Apple Watch has long been a leader in the smartwatch market. Thanks to its premium features, it has succeeded in monopolizing the smart watch sector, breaking the Android monopoly without much difficulty.
Over the years, Apple has understood that users were interested in having an independent technology object rather than simply extending their iPhone. For this reason, watchOS 5 gives users greater freedom, allowing them to perform many activities without the need to have an iPhone nearby.
The new features found in Apple Watch 4 and the new operating system are not, at times, easy to find. For this reason I have chosen to present the 8 ways to make the most of the new Cupertino smartwatch: let me know your experience in the comments section!
How to best use Apple Watch 4 and the new watchOS 5
Listen to podcasts offline
With watchOS 5, Apple introduced a Podcast app, which was eagerly awaited by users. The request was made primarily by users from the Anglo-Saxon countries, where podcasts were very popular and became a new way to get informed and acquire new skills.
The most interesting news, although little promoted by Apple, is the synchronization and storage of the latest episodes of podcasts from iPhone to Apple Watch automatically.
Where can you find the new episodes of your favorite podcast? Select the app from your smartwatch and go to Library> Episodes.
Activate the grayscale
Apple Watch models, thanks to the new Infographics, can become very colorful and full of information.
If you do not appreciate the bright colors or for visual reasons you have to change the color scale, you can set a gray scale on Apple Watch.
To do this, click on the My Watch> General> Accessibility tab and activate the Grayscale option by pressing the appropriate toggle.
Hide notifications on Apple Watch
Apple Watch is designed to show all the notifications that appear on your iPhone. If in some cases this is a useful feature (think of a message or an important email) in the long run your wrist may ask for mercy for too much vibration.
Fortunately on the smartwatch you can selectively filter notifications. When you receive a notification that you are not interested in, swipe to the left on it, click the button containing the 3 dots and select “Disable on Apple Watch“.
Also in this case watchOS 5 confirms an update that makes the Apple Watch “more independent”. In the past it was necessary to use your iPhone to do this, while today you can do it comfortably from the clock. Comfortable, right?
Send notifications silently
This point also concerns notifications, which increasingly distinguish our lives. If you want to receive notifications from all the applications but you do not want them to vibrate your smartwatch there is a solution. Access the notification settings in the same way as before (swipe to the left + 3 dots) and turn off the vibration.
Keep in mind, though, that this change will also impact your iPhone, so choose carefully which apps to silence.
Cleaning of navigation data
With the introduction of WebKit in watchOS 5 you can open links in e-mails or messages. The opening of these links does nothing more than increase the browsing history of your smartwatch, in addition to increasing the cache and the list of stored cookies. If you care about your privacy you can do a complete cleaning by going to General> Navigation data> Clear browsing data.
Forcing the closure of the app
Unfortunately, no software is free from bugs or slowdowns. For this reason, one or more apps on your Watch may not respond to your commands. In this case you are forced to resort to the forced closure of the app.
To do this you need to open the app that is experiencing problems and keep the side button of your watch pressed. When the shutdown menu appears, release the button and hold the crown pressed: this operation will close the offending app, returning you to the main page.
Interact with Siri without hands
With the new operating system you can interact with Siri without having to press the crown. To activate this option, go to Settings> General> Siri> Raise to Speak.
When you want to interact, just bring the clock to your mouth and start talking. The new feature sends the famous “Hey Siri” into retirement, necessary until recently to wake up the Virtual Assistant.
Set an alert on the speed of travel
Apple Watch is surely one of the most suitable smartwatch for racing enthusiasts. With the new update we introduced an interesting feature that allows you to set up alerts related to the speed with which you run. In this way you can challenge yourself and try to overcome the objectives that you impose from time to time.
If you are interested in this feature open the app Workout, crushing the ellipsis button with three dots, you make one swipe down and press the appropriate item. You can set two types of alerts: on a regular basis (every kilometer/mile) or cumulative.
Challenge a friend to exercise
Do you want to challenge your friend to exercise? Apple Watch allows you to challenge it in a 7-day competition to win the coveted badge.
Open the Activity app and swipe until the Sharing screen appears. At this point select the friend you want to challenge and look for the Invite button below. At this point you will have 48 hours to respond to your challenge.