Skip to main content

WatchOS 8 adds fun and color to the Apple Watch

Apple has released the Public Beta version of WatchOS 8 after previewing the new software during its Worldwide Developers Conference 2021 in June. WatchOS 8 is the best smartwatch operating system available at the moment, and we’ve given it a try on an Apple Watch Series 5. Although it’s not overflowing with new features, those that are there add more fun, more color, and more social potential to the smartwatch software.

Portrait watch face

This is probably the most anticipated feature in WatchOS 8, so what’s it like? It’s easily the most customizable Watch face yet to arrive on the Apple Watch, and it really does look excellent. To create a Portrait watch face, you don’t do so on the watch, but on your phone. Choose a photo taken with Portrait mode, then under the Share menu select the Create Watch Face option.

Related Videos

Here’s where the customization options show up. There are three basic layouts, but you can pick two different complications for each one, as well as the placement of the clock, and add a filter color. Choose the close-up version and, when you rotate the Digital Crown, it zooms in on the photo. The image also reacts with your arm movement, just like a lock screen photo with Perspective Zoom active on the iPhone.

Portrait watch faces are fun to look at, fun to create, and take the personalization found in the basic Photo watch face a step further. It’s a great addition to the watch face collection on the Apple Watch.

Mindfulness

The old Breathe app has been replaced with Mindfulness, which includes a new feature called Reflect. It’s a one-minute session where you’re supposed to think about … something. When I tried it, the Watch suggested I remember a time when I learned a new way of doing something, and consider how it made me feel. While “considering,” I stared at some kaleidoscopic images on the screen.

I like Breathe, a helpful, quick mindfulness session that really can help you relax, and it can still be found alongside Reflect in the Mindfulness app. However, Reflect is a little too hippy-dippy for my personal taste, but I’m sure it will help some people, and there’s no doubt the images on the screen look absolutely amazing. I expect the Mindfulness app will gain more relaxation features in the future, as the new layout in the app has lots of room for expansion.

Photos

A new Photos app is another way to see how beautiful the Apple Watch’s screen can be. You can sync photos from your iPhone across the the Apple Watch as usual, but it now shows Memories and Featured Photos, with the albums easily selected in the new app. Whether anyone will actually use this feature is up for debate, because pretty though the Apple Watch’s screen is, it’s also very small. I can’t see people gathering round your wrist to squint at your latest holiday snaps, for example.

Memories in the WatchOS 8 Photos app.
Andy Boxall/DigitalTrends

What is helpful is the quick share option, where photos can be sent using Messages or Mail, plus there’s the option to create a Watch face from the photo as well. However, these are not features that are new in WatchOS 8, but are just enhanced by having more photos available on your wrist.

Messages

The Messages app is much more feature-packed than before, and is also less long-winded to use. The new main composition screen puts the Scribble, emoji, and dictation options all in one place, and it’s much quicker to swap between them. The emoji list is a presented as a grid with easy to press blocks for each one, and the Scribble panel is as large as it can feasibly be. It’s still not entirely accurate, though, so I don’t want to write a lengthy message using it.

You can send a GIF in an iMessage now, but the method is slightly confusing and, even after doing it a few times, it still feels like I access the feature the wrong way because it seems to take too many steps. In a new Message, you tap the A symbol, and then a magnifying glass icon that lets you search for and select a GIF. It doesn’t look like it’s possible to add text to a message with a GIF, but it does add another fun, creative element to the already varied Messages app.

Should you install it?

Are you eager to see how WatchOS 8 looks? Well, it retains a very similar design to WatchOS 7, but there are some little changes to look out for. When you want to add a new watch face to the list, they’re presented in a vertical scrolling list complete with explanations about each one. If you track sleep using the Apple Watch, it now makes use of the accelerometer to monitor respiratory rate, providing a breaths-per-minute estimate in the Health app on your phone. Sleep tracking on the Apple Watch is still fairly basic in WatchOS 7, so this is a welcome addition.

There are also other features I’ve not been able to try out yet, including the Wallet app that supports hotel and car keys, greater integration with smart home devices, and further Fitness+ features. It also neatly and silently works with the new Focus mode, which is an improved version of Do Not Disturb, and is controlled in iOS 15 on the iPhone.

WatchOS 8 has performed without a problem on the Apple Watch Series 5 so far, but it is still a prerelease version, so bugs may show themselves over time as the smartwatch is used more. You do need to have iOS 15 installed on your iPhone for it to work. I’ve also tried out iOS 15, and have found it’s rather power-hungry at the moment, resulting in the battery draining faster than expected. My advice is give them both a try, but do so on devices you don’t need to use every day.

WatchOS 8 itself doesn’t drastically alter the smartwatch at all, but I do like the refinements I’ve come across so far, and there’s no doubt you’ll have fun with the Portrait watch face. The new software also undoubtedly shows off the Apple Watch’s beautiful (but small) screen more than ever. Make sure to take a look at the instructions on how to download and install the public beta of iOS 15, which you need to do before moving on to install the public beta of WatchOS 8.

Editors' Recommendations

Pixel Watch update brings a much-requested Apple Watch feature
Man using the Google Pixel Watch's app menu.

The Pixel Watch is a solid first outing as Google's debut smartwatch. However, it's still lacking a handful of features that early adopters have been requesting that are found on similar devices. Luckily, today marks the start of the rollout of one frequently requested feature: fall detection.

Fall detection is a crucial health and safety feature that all smartwatches are better for having, and now the Pixel Watch is finally joining the ranks of the Apple Watch and the Galaxy Watch with its addition.

Read more
iPhone 15: release date and price predictions, leaks, rumors, and more
iPhone 15 render by 4RMD

As great as the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Pro are, they're both already a few months old at this point, and the rumors about the iPhone 15 are well underway. We still have several months before the iPhone 15 models drop, though, as Apple usually makes iPhone announcements in the fall. In other words, there's still a lot of time for rumors to circulate around the internet.

We're keeping all of the reports and rumors of the iPhone 15 here in a single place for your convenience, but do remember to keep in mind that these are all still just speculation. Nothing is final until Apple confirms it during an official announcement. Still, a lot of the rumors give us an idea of what to expect each year, which is unfortunate if you like surprises. Here's everything we know of the iPhone 15 so far!
iPhone 15: models

Read more
These Android apps are spying on you — and there’s no easy way to stop them
Illustration of a giant eye stalking through a phone

Android’s security woes need no introduction, but another threat that hasn’t received its fair share of awareness relates to spyware and stalkerware apps. These apps can secretly be installed on a victim’s phone to monitor their activity and can be exploited to harass victims of domestic abuse and engage in online stalking. All someone needs is physical access to the victim's phone to install these apps, which is not too difficult in cases of domestic abuse.

Call it an app-fueled version of AirTag stalking, but on steroids, because these spyware apps can steal everything including messages, call logs, emails, photos, and videos. Some can even activate the microphone and the camera, and secretly transfer these recordings to a remote server where the abuser can access it. Since Google Play's policies don't allow stalking apps, these apps are sold via third-party websites and need to be sideloaded.

Read more