Apple launches WatchOS 4.0 with smart Siri watch face, improved fitness tracking

Why it matters to you

If you’re an Apple Watch owner — or thinking of becoming one — the device is about to get a lot smarter and easier to use.

Apple has finally taken the wraps off of the latest and greatest iteration of WatchOS, its smartwatch operating system. WatchOS 4, as the new version is called, was unveiled at Apple’s WWDC, and boasts a number of great new features.

Perhaps the biggest change to WatchOS comes in the form of a slew of new watch faces, and the smartest and most interesting of those has to be the new Siri watch face. As the name suggests, this face intelligently selects information that you might need at any given moment — and that information will change throughout the day. The face will pull from apps like the Calendar app, as well as the Home app, to offer controls for smart home devices that you often use at a certain time of the day.

Perhaps the biggest change to WatchOS comes in the form of a slew of new watch faces.

The Siri face isn’t the only new watch face — Apple also continued its partnership with Disney, and will offer watch faces for Toy Story’s Woody, Jessie, and Buzz, as well as an update to the Kaleidoscope watch faces, which offer a slightly less intelligent but slightly more visual take on the Apple Watch watch face.

Of course, one of the most important features of the Apple Watch is its fitness tracking, and Apple has improved the watch’s Fitness and Workout apps. The Workout app now supports custom workout algorithms for high-intensity training, which will be helpful for those who prefer to work out at the gym rather than going on runs or swimming.

You can also now much more quickly and easily start a new workout while you’re already in a workout — simple swipe left and hit the “+” button, then scroll through the workouts available. Apple is also now working with gym equipment manufacturers to deploy NFC chips — meaning you’ll get the information from gym equipment on your watch, which should make for more accurate tracking.

The last major update in WatchOS 4.0 comes in the form of the Music app, which will now automatically update selected playlists and favorites that you can play using your AirPods.

The WatchO 4S update perhaps isn’t as big as previous updates to the operating system, but the changes that are coming should help refine the Apple Watch experience a little more.