Over at the Worldwide Developers Conference, Apple announced watchOS 5, complete with new health, fitness, and communications features. The company has allowed users to set 7 day Activity Challenges with friends and earn custom achievement medals as well as added support for yoga and hiking in the Workout app as well as a method to automatically detect what workout you are doing without having to initiate it.
The company is also introducing a new Walkie-Talkie app that works on WiFi or LTE, support for Podcasts streaming, rich HTML email content, a customizable Control Center, and more.
Over in the Workout app, you can now set a target pace and get alerts if you fall behind. The app can also sense if you’ve begun a workout and had to interrupt it, assigning you a retroactive credit if need be.
The Walkie-Talkie feature allows users to messages over Wi-Fi or LTE and users quick shortcuts for the people you talk to the most.
Other new changes include automatic Siri recognition; you no longer need to say Hey Siri to start talking to Siri. Apple Watch also supports viewing web content inside Messages, so you can get a rough preview of web content in Mail or Messages. It supports Reader Mode when available.
The Podcasts app now allows an Apple Watch to stream podcasts over Wi-Fi or LTE. Playback state syncs across all of your devices, so you can carry on across any device.
Finally, Apple is also adding the ability to add Student ID cards to Wallet on iPhone and Apple Watch, allowing access to your dorm or dining hall. This will be available in the fall with a handful of universities. watchOS 5, like Apple’s other operating systems, is due to arrive for free this fall.
Unfortunately, watchOS 5 won’t be able to run on first-gen Apple Watch units, no matter how expensive the model. Not the best news and this may just come down to whether the hardware can handle the new operating system or not.
Via 9to5Mac