From widgets to cycling workouts, here’s what’s new in watchOS 10

Apple has made available the first public beta of watchOS 10, along with those of the new operating systems for iPhone, iPad and Mac presented at WWDC in June.
While on other devices the innovations are largely incremental, on Apple Watch the operating system update brings with it a radical redesign of the interface and some ways of interacting, together with a long list of additional features. The new firmware is one of the richest since the launch of the Apple Watch in 2014 to today. Apple also focused its efforts this year on a major update to the Workout app with the introduction of advanced features for cyclists.

«With last year’s update of watchOS we focused on improving the measurement capacity of the Training app, applying those innovations primarily to running, a sport in itself but also a fundamental training activity for many other sports». explains to Italian.Tech Eric Charles, Apple Watch Product Manager. «This year we have taken a step forward, instead applying those and other innovations to cycling».

Apple’s goal for this year’s update for bike lovers, Charles says, is similar to last year’s goal for running. That is: to offer sportsmen advanced functions that can simplify the life of semi-professionals and professionals, but which can also be used easily by the amateur who does not have competitive ambitions.

Bluetooth accessories

“To make a difference in cycling, we knew the goal was to enable access to additional metrics that are important for quantifying the sport, namely speed, cadence and power,” adds Charles. “This meant enabling the connection of the Apple Watch with a number of third-party accessories in an efficient and simplified way”.

And this is the first relevant novelty: with watchOS 10 users will have the possibility to quickly connect their devices to measure training parameters.
The pairing takes place directly from the Apple Watch settings and must be performed only once, after which the Apple Watch will keep the accessory in its memory and will connect automatically without the need for additional actions.

Simplified functional threshold power

The possibility of connecting accessories for measuring power to the Watch has enabled new possibilities for processing metrics directly on the wearable. One measurement in particular is greatly simplified compared to current calculation techniques: the FTP, Functional Threshold Power (in Italian “Potenza di Soglia Functionale”), i.e. the estimate of the maximum power that the cyclist is able to sustain for one hour.

“FTP has traditionally been a key metric for cyclists, but it’s also difficult to measure and calculate correctly, requiring a long and challenging 20- or 60-minute test,” explains Craig Bolton, Director of Fitness Technologies at Italian.Tech. Apple. «With watchOS 10, however, the Apple Watch is able to calculate the cyclist’s FTP in the background and automatically».

The estimate is made by recording at least five outdoor cycling workouts lasting at least ten minutes each on the Watch, obviously with a power meter installed on the bike and connected to the Watch via Bluetooth. Alternatively, professional cyclists who already have a previously made FTP calculation available can enter the data directly in the settings. Apple’s new algorithm also comes in handy here though.

“The more the cyclist trains, the more the Apple Watch is able to fine-tune and automatically update the FTP,” says Bolton. Differential measurement works similar to recording another parameter, the temperature of the wrist, which Apple Watch Series 8 and Apple Watch Ultra are able to record after at least five nights. The data, once recorded, is always visible in the Health app.

With the FTP measurement, Apple was also able to create a new way of monitoring training with so-called “Power Zones”, or power zones. With the new display, which can be activated from the screens available during training, the cyclist can check which power phase he is in, thus changing his pace accordingly.
The graphics adopted by Apple are the same as the heart rate zones that are already present for some types of training on Apple Watch, such as running or HIIT (interval training).
Along with the power zone view, Apple has added two more: one to track your speed and another to show how power changes over time during your workout. All can be selected as additional screens in the workout customization options.

Competing against ourselves

With the update, Apple has also created three new custom workouts for cyclists. “Now you can create an interval workout for cycling as well, but you can also choose to always display your pace,” Bolton explains. «Just enter time and distance as goals and the Apple Watch warns us if we are proceeding at the right pace, if we are ahead of time or if we need to speed up. Finally there is a new mode that allows you to compete against yourself on a track on which you have already trained before».

Recognition of the route takes place automatically: in Apple’s intentions, the new training mode is designed not only for professionals who want to measure themselves against themselves, but also for those who want to add a little variety to the journey of the same route by bike. for example going from home to work and vice versa.

“We believe it’s not only a useful feature, but also a fun one for those who don’t ride bikes, but still use their bike very often to get around,” says Bolton.

iPhone as bike computer

With the watchOS 10 cycling updates, Apple has gone one step further and brought all the new views available on the wearable to the iPhone as well, which thus becomes a real cycling computer.

“Many people are passionate about cycling, but not enough to buy a dedicated bike computer,” Bolton explains. Now with Apple Watch there will be no need, because it will be enough to use the associated iPhone. «Just start a workout on the Watch and a Live Activity will automatically appear on the iPhone. With a tap on the activity pop-up, the display expands and the iPhone shows all the statistics that the Watch is showing at that moment in full screen».

An idea as simple as it is effective, because it frees the cyclist from the need to remove his hand from the handlebar to check the clock. On the iPhone, the screens available are the same as activated on the Watch, optimized for the larger screen.
The only drawback of this function is that it is only available for cycling: instead it would also be very useful for other workouts during which the iPhone is supported in a static position (such as functional gymnastics or HIIT).

Third party workouts

With watchOS 10 Apple also introduces a new API (programming interface) thanks to which third-party apps will be able to create personalized workouts, which are then available for selection in the workout list.

“Now a coach or an athlete can create custom workouts through external apps and import them directly into the workouts available on the Watch,” says Bolton. Coaches and athletes can also organize training according to the day of the week, programming a customized training plan.
The API went relatively quietly at WWDC, but in hindsight it is a fundamental novelty, perhaps one of the most important of the update for sportsmen, because it removes all limits to the customization of workouts on the device, so far limited only to those made available provision from Apple.

The other main news, in brief

With watchOS 10 there are not only updates for sports and cyclists, but also a new interface and a renewed way of interacting. Here are the most interesting news in brief:

• New “Smart Collections”: widgets chosen automatically by the system (or manually locked in place) will be available on the main screen of the Watch. They collect the most important functions and statistics of various apps. They are functional for changing the way you interact with the Watch: now with a rotation of the Crown it is possible to access the list of widgets, and thus always have at hand a series of useful information that does not necessarily have to crowd the Dial
• New Snoopy and Palette dial: the two new “Watch Faces” are a small masterpiece of interactive design. The Snoopy watch face comes alive with the days of the week, time of day, weather, and so on. The palette dial, on the other hand, uses an abstract animation that changes according to the time and never repeats the same color combination for at least two days.
• All Apple apps have been redesigned to reflect the new design standard which provides for a different organization of the home screen grid and compatibility with Smart Collections.
• Control Center can now be opened from within any app by pressing the side button instead of the Crown. A tap of the Crown instead takes you back to the main app view, which now scrolls vertically instead of scaling in size with the rotation of the Crown
• New three-dimensional map for the Compass app with indication of altitude changes during the trek.
• New feature to track moods and mood to keep track of mental health in an easy way.

Compatibility and installation of the Beta

WatchOS 10 can be installed on the following Apple Watch models:

• Apple Watch Series 4
• Apple Watch Series 5
• Apple Watch SE
• Apple Watch Series 6
• Apple Watch Series 7
• Apple Watch Series 8
• Apple Watch Ultra

To install the watchOS 10 public beta, you need to register with Apple’s dedicated program and then register your iPhone for the installation of the iOS 17 public beta by visiting the page from Safari on your smartphone.
Once the beta is installed on the iPhone, just go back to the same site from your iPhone, click on the tab dedicated to the Apple Watch and then download the profile, approving the download when prompted. In the Watch app on the iPhone you can find the profile and proceed with the installation (it will ask for the pin of the iPhone). Then you have to restart the Apple Watch. Once these steps have been completed, just go back to the Watch app on the iPhone, open the tab dedicated to the watch on which we want to install the beta, then tap General and Software Update. The Watch must be placed on the charger and have at least 50% charge in order to proceed with the installation.