APPLE WATCH
WatchOS 10 Might Upset You
I think it’s great, but I bet my wife will not
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We are a few weeks away from Apple releasing watchOS 10 from its beta chains. Given that, I assumed it would be safe to install the beta now as it is surely not crashing and burning.
The pattern I follow for Apple betas is simple. Mac first, because I hardly ever use it. Next is my phone, because unless they brick it entirely, I don’t use it much either. I hold off on my iPad until the scuttlebutt says its betas are pretty stable. I will not expose my watch to danger until the new version is full grown and hanging around outside my door whining to get in.
This was the first year I tried a tvOS beta, and I’ll never do that again. Omigod, such a mess! Even now, likely weeks away from public release, it is still a bit wonky. I guess it doesn’t get the love other products enjoy.
Many Changes
A lot has changed in your watch. My brain says all the changes are good, but people who have difficulty with major user interface swings may be unhappy. For example, you’ll no longer swipe up from the bottom edge to get Control Panel. In watchOS 10, you push the long side button, which used to call up the Dock, which you could set to recently used apps or a fixed list. The Dock is kaput, gonzo, eliminated from watchOS 10.
Double clicking the side button still brings up your Apple Pay cards. Holding it still gets Medical ID, SOS, and adds a quick path to Compass Backtrack. You can get to the Power Down control by tapping that whatcha-ma-callit in the top right corner.
For people that have trouble with the double-click to open Apple Pay Wallet, see my answer to someone with that problem in the comments.
You can still summon Siri by holding the digital crown. And simply clicking it will bring up your apps, still with that ridiculous Grid View by default. Sheesh, use List View, will ya?
If you do use Grid View (why??), you’ll notice that you can only scroll up and down. I hope that doesn’t upset you…
