What are you able to truly do with an Apple Watch?

So, you have determined to spend money on an Apple Watch to accompany your iPhone. You are excited to get began and already know all of the fundamentals — you should use the Apple Watch to trace exercises, obtain notifications out of your cellphone and companion apps, and, in fact, inform time. However there’s a lot extra an Apple Watch can do. It really works so seamlessly with an iPhone and may even perform with out one when you’ve got an LTE mannequin.

There are just a few things you should do right away with an Apple Watch. However to get essentially the most out of the smartwatch, you may need to leverage all of the options it has to supply, together with a few of the newest ones added with watchOS 11. Amongst these are additionally a few things you probably didn’t know your Apple Watch could do.

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Apple Watch Sequence 9

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Entry digital playing cards, IDs, tickets, and extra

Arrange Apple Pockets and Apple Pay

You may already know that you should use your Apple Watch to pay for objects at appropriate service provider terminals, however the query is, have you ever set this up?

I admittedly went an excellent six months with my Apple Watch earlier than I lastly arrange Apple Pay on mine. I already had it on my cellphone and thought there was no massive distinction — boy, was I unsuitable. I used to be kicking myself for not having achieved it sooner. It is so handy to have the ability to faucet your wrist at a terminal to seize your espresso on the native café and even pay on your meals on the drive-thru with out worrying that you’re going to drop your cellphone or bodily card.

For individuals who commute through public transit, utilizing your Watch to faucet on and off for the subway, bus, or prepare, is a game-changer. On a latest journey to New York Metropolis, I beloved with the ability to just do that. In my hometown of Toronto, I faucet on and off the GO Prepare after I journey to the center of town, then once more on the subway as soon as I’ve arrived to get from level A to level B.

What you won’t understand is that there are different playing cards, like ID playing cards, loyalty rewards playing cards, transit playing cards, and greater than you possibly can load into Apple Pockets, too. Flip by way of them on the Watch’s display screen and faucet shortly and simply. You possibly can even load issues like occasion tickets and flight boarding passes.

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Apple Pay makes purchases extra handy with only a faucet of your iPhone or Apple Watch. You can too checkout on-line with out digging out your pockets.

Navigate to locations

Get turn-by-turn instructions and prompts

Apple Watch works with not solely Apple Maps but additionally Google Maps and different appropriate third-party navigation apps for offering detailed, turn-by-turn instructions as you navigate to locations. You are able to do this whereas driving, glancing over at your wrist as your hand is on the wheel to see the place your subsequent flip needs to be, or whereas strolling.

With the latter, it’s going to buzz to advise you when the subsequent flip is arising. It is a easy option to navigate to unfamiliar locations or in unfamiliar areas, whether or not you are taking a stroll in a foreign country or driving your youngster to a neighborhood celebration.

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Set off your cellphone’s digital camera

Take excellent group and particular person photographs

Activate the digital camera app on the Apple Watch and it’ll set off your paired iPhone digital camera. From there, you possibly can take a selfie or swap the digital camera from rear to entrance to seize moments on a timer. It is a good way to get group photographs or selfies with out outstretching your arm.

It is also a great way to position your cellphone the place you need it, like on a tripod. Then, sit again and set off the picture with out having to push the cellphone’s digital camera button and doubtlessly mess up your excellent set-up. Take into consideration organising your cellphone at a toddler’s faculty live performance and utilizing the Watch to seize moments whilst you nonetheless take pleasure in a full view of the dear occasion. Whereas we are able to hope {that a} future iteration of Apple Watch might have its own camera, for now, utilizing it as a set off for the iPhone digital camera continues to be a useful characteristic.

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Play music

Entry downloaded playlists and not using a cellphone

When you obtain music playlists to the Watch, you possibly can join it on to Bluetooth headphones or a Bluetooth speaker and play tunes proper from the Watch itself with out an Web connection. It is particularly helpful once you’re on the health club, for instance, and also you need to go away your cellphone within the automotive or locker. Possibly you are going out for a run and need to be as gentle as potential to beat your PR.

The most recent Apple Watches have about 32GB of space for storing for apps in addition to content material like music. It really works with Apple Music recordsdata and companies like Spotify with a Premium connection. However when you’ve got your cellphone close by, you may as well stream from that system and use the Watch to manage playback. When you’ve got an Apple Watch Mobile version, you possibly can stream even with out your cellphone utilizing the wearable’s personal devoted service plan and entry.

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Get helpful app notifications

Actual-time reside updates with the brand new Stacks

Apple launched Sensible Stack with watchOS 10, and the characteristic has been up to date with watchOS 11. It now helps Stay Actions, so you possibly can see issues like the most recent sports activities scores or get an replace on when your Uber arrives. There are additionally new widgets to ship issues like extreme climate alerts, Coaching Load information, and entry to the three most lately used objects in an app, like songs in Apple Music or Exercise sorts.

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Test In for security

Let family and friends know you are okay

One of many many security options of the Apple Watch known as Test In, which helps you to share your arrival standing at a vacation spot with mates or household in order that they know you could have arrived there safely.

It is nice for teenagers, the aged, or those that are venturing out on their very own in unfamiliar territory or late at evening. Open the Messages window and your dialog with a selected recipient. Faucet the “+” signal and select Test In. Set a desired timer primarily based on how lengthy it ought to take you to get to your vacation spot and ship the message. From there, Test In when you arrive.

You can too now do that proper from a exercise, superb for many who go for early morning runs earlier than the solar has come up or late-night walks or runs after the solar has gone down. Begin a Exercise from the Watch, like an Out of doors Stroll. As soon as the time begins, scroll proper, then down, and choose Test In. Faucet the icon with initials on the prime, proper to decide on which contact you need to Test In with and choose the time — which is defaulted to When Exercise Ends. Then choose Ship.

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Make calls and obtain messages

Join with or with out your cellphone

Along with your iPhone in your particular person or close by, whether or not you could have an Apple Watch + Mobile mannequin or not, you possibly can make and receive calls right from the Watch. Incoming calls will come by way of as notifications on the Apple Watch, as many know. However you may as well reply proper from it and discuss by way of the Watch’s built-in speaker and mic or with a linked pair of Bluetooth headphones. This works with each mobile calls and FaceTime Audio calls. Conversely, you possibly can choose anybody out of your contact listing from the Watch and provoke a name to them as nicely. With an Apple Watch + Mobile version, you are able to do this even when your iPhone isn’t with you.

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Get medicine reminders

Keep on prime of your well being

The medicine reminders characteristic is a superb possibility for many who should take medication usually. Set every part up within the app, together with figuring out the precise medicine, how usually it’s essential take it, at what time, and at what dosage. It is going to even embody a cute picture of the tablet or ointment, primarily based on what’s out there in Apple’s library.

Open the Apple Well being app, choose the Browse tab on the backside, proper, then Medicines. From right here, you possibly can add medicines and even study of any potential drug interactions. When the time you could have set to take the medicine arrives, a notification pops up on the Apple Watch — take your medication, after which Log it proper from the Watch.

You possibly can even arrange Vital Alerts for essential medicines for issues like your coronary heart, blood stress, diabetes, or different situations.

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Retailer Medical ID info

In case of an emergency

Within the occasion of an emergency, not solely does Apple Watch have options like fall and crash detection, it additionally has a spot the place your medical ID particulars may be saved. Set this to be viewable even when the cellphone is locked on the Emergency display screen, and first responders or anybody on the scene can discover out essential particulars about you. These might embody allergy symptoms to sure medicines, who your emergency contact is, what medicines you are taking, and any medical situations you could have. It might be life-saving particulars.

So as to add this info, open the Apple Well being app in your iPhone and choose your Profile icon on the prime, proper. Choose Medical ID and allow Share When Locked by tapping the slider on the precise. Return to the earlier display screen and choose Well being Particulars to additionally add your blood kind — and even Fitzpatrick pores and skin kind — in addition to different related notes.

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Benefit from your Apple Watch

Now that you’ve got one, use its full potential

There’s much more an Apple Watch can do than simply monitor your exercises and vitals and ship notifications from a linked cellphone. Take advantage of out of the wearable by utilizing all of the instruments it affords at your disposal.

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Apple Watch Sequence 9