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Apple has looked to reinvigorate the Apple Watch with watchOS 3 with improvements to performance and navigation along with new features related to fitness and health.

New physical features include new watch faces including Minnie Mouse, Activity and Numerals. Apps – such as, Workout, Music or Messages – will now be able to launch from the watch face. Customers can add complications to the Photo, Motion or Timelapse watch faces.

As regards performance, users can press the side button and access the new Dock, with their recent and favourite apps, from where they can launch their favourite native and third-party apps. The receipt and sending of messages has been improved in this update with stickers, handwriting, full-screen effects and invisible ink – revealing the message only after a friend swipes over it.

On the fitness and health front, the update facilitates interaction with friends, family or even a personal trainer with regard to progress on Activity rings, finished workouts and earned achievements. Activity sharing has been integrated with the Messages app along with new Smart Replies built for Activity and Workouts. The Activity app experience is now also optimized for wheelchair users.

Finally, the all-new Breathe app pushes users to take time out to undertake short deep breathing sessions. On completion, with aid of calming visualisation and haptic cues, users receive a heart rate summary.

The new version will be available as a free update to Apple Watch in the fall of 2016.

 

 

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