- Apple unveiled Watchos 26 on WWDC yesterday
- Watchos 26 is compatible with Apple watches dates back years
- But some of its best features require a more recent device
Yesterday, Apple unveiled Watchos 26 at WWDC 2025, it showed an operating system that had been upgraded with a welcome range of new features and capacities. If you hope to try them, however, you will want to check if your Apple Watch is compatible – because many most popular models will not be.
At first glance, most of the best Apple Watch models will work with Watchos 26. Apple says that it is compatible with the Apple Watch Series 6 or subsequent version, the second generation Apple Watch, plus each Apple Watch Ultra model; You must also twin your watch with an iPhone 11 or later that runs iOS 26. It is a good range of devices that go back many years.
But there are several features that will only work if you associate your watch with a much more recent iPhone. To start, everything that is fueled by Apple Intelligence will require an iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max or any device in the iPhone 16 range. This immediately increases the compatibility threshold with Apple Artificial Intelligence Platform (AI).
In addition to this, some of the new features introduced in Watchos 26 have their own requirements. The gesture of the “wrist film”, for example, needs an Apple Watch Series 9, Series 10 or Ultra 2.
Check the little print
Potential limitations like this show that it is important to verify the requirements of the device before enthusiastic about the idea of ​​downloading an update like Watchos 26. This new tool that has attracted your attention may not work with your existing equipment.
And it’s particularly vital to do it before buying a device. You may have found a lot on an old Apple watch, for example, but if it cannot perform the features that you will die by desire to try, you will not be lucky.
Watchos 26 offers a lot of new interesting updates, including an overhaul of liquid glass design, an improved fitness assistant assistant, smart battery algorithms, and more. If you want to try one of these elements, be sure to reveal if your Apple Watch is compatible.
