Gurman: Widgets to Be ‘Central Part’ of watchOS 10’s Interface

watchOS 10 will introduce an all-new system of widgets for interacting with the Apple Watch, according to Bloomberg‘s Mark Gurman.

watchOS 10 Icon Feature
In the latest edition of his “Power On” newsletter, Gurman explained that widgets will become a “central part” of the Apple Watch’s interface with โ€ŒwatchOS 10โ€Œ. He compared the new system to Glances, the widgets interface that launched on the original Apple Watch before being scrapped within a few years, and the style of widgets that iOS 14 brought to the iPhone.

siriwatchfaceseries4siriwatchfaceseries4The Siri watch face introduced in watchOS 4.

The new interface will apparently be “reminiscent” of the โ€ŒSiriโ€Œ watch face that was introduced in watchOS 4, but as an overlay for any Apple Watch face. “It’s also similar to widget stacks, a feature in iOS and iPadOS that lets users pile many widgets into one and scroll through them,” Gurman added.

The plan is to let users scroll through a series of different widgets โ€” for activity tracking, weather, stock tickers, calendar appointments and more โ€” rather than having them launch apps.

Apple is also apparently testing changes to the functions performed by the Apple Watch’s buttons. For example, a press of the Digital Crown may now launch the new widgets view, rather than navigate to the home screen.

Gurman believes that the move is an admission that an iPhone-like app experience “doesn’t always make sense on a watch” since “Apple Watch apps have barely caught on.” Due to being a radical departure from the app-centric experience existing Apple Watch users are used to, Apple may make the new interface optional.

The changes are part of what Gurman claims will be one of the Apple Watch’s biggest software updates since its introduction and the most significant change to the Apple Watch this year, as only minor hardware updates are expected to be unveiled later this year.

Popular Stories

iOS 16.5 for iPhone Coming Soon With Two New Features

Apple made the third beta of iOS 16.5 available to developers and public testers earlier this week. So far, only two new features and changes have been discovered for the iPhone, including a Sports tab in the Apple News app and the ability to start a screen recording with Siri. More details about these changes are outlined below.
iOS 16.5 will likely be publicly released in May, and it is…

Alleged iOS 17 Wallet and Health App Redesigns Shown Off in Mockups

The Wallet and Health apps are rumored to be getting updates in iOS 17, and leaker @analyst941 today shared some mockups that allegedly represent the design changes that we can expect to see.
In the Wallet app mockup, there’s a navigation bar at the bottom that separates the different functions available in the app. Cards, Cash, Keys, IDs, and Orders are listed categories. Note that this is…

Apple Pay Later Financing Feature Continues Rolling Out to iPhone Users

A pre-release version of Apple Pay Later continues to roll out to randomly selected iPhone users, as noted by tech enthusiast Will Sigmon. Built into the Wallet app, the “buy now, pay later” feature lets qualifying customers split a purchase made with Apple Pay into four equal payments over six weeks, with no interest or fees.
iPhone users will see an “Early Access” banner for Apple Pay…

Atomic macOS Stealer Malware Can Steal Keychain Info, Files, Browser Wallets and More

While Apple’s Macs are less targeted by malware than Windows PCs, concerning Mac malware does pop up regularly. This week, there’s new Mac malware out in the wild that Mac users should be aware of.
Called Atomic macOS Stealer (AMOS), the malware was found on Telegram by Cyble Research. A Telegram user was selling access to the malware, which is designed to steal sensitive information like…

Report Details Turmoil Behind Apple’s AI Efforts, ‘Siri X,’ and Headset Voice Controls

Siri and Apple’s use of AI has been severely held back by caution and organizational dysfunction, according to over three dozen former Apple employees who spoke to The Information’s Wayne Ma.
The extensive paywalled report explains why former Apple employees who worked in the company’s AI and machine learning groups believe that a lack of ambition and organizational dysfunction have hindered …

Gurman: Widgets to Be ‘Central Part’ of watchOS 10’s Interface

watchOS 10 will introduce an all-new system of widgets for interacting with the Apple Watch, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman.
In the latest edition of his “Power On” newsletter, Gurman explained that widgets will become a “central part” of the Apple Watch’s interface with watchOS 10. He compared the new system to Glances, the widgets interface that launched on the original Apple Watch…

Comments are closed.