app. When I run the app on the watch via Xcode using the simulator, everything works fine. However, when I try to install it on my iPhone, the Watch app doesn’t show it in the "Available Apps" list, so I can't install it on the watch. The Apple Watch is connected to my iPhone, and I can see other apps available for installation without any issues. I also created a brand new project with watchOS support to troubleshoot, but the same problem occurred. Any ideas on how to resolve this?
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513
Mar ’25
WidgetInfo - intent is nil until edit face
We have a watchOS app that provides many configurable widgets. Those widgets are configured and installed with help of AppIntent: public struct RectComplAppIntent: AppIntent, WidgetConfigurationIntent, CustomIntentMigratedAppIntent { @Parameter(title: "Style") var style: String? .... } However when I print WidgetInfos with getCurrentConfigurations(), I sometimes got nil for configuration. At the same time widgets are not loaded. Exact steps: User installs the pre-cofnigured .watchface. Complications are not loaded since configuration is missing. I print getCurrentConfigurations() and get entries like this: WidgetInfo: - configuration: nil - widgetConfigurationIntent: nil - family: accessoryRectangular - kind: Rectangle Then user force-touches a face and opens editing mode. Returns to watch app, prints infos: WidgetInfo: - configuration: <INIntent: 0x780d290> { style = vol1Logo; } - widgetConfigurationIntent: nil - family: accessoryRectangular - kind: Rectangle – Suddenly intent appears with the correct style and complications start to show up. How do you think, why it happens? Why after .watchface install all the WidgetInfo has nil intent (configuration)? What helps them to load later? You can try this face yourself: https://cdn.watchfaces.co/watchfaces/glance-minimalist.watchface
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286
Mar ’25
HKWorkoutSession.sendToRemoteWorkoutSession doesn't report success or failure
We are seeing an issue where sending data using the asynchronous method HKWorkoutSession.sendToRemoteWorkoutSession(data: Data) will never return in some cases (no success nor failure). This issue is happening for roughly 5% of Workouts started and will stay broken for the whole workout. The other 95% of the workouts, the connection works flawlessly. This happens on both watchOS 10 and 11, and with phones running iOS 17 or 18. The issue is quite random and not reproducible. Our app has thousands of workouts a day that use the workout session workout data send, with constant messages being send every few seconds. In some of those 5% cases the "sendToRemoteWorkoutSession" will throw way later, like 30+ minutes later, if the watch app is awake long enough to capture a log of a failure. Our code uses the same flow as in the sample project: https://developer.apple.com/documentation/healthkit/workouts_and_activity_rings/building_a_multidevice_workout_app Here is some sample code, which is pretty simple. Setup code: let workoutSession = try HKWorkoutSession(healthStore: healthStore, configuration: configuration) workoutSession.delegate = self activeWorkoutSession?.startMirroringToCompanionDevice { success, error in print("Mirroring started on companion device: \(success), error: \(error)") } workoutSession?.prepare() then later we send data using the workout session: do { print("Will send data") try await workoutSession.sendToRemoteWorkoutSession(data: data) print("Successfully sent data") // This nor the error may be called after waiting extensive amounts of time } catch { print("Failed to send data, error: \(error)") // This nor the success may be called after waiting extensive amounts of time } So far, the only fix is to restart the phone and watch at the same time, which is not a great user experience. Is anyone else seeing this issue? or know how to fix this issue?
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564
Mar ’25
Apple watch problem when only play music on watch
I have encountered a problem that the Apple Watch cannot automatically continue playing the music in my playlist even if I have press the cycle button. It stops every song. And I used Apple Music. All these are performed without iPhone. But after restarted the watch, it works fine. I use S10 GPS watch with watch os 11.3.1. I never restarted the watch after I renewed the system. And i believe the problem have existed for more than one year as i saw a post describe the same problem on social media.
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224
Mar ’25
Does DynamicOptionsProvider work on watchOS?
I'm curious, why DynamicOptionsProvider is available on watchOS? Is there any way to present options to the user? For example in Emoji Rangers project: struct EmojiRangerSelection: AppIntent, WidgetConfigurationIntent { static let intentClassName = "EmojiRangerSelectionIntent" static var title: LocalizedStringResource = "Emoji Ranger Selection" static var description = IntentDescription("Select Hero") @Parameter(title: "Selected Hero", default: EmojiRanger.cake, optionsProvider: EmojiRangerOptionsProvider()) var hero: EmojiRanger? struct EmojiRangerOptionsProvider: DynamicOptionsProvider { func results() async throws -> [EmojiRanger] { EmojiRanger.allHeros } } func perform() async throws -> some IntentResult { return .result() } } On watchOS we usually use recommendations() to give the user predefined choice of configured widgets. Meanwhile in AppIntentProvider recommendations are empty: struct AppIntentProvider: AppIntentTimelineProvider { ... func recommendations() -> [AppIntentRecommendation<EmojiRangerSelection>] { [] } } Does it imply that there's a way to use DynamicOptionsProvider on watchOS somehow? BTW, WidgetConfiguration.promptsForUserConfiguration() is one of the methods that are not available on watchOS. And also, the Emoji Ranger project doesn't show widgets (complications) on watchOS out of the box.
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270
Mar ’25
watchOS 10.2 Bluetooth in the background often disconnects
My watch APP needs to keep Bluetooth connected with peripherals whether it is in the foreground or background, but the results of my test show that the connection in the background is very unstable, sometimes you can keep the Bluetooth on for a day, but sometimes it will be disconnected 50 times a day, and every time it is disconnected, I will immediately initiate a reconnection, it is certain that there is no problem with the peripheral Bluetooth, because I have another iOS device that has been stably connected to the peripheral, I want to know what causes this instability, and if there is any solution, if someone can provide relevant advice, I will be very grateful
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934
Mar ’25
Custom watchOS Live Activity
I have followed this video on implementing a custom view for the watchOS 11 Smart Stack Live Activities. However, the UI of my iOS app keeps showing up on the watchOS. `struct widgetLiveActivity: Widget { @Environment(.activityFamily) var activityFamily var body: some WidgetConfiguration { ActivityConfiguration(for: widgetAttributes.self) { context in switch activityFamily { case .small, _: Text("WatchOS UI") case .medium: Text("iOS UI") .activitySystemActionForegroundColor(Color.black) } dynamicIsland: { context in ... } .supplementalActivityFamilies([.small, .medium]) } }`
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Mar ’25