Apple Watch

How to set up and use RTT on Apple Watch

Thursday October 22, 2026 5:47 pm EAT by Abigail Shilets

Real-time text (RTT) is a protocol that transmits audio as you type text. If you have hearing or speech difficulties, Apple Watch with cellular can communicate using RTT when you’re away from your iPhone.

Apple Watch uses built-in Software RTT that you configure in the Apple Watch app, so it requires no additional devices. Text appears on Apple Watch, much like a Messages conversation, and you can send a reply with just a tap.

Important: RTT is not supported by all carriers or in all countries or regions. When making an emergency call in the U.S., Apple Watch sends special characters or tones to alert the operator. The operator’s ability to receive or respond to these tones can vary depending on your location. Apple doesn’t guarantee that the operator can receive or respond to an RTT call.

Turn on RTT

Open the Apple Watch app on your iPhone.
Tap My Watch, go to Accessibility, tap RTT, and then turn on RTT.
Tap Relay Number, then enter the phone number to use for relay calls using RTT.
Turn on Send Immediately to send each character as you type. Turn off to complete messages before sending.

Start an RTT call

Go to the Phone app on your Apple Watch.
Tap Contacts and then turn the Digital Crown to scroll.
Tap the contact you want to call and scroll down. Then tap the RTT button.
Scribble a message, tap a reply from the list, or send an emoji.

Note: Scribble is not available in all languages.

Text appears on Apple Watch, much like a Messages conversation.

Note: You’re notified when the other person on the call doesn’t have RTT enabled.

Answer an RTT call

When you hear or feel the call notification, raise your wrist to see who’s calling.
Tap the Answer button, scroll down, and then tap the RTT button.
Scribble a message, tap a reply from the list, or send an emoji.

Note: Scribble is not available in all languages.

Edit default replies

When you make or receive an RTT call on Apple Watch, you can send a reply with just a tap. To create additional replies of your own, follow these steps:

Open the Apple Watch app on your iPhone.
Tap My Watch, go to Accessibility and tap RTT. Then tap Default Replies.
Tap “Add reply,” enter your reply, then tap Done.

Tip: Typically, replies end with “GA” for go ahead, which tells the other person that you’re ready for their reply.

To edit or delete existing replies, or change the order of replies, tap Edit in the Default Replies screen.

See also

Tags: accessibility, Phone

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How to remove music from Apple Watch

Thursday October 22, 2026 6:36 am EAT by Tyler Stephen

If you’re running out of room to store music on your Apple Watch, you may want to remove the music that was automatically added to your watch or music that you no longer listen to.

You can remove music using the Apple Watch app on your iPhone, and Apple Music subscribers can remove it directly on Apple Watch.

Note: To check how much music your Apple Watch stores, go to the Settings app on your Apple Watch, and from there, go to General > Storage. Or, on your iPhone, go to the Apple Watch app, tap My Watch, and go to General > Storage.

Remove music using your iPhone

Open the Apple Watch app on your iPhone.
Tap My Watch, tap Apps, tap Music, and then do any of the following:
- For music you’ve added: Tap Edit and tap the Delete button next to the items you want to remove, then tap Done.
- For music that was automatically added: Turn off Recent Music or other music automatically added to your Apple Watch.
  
  Note: Music you’ve recently played won’t be automatically added to Apple Watch until you turn on Recent Music again.

Music you remove from your Apple Watch stays on your iPhone.

Remove music using your Apple Watch

Apple Music subscribers can remove music directly on Apple Watch, no matter whether it was added automatically or you chose to add it.

Open the Music app on your Apple Watch.
From the Home screen, tap the Back button and tap Library. Then tap Playlists or Albums.
Tap a playlist or album, tap the More Options button and tap Remove. Then tap Remove Download or Delete from Library.

The music is removed from your Apple Watch and from all other devices that use the same Apple Account.

Note: It’s also possible to delete individual songs from your library. To do that, swipe left on a song, tap the More Options button, and tap Delete from Library, then tap Delete Song. That removes the song from your Apple Watch, any playlists it’s in, and all other devices that use the same Apple Account.

See also

Tag: Music

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How to make and receive FaceTime audio calls on Apple Watch

Wednesday October 21, 2026 2:30 pm EAT by Abigail Shilets

You can make FaceTime audio calls right from the Messages app on your Apple Watch.

You can invite additional people to the call, too. When receiving a FaceTime audio call, you can answer the call, decline the call, or reply with a text, and if you miss it, the caller can record a video message for you.

Start a FaceTime audio call from a Messages conversation

Open the Messages app on your Apple Watch.
In a conversation, tap the recipient’s profile picture, tap the Call button, and then tap FaceTime Audio to make a call.
To invite additional people to the call, do one of the following:
- Tap the More Options button, then tap Add People.
- Tap 2 People Active, tap the Add button at the bottom of the screen, then choose a contact.

Receive a FaceTime audio call

When you receive a FaceTime audio call on your Apple Watch, you have these options:

Answer the call: Tap the answer button.
Decline the call: Tap the end call button.
Reply with a text: Tap the More Options button, then tap a reply. Or tap Custom, tap Create Message, enter a reply, then tap Send.
Add another person to the call after answering: Tap 2 People Active, tap the Add button, then choose a contact, or tap Add People, then choose a contact.
View a recorded video message: If you don’t answer a FaceTime call, the caller can record a video message, then send it to you. To view it, just tap the notification when it arrives, or open the conversation in Messages later, then tap the video.

See also

Tag: FaceTime

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How to recognize sounds using Apple Watch

Wednesday October 21, 2026 6:00 am EAT by Abigail Shilets

Apple Watch can continuously listen for certain sounds—such as a doorbell, siren, or crying baby—and notify you when it recognizes these sounds.

It works on Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4, and your iPhone may need to download the available sounds first.

Here’s how to recognize sounds using Apple Watch.

Note: Sound recognition is available on Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4. Don’t rely on your Apple Watch to recognize sounds in circumstances where you may be harmed or injured, in high-risk or emergency situations, or for navigation. For more information, see Important safety information for Apple Watch.

Set up Sound Recognition

Start the Settings app on your iPhone.
Tap Accessibility, tap Sound & Name Recognition, tap Sound Recognition, and turn on Sound Recognition.

Note: After you turn on Sound Recognition, you may need to wait for your iPhone to download the available sounds to your device.
Tap Sounds and turn on the sounds you want your Apple Watch to recognize.

Turn off Sound Recognition on Apple Watch

Start the Settings app on your iPhone.
Tap Accessibility, scroll down to Hearing, and tap Sound & Name Recognition.
Tap Sound Recognition. Then turn off Detect using Apple Watch.

See also

Tags: accessibility, Sound Recognition

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What’s new in watchOS 27 for Apple Watch

Sunday October 18, 2026 1:37 pm EAT by Moses Johnson

Siri AI is powered by Apple Intelligence and leads what’s new in watchOS 27. You can get new data insights with Workout Buddy and use the new Readiness app, and Find Devices, Find People, and Find Items are now in the single Find My app on your watch.

Here’s what’s new in watchOS 27.

Siri AI (Beta)

Introducing Siri AI (Beta). Siri AI is powered by Apple Intelligence* and makes Siri more helpful than ever. Siri AI is your conversational AI assistant that draws on broad world knowledge, personal context, and what’s on your Apple Watch to get relevant answers and find what you need. Siri AI can also take action in apps using your personal context to help you get things done. And explore the new Siri app to view and continue previous conversations, or start a new one. See What’s new with Siri AI and Use the Siri app.

Note: Siri AI is available in beta on watchOS 27 or later on Apple Watch Series 9 and later, Apple Watch Ultra 2 and later, and Apple Watch SE 3 when paired with an Apple Intelligence-enabled iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, or iPhone 16 model or later with Siri and device language set to a supported language. Available in English to start. Siri AI will not initially be available in the EU on iOS and watchOS. Usage limits may apply.

Apple Intelligence

Workout Buddy enhancements. You can get new data insights with Workout Buddy, including your progress for pace, distance, and workout duration. You can also use Workout Buddy without your paired iPhone nearby with a Wi-Fi or cellular connection. See Use Workout Buddy.

Note: Available in English and Spanish.

Get relevant information while on a call. With Call Context, you can proactively surface relevant information from your apps when you’re calling a business—like a confirmation code from Mail when you call an airline. See While on a call.

Health and fitness

Readiness. On Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4, use the new Readiness app to view a score that helps you understand when you’re likely ready to push yourself and when it’s time to take a rest. See Use the Readiness app on Apple Watch.

Heart Rate. On Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4, you can view a chart of your heart rate measurements as it updates in real time. You can also view your heart rate variability (HRV), which measures the overall variation in time between heart beats. See See your heart rate and View your recovery heart rate variability.

Vitals. On Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4, you can see additional health metrics collected during the day—resting heart rate and heart rate variability. See View your daytime vitals.

Cycle Tracking. Cycle Tracking in the Health app on iPhone supports perimenopause and menopause. You can log your symptoms, and find support with educational resources. If you’re 40 and older, you can receive a notification when your logged cycle patterns are suggestive of perimenopause or other underlying conditions. See Track menopause stages.

Activity. The redesigned pedometer model uses new machine learning algorithms to help measure the distance of your treadmill runs and walks more precisely. And on Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4, the redesigned pedometer model and S11 chip are used to also provide more accurate step counts all day. You can also use the new Steps complication on Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4 to track your steps in real time, right from your watch face. See Start a workout and Track daily activity.

Workout. Extended Workout mode turns on Low Power Mode for the duration of your workout and certain running metrics are unavailable. For even longer battery life, you can also start a Max Extended Workout for Outdoor Walk, Outdoor Run, and Hiking workouts. Certain metrics and splits are unavailable during a Max Extended Workout. See Conserve power during workouts.

Convenience and productivity

Find My app. Find Devices, Find People, and Find Items are now consolidated into the single Find My app. Everything you care about is easier to locate on a map-centric view. See Set up Find My.

Open Smart Stack widgets with a single tap. When you’re viewing widgets in the Smart Stack, perform the single tap gesture to select a widget. See Use tap gestures.

Discover music in an instant. On Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4, Shazam leverages Apple’s on-device audio intelligence to quickly help identify music in the Smart Stack. See Identify songs with Shazam.

Sound Recognition in Accessibility. Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4 can continuously listen for certain sounds—such as a doorbell, siren, or crying baby—and notify you when it recognizes these sounds. See Recognize sounds using Apple Watch.

Watch faces and personalization

Dynamic app grid. Get to your apps faster with the new dynamic app grid. This automatically highlights Siri-suggested apps, including your most popular and recently used apps—with the Siri app always in the center. See Use apps on Apple Watch.

Explore new watch faces. Switch things up with new watch faces for Apple Watch. Pride Luminance is a dynamic analog face that is inspired by multiple Pride flags. And use the Siri Modular face for making quick requests to Siri. See Apple Watch faces and their features.

Not all features, Apple says, are available in all areas and on all models.

*Apple Intelligence is available with Siri and device language set to Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Danish, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish, or Vietnamese. Some features may not be available in all regions or languages. Some devices may not be available in all regions. Siri AI is available in beta in iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27, watchOS 27, and visionOS 27 and requires an Apple Intelligence–enabled device set to a supported language. Available in English to start. Siri AI will not be initially available in the EU on iOS, iPadOS, and watchOS. Certain Apple Intelligence features that rely on server-side models are subject to daily usage limits, including but not limited to Siri AI, Intelligent Photo Editing Tools, Image Playground, and AFM 3 Cloud models in Shortcuts. Daily limits may vary by feature, request complexity, system demand, system policies, and other factors. Expanded access to such features will be available for a fee in the future. Use of these features is subject to the Apple Intelligence Terms and Conditions.

Tag: watchOS

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How to control Live Listen on iPhone from Apple Watch

Friday October 16, 2026 5:53 am EAT by Tyler Stephen

With Live Listen, you can stream sound from the microphone on iPhone to your MFi hearing devices or AirPods. This can help you hear better in some situations—for example, when having a conversation in a noisy environment.

And you don’t have to reach for your phone to control it. When you use Live Listen on your iPhone, you can remotely start, stop, or jump back in the session from your nearby paired Apple Watch. With Live Captions generated on your iPhone, you can also view the transcription of the conversation directly on your wrist, with the text appearing on your Apple Watch screen in real time as your iPhone picks up audio.

It’s especially helpful when you want to discreetly read conversations or need visual reinforcement of audio content, whether you’re in a noisy restaurant, attending a lecture, or simply prefer reading along, or when it’s hard to hear clearly.

Note: Live Captions isn’t available in all languages, countries, or regions. The accuracy of Live Captions may vary and shouldn’t be relied upon in high-risk or emergency situations.

Set up Apple Watch as a remote control for Live Listen

Starting Live Listen requires turning on Remote Control and adding the Hearing Controls to Control Center on Apple Watch first.

Note: You need your iPhone and Apple Watch signed in to the same Apple Account.

Start the Settings app on your iPhone.
Tap Accessibility, tap Audio & Visual and tap Live Listen. Turn on Remote Control.
On your Apple Watch, press the side button to open Control Center.
Scroll to the bottom and tap Edit. Tap the Add button.
Tap Accessibility and then tap the Hearing Controls button to add the Hearing Controls to Control Center.

Use Apple Watch as a remote control for Live Listen

From Apple Watch, you can start a new session or control one that’s already in progress.

Position your iPhone near the sound source.
Press the side button to open Control Center and tap the Hearing Controls button.
In the Hearing Devices window, scroll down to Live Listen.
Do any of the following:
- Start a session: Turn on Live Listen.
- Rewind: Tap Go back 10 seconds.
- Return to the live audio stream: Tap Skip back to live.
- View the live transcription: Tap Live Listen Captions.
- Stop the session: Turn off Live Listen.

See also

Tags: accessibility, Control Center

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How to use Workout Buddy in Workout on Apple Watch

Tuesday October 13, 2026 11:34 pm EAT by Abigail Shilets

With Apple Intelligence, you can use Workout Buddy to get encouragement during your workouts based on real-time analysis of your fitness history and data from your current workout. It lets you know when you’ve hit a new milestone, like running your fastest 10K or crossing 500 miles, and gives insights on your pace, distance, and workout duration. Your Apple Watch needs to be paired with an Apple Intelligence-enabled iPhone and Bluetooth headphones, too. You can use Workout Buddy with the following workout types:

Outdoor and Indoor Run
Outdoor and Indoor Walk
Outdoor and Indoor Cycle
Hiking
Elliptical
Stair Stepper
High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT)
Functional and Traditional Strength Training

Note: Workout Buddy on watchOS 27 or later is an Apple Intelligence feature available when your Apple Watch is paired with an Apple Intelligence-enabled iPhone and Bluetooth headphones with device and Siri language set to English or Spanish. Apple Intelligence is not available in all regions or languages.*

Set Up Workout Buddy

Go to the Workout app on your Apple Watch.
Turn the Digital Crown to the workout you want to do.

To view all workouts, tap the Add button at the bottom of the screen.
Tap the Alerts button and tap Workout Buddy. Then turn on Use Workout Buddy.
Choose a voice, tap the Back button, and then tap the Back button again.
When you’re ready to start your workout, tap the Start button.

To mute Workout Buddy during a workout, swipe right, then tap Mute.

Quick tip: Even without your paired iPhone nearby, you can use Workout Buddy on Apple Watch, but it requires a cellular or Wi-Fi connection.

Workout Buddy may give you audio motivation when you hit a milestone during your workout, such as closing all your Activity rings or reaching your 100th mile for the year. When you end the workout, Workout Buddy gives a summary that includes the total time, calories burned, and more.

See also

Tags: Apple Intelligence, Fitness

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How to run with Apple Watch

Tuesday October 13, 2026 11:31 pm EAT by Moses Johnson

Your Apple Watch can help you track your running workouts. When you start a running workout in the Workout app, you can use several different workout views, with metrics like heart rate, average pace, running power and more. You can include prebuilt workout views that focus on Heart Rate Zones, elevation, power, Activity rings, and more.

When you’re ready to go for a run, you can set a running pace, race your last or best time on a route, or get accurate lap times on a track. You can also create a custom workout that suits your fitness needs, and afterward, training load in the Activity app shows how the intensity of your workouts may affect your body over time. And with the Action button on Apple Watch Ultra models, you can quickly start a running workout and mark segments.

Start a running workout

When you’re ready to start running, go to the Workout app on your Apple Watch, turn the Digital Crown to Outdoor Run or Indoor Run, then tap the Start button. After you complete your run, you can view completed workouts in the Activity app or in the Fitness app on iPhone.

Start a workout on Apple Watch

See your workout, meditation, and dive history

Customize workout views

You can choose the workout views you want to see during your run (like Segment, Elevation, and Split) and then reorder them based on your preferences. Turn the Digital Crown to Outdoor or Indoor Run, then tap the Views button. Scroll through the workout views, then tap Include next to the workout views you want to appear during the workout.

Workout views feature metrics like heart rate, average pace, vertical oscillation, ground contact time, stride length, running power, and more. To edit the metrics you want to see in the Metrics workout views, tap the Edit button.

Customize workout views

Run your way

You can set up the running workout that works best for you in the Workout app. Pacer helps you set a running pace and see if you’re ahead or behind, for example, while Race Route lets you race your last or best time on a route, and Track Detection gets you accurate lap times on a track.

If you want to customize your workout, turn the Digital Crown to Outdoor or Indoor Run, tap the Goals button, tap Custom, then tap the Add button. You can add warmup and cooldown times, set alerts, add work and recovery intervals, and more.

Start an outdoor run workout

Create a Custom Workout

Track your training load

Use training load on your Apple Watch to see how the intensity of your workouts may impact your body over time. Go to the Activity app, tap the Workload button, then turn the Digital Crown to view your training load over the last 7 days. You can also see your overnight vitals for additional insights.

Track your training load

Run with Apple Watch Ultra

The Action button on Apple Watch Ultra models can start a running workout and mark a segment.

You can also use Precision Start to start a workout without a countdown. After selecting a running workout, swipe left and tap Start (or press the Action button if you’ve set it to Workout).

Customize the Action button

Turn Precision Start on or off

And more…

Use a third-party app

When you complete a running workout with a third-party app, you can view a summary in the Fitness app on iPhone. You can also view workouts you complete in the Workout app in a compatible third-party app.
Play audio

During your workout, you can listen to music, podcasts, and audiobooks, and control playback on your Apple Watch.

Play audio during a workout
Start a Check In

You can use Check In to automatically notify a friend when a workout session is completed, after a specific period of time has passed, or when you arrive at your destination.

Use Check In
Send messages

Send and respond to messages while you’re out on a run.

Read and respond to messages
Make phone calls

Use the Phone app to make and answer phone calls while you’re running.

Make phone calls
Purchase items

You can use your Apple Watch to buy items like bottled water.

Make purchases with Apple Pay

See also

Tag: Fitness

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How to go cycling with Apple Watch

Tuesday October 13, 2026 11:20 pm EAT by Stacey Butler

You can automatically connect to Bluetooth-enabled accessories to add cadence and power metrics to your cycling workout view. It’s automatic. You can also view estimates of your functional threshold power—the highest level of intensity you can maintain for an hour.

When you start a cycling workout, it automatically shows up as a Live Activity on your iPhone. On your iPhone, it can take over the entire display, making it easier to see your metrics while on a ride. You can also set up Power Zones, based on an estimate of your functional threshold power.

Start a cycling workout

Go to the Workout app on your Apple Watch.
Turn the Digital Crown to Outdoor Cycle or Indoor Cycle and tap the Start button.
On your iPhone, tap the workout timer on the Lock Screen to see all of your metrics.

To stop viewing your metrics on your iPhone, swipe right on your Apple Watch, then tap Stop.

Connect to compatible Bluetooth accessories for cycling workouts

Open the Settings app on your Apple Watch.
Tap Bluetooth and then below Health Devices, tap the sensor you want to connect.
Below Set Up Device, tap the Info button next to an option to change the wheel size or crank length.

When you begin a cycling workout, an accessory you’ve set up connects to your Apple Watch automatically.

Note: In Apple Fitness+ cycling workouts, compatible Bluetooth accessories connected to your Apple Watch track metrics like cadence or power automatically.

About Power Zones

To learn about the power of your cycling workouts, check the Power Zone information on your Apple Watch. Power Zones come from an estimate of your functional threshold power, or FTP, which you’ll have after you connect your Apple Watch to Bluetooth-enabled cycling accessories like power meters, speed sensors, and cadence sensors.

Apple Watch shows Power Zones in five to eight segments, which are estimated effort levels that range from easier to harder. Keeping an eye on your Power Zone can make your cycling workouts more efficient and challenge you to improve your fitness.

Note: Power Zones are calculated only if you’ve entered your date of birth, height, and weight in the Fitness app on your iPhone.

Set up Power Zones

Open the Settings app on your Apple Watch.
Go to Workout and tap Cycling Power.
Tap Custom and enter an FTP.

When you enter an FTP, your power zones will be automatically recalculated using the same percentages.
Tap 6 Zones below Power Zones. Choose the total number of Power Zones.
Tap a zone to enter lower and upper limits.

You can also open the Apple Watch app on your iPhone, tap My Watch, go to Workout > Cycling Power, tap Custom, enter an FTP, change the total number of Power Zones, then tap a zone to enter lower and upper limits.

See also

Tags: Bluetooth, Fitness

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How to stay active with Apple Watch

Tuesday October 13, 2026 11:17 pm EAT by Stacey Butler

Apple Watch can track your activity and workouts, and encourage you to lead a more active life through gentle reminders and friendly competitions.

It’s how your watch keeps track of how much you move, how often you stand, and how long you exercise, and you can pause your rings if you need a break.

Close each ring

Each day, your Apple Watch tracks how much you move, how long you exercise, and how often you stand up. You set goals in the Activity app and check your progress throughout the day, scrolling down for more details like your total steps and distance. When you’ve completed a goal, Apple Watch lets you know.

Track daily activity

Start a workout

In the Workout app, turn the Digital Crown to the workout you want, whether it’s a daily workout like a run or swim or a multisport workout for your next triathlon. You can customize your workout view to keep the metrics you want to track a glance away. And if you forget to start your workout on Apple Watch for some common types of workouts, you’ll get a reminder to record one and get credit for the exercise you’ve already done.

Start a workout

View metrics during a workout

To help you monitor your progress during a workout, Apple Watch displays metrics like active calories, heart rate, and distance. Raise your wrist to see how you’re doing.

Check your progress during a workout

Pause your rings

If you need to take a break, you can pause your Activity rings for a day, week, month, or more—without breaking your award streak. You can pause your rings for up to 90 days and resume at any time. Tap the Weekly Summary button, turn the Digital Crown to scroll to the bottom of the screen, then tap Pause Rings.

Pause your rings

Tag: Fitness

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