With the watchOS 11 update, Apple has added a number of watchOS 11 innovations to the Apple Watch Series 6 or newer. The software update is the follow-up to last year’s anniversary edition and adds a number of innovations, including; training load, smart stack personalization, Vitals app and more.
It is more than worthwhile to discuss all the new options. Apple has already announced the necessary innovations on its website, but there are still some useful functions in the watchOS update that Apple did not discuss during the WWDC presentation or on their information page. Below you will find an overview of all new watchOS 11 features for Apple Watch.
Good to know: watchOS 11 can be installed on the Apple Watch SE 2nd generation, Apple Watch Ultra (2) and Apple Watch Series 6, 6, 7, 8 and series 9
Announced by Apple
Below we list all the watchOS 11 options that Apple shared during WWDC or on their website.
Vitals app
- Use the Vital apps to quickly check important health values
- Gain insight into your overall health
- View health values ​​such as heart rate, respiratory rate, wrist temperature, etc. from the Apple Watch
- See at a glance whether there are any deviations
- Vitals establishes a typical range for each of your health metrics collected while you sleep.
- Get notifications when two or more values ​​are out of the usual range
Cycle
- Ability to indicate that you are pregnant
- Track your wearing time on the Apple Watch and Health app
- Record common pregnancy symptoms
- Suggestion to adjust threshold for heart rate notifications
- Extra support for your physical and mental health
Activity
- Pause your activity rings without sacrificing your goals
- Customize Ring goals for each day of the week
- Personalize the overview in the Condition app (iPhone) by adjusting the tiles
- New stats for running, cycling, swimming and more in Fitness
Training load
- Record the intensity and duration of workouts
- What effects this has on your body over a longer period of time
- Load workouts from the last 7 days, compared to the last 28 days
- Manually indicate the intensity after each workout on a scale of 1 to 10
- Cardio workouts use an algorithm that automatically generates an estimated exertion rating
- Show training load in Vitals app, Activity and Fitness app (iPhone)
Workout
- Improved GPS positioning
- View distance and route maps for more workouts, including rowing
- Custom workouts are now also available for indoor swimming
- Tactile signals when it’s time for the next interval (custom workout)
- Next in Workout showing how long the current interval remains, plus a preview of the next interval.
Check in
- Start a Check-In from Messages by entering your destination or arrival time
- Possibility to link a Check-in to an outdoor workout
Photos of the dial
- Renewed display with more options
- Filter your favorites and select desired categories
- Machine learning quickly scans thousands of photos
- Recommendations based on the design, composition and even facial expressions
- Algorithm searches for the best composition for depth, among other things
- Personalize your watch face by changing the size, format and font of the time
- Dynamic mode that shows you a new image every time you lift your wrist
Translation app
- Instantly translate spoken text from the Apple Watch
- Play translation out loud and slow down if necessary
- Translation widget for Smart Stack that automatically appears when you’re traveling
Smart stack and widgets
- Interactive widgets to use an app directly from the smart stack
- Widgets display automatically based on time, location and more
- Support live activities in the smart stack
- Added new widgets including: Shazam, photos, workout, vitals, etc.
Tap-double gesture
- Scroll through apps with the double tap gesture
- Apple apps further optimized for this gesture so you can control even more buttons
- Developers can also use the double tap gesture in their apps
Other
- Hiking tours for all US National Parks in Apple Maps, including offline mode
- Create walking tours on your iPhone and save them offline on your Apple Watch
- Extensive ticketing features provide more information about tickets in Apple Wallet
- Tap to Cash lets you send and receive Apple Cash by simply holding your Apple Watch near another Apple Watch or iPhone (US only)
- Ultra Wideband house keys in Home to unlock smart door locks
watchOS 11 innovations that Apple did not tell us
Discovered new possibilities? Share them in the comments and we will add them.
- Volume control in Control Center for precise changes
- Siri watch face no longer available, smart stack of widgets replaced it
- Automatic detection of sleep, manual activation no longer required
- Customize default ringtone and notification sounds
- Dark display for Stopwatch app
- Training edge for Modular Ultra dial (shows vital sign abnormalities and training load)
- will be added later