23 New Apple Watch Tricks Available In watchOS 7

watchOS 7 brings lots of new features and enhancements to the Apple Watch in 2020. Check out the new tricks available below and use your smartwatch at its full potential. To update your watch to the latest software, you first need to update the companion iPhone to iOS 14. The new Apple Watch Series 6 and Apple Watch SE models come with watchOS 7 pre-installed.

New Apple Watch Tricks In watchOS 7

Hidden Apple Watch Tricks

1. Delete Control Center Toggles
watchOS 7 finally allows you to customize the Apple Watch Control Center. You can now delete the toggles that you don’t use.
How To: Swipe-up from the bottom of the screen to bring up the Control Center. Scroll for the Edit button. Tap the red ‘-‘ icon, available in the top-left corner of the toggle that you want to remove.
Fact: Any button that you remove can be added back from the same Edit menu.

2. Change Activity Goals
In watchOS 7 you can edit all your Activity goals. Prior to this release users where able to change the amount of calories burned per day, but now you can also customize your Stand and Exercise goals.
How To: Open the Activity app and scroll all the way down to Change Goals. Change the calorie, exercise or stand goal using the ‘+’ and ‘-‘ dials.

3. Camera Remote Complication
The Camera Remote app has now its own complication that you can add to your Watch Face. This way you’ll be able to control your iPhone’s camera with a single tap on the Watch Face.
How To: Long-press on the Watch Face. Tap Customize and pick the complication slot that you want to edit. Select the Camera Remote complication.
Fact: A new 3-second countdown is available in the Camera Remote app.

4. Multiple Third-Party Complications
In watchOS 7 third-party apps can be used to add more than one complication to the same Watch Face. Until now this trick was only available for the stock Weather app.
For example, you can use the Infograph Modular Watch Face to display multiple info streams from a single third-party app.

5. Extra Large Complication
Another watchOS 7 complication related trick allows you to zoom-in on a glance. If you need to focus on a single data point and are looking for an easy glance the X-Large Watch Face allows you to add an extra large complication that will become the main focus point of your Apple Watch display.
How To: Long-press on the current Watch Face. Browse to the X-Large theme and select the desired complication.

6. Apple Watch Timer
watchOS 7 allows you to natively use your Apple Watch as a Timer with the help of the new Count Up face.
How To: Use the new face and tap its main 12-hour dial. You need to align the marker from the outer bezel with the minute hand. Use the Digital Crown to set the length of time. Finally, tap the dial to start timing.
Tip: When finished, press the Digital Crown to return the Count Up face to its default view.

7. Display Two Time Zones
Use the new GMT face and you’ll be able to track two time zones simultaneously on your Apple Watch.
This new Watch Face has two dials. Your local time is displayed in the 12-hour inner dial. Use the 24-hour outer one to track a second time zone.
How To: Select the GMT face. Tap on the Watch Face to select the time zone that you want to display in the outer dial.
Limitations: The GMT watch face isn’t available on the Apple Watch Series 3. It can be used on all other watchOS 7 compatible devices!

8. National Flag on Watch Face
The new Stripes watch face allows you to choose how many stripes you want to display on your watch face. You’re also able to configure a color for each stripe, thus easily display national flags or create a glance that matches the colors of your favorite sports team. You can display from 1 to 9 stripes. The angle can be also rotated.
The Stripes face can host 4 complications.
How To: Select the Stripes watch face, edit the number of Stripes, assign a color for each stripe and determine the position. Choose if you want to display a full-screen or a circular pattern.
Limitations: Similar with the GMT watch face, this theme isn’t available on Apple Watch Series 3.

9. Headphone Audio Notifications
Let the Apple Watch protect your ears. In watchOS 7 your wrist-worn gadget automatically alerts you when the headphone audio level is too loud. The smartwatch is also able to lower the volume and ensure safe music playback.
Trick: Use the companion iPhone to check the intensity of your headphone audio level in real time!

10. Disable Blood Oxygen During Sleep

Similar to the random heart rate readings, the Apple Watch Series 6 is also occasionally measuring your blood oxygen levels. These random readings are done when you’re not moving and involve a powerful red light that can be annoying in dark environments. You can disable these readings during sleep or when you’re in a cinema.
How To: Open the Settings app on your Apple Watch. Tap on Blood Oxygen and scroll for Sleep Mode. Use the toggle to turn it off. You can do the same for Theater Mode.

11. Complications On Always-On Display
After updating to watchOS 7 you can access complications directly from the Always-On display. Simply tap it and you’ll get the details. There’s no more need to wake the screen up first.

12. Share Location
In watchOS 7 you can share your current location with a contact in Messages, directly from your wrist!

13. Compete With Friends
The Fitness app from watchOS syncs all your activity data with the Health app on the companion iPhone. In watchOS 7 you can compete with friends and see who’s the most fitness savvy.

14. Mobility Metrics
A hidden watchOS 7 feature adds new metrics that can be tracked by your Apple Watch. These include: low-range cardio fitness, walking speed, stair climbing speed, walk distance, step length and gait asymmetry!
How To: You can check this values in the Health app, on the companion iPhone!

15. Cycling Directions in Maps
Apple Maps finally supports Cycling Directions and in watchOS 7 you can also display them on your Apple Watch. The home screen displays info about your ETA, trip duration, distance as well as other useful info about shared roads, bike paths and whether you have to walk along the route.
You’re able to choose the quickest route, the most direct line, or directions that avoid steep hills.
Limitations: Cycling directions in ‌Apple Maps‌ are currently limited to a few big cities including: New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, London, Shanghai, and Beijing.

16. Schooltime
In watchOS 7 you can limit the Apple Watch’s function to the ones of a classic watch. When enabled, Schooltime only allows you to check the current time, silencing notifications and blocking access to other apps.
It’s meant to be used by kids that are attending to classes and comes along with the Family Setup feature. You can add the Schooltime toggle to the Control Center and use it outside of school time to as a replacement option for Do Not Disturb or Theater mode.
How To: Swipe-up on the Watch Face to bring up the Control Center. Scroll for Edit. Tap the green ‘+’ icon next to Schooltime.
Exit Schooltime: Turn the Digital Crown and tap Exit to confirm.

Popular Apple Watch Tricks

18. Handwashing

In watchOS 7, your Apple Watch is able to automatically recognize when you wash your hands. It can start a 20-second timer to help you to sanitize properly. The new Handwashing feature isn’t enabled by default!
How To: Open Settings on your wrist, scroll for Handwashing and enable the Timer option. You can also activate Haptics.
Limitations: Handwashing is not available on Apple Watch 3.

19. New Workouts
A new watchOS 7 trick allows you to track four new workouts including: Dance, Functional Strength Training, Core Training and Cooldown.
How To: Similar to other workouts, you have to open the Workout app and browse for the desired activity that you want to track. Tap on it and follow the on-screen instructions.

20. Siri Shortcuts on Apple Watch
watchOS 7 brings the Shortcuts app to your wrist. Add Shortcuts complications to your Watch Face and trigger custom task with a single tap on your wrist.
How To: Create shortcuts on iPhone or add them from an URL. Add the shortcut as a complication to the Watch Face.

21. Spoken Siri Translations
iOS 14 added the Translate app offering real-time spoke translations to iPhone users. The feature is also available on the Apple Watch. You can ask Siri for a translation directly from your Apple Watch.
How To: Raise your wrist and speak out ‘Hey Siri’ and command something like “How do you say ‘My Name is’ in Spanish?”. Siri will speak out the translation and also display it written on your Apple Watch.
Limitations: At the time of writing, ‌Siri‌ ‘knows’ 11 languages: English, French, Spanish, Italian, German, Mandarin Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Arabic, Portuguese and Russian.

22. Watch Face Sharing
In watchOS 7 you can share your Watch Face!
How To: Long-press on the Watch Face to bring up the edit menu. Tap the Share icon. Use the Add Contact option and select the contact from the list of recipients. You can also search for a contact using your voice, type a phone number or browse all your contacts. Tap the name of the watch face and mention if you want to include the complication with data or not. Tap Done when finished and send the watch face.
Tip: It can be easier to share watch faces from the Watch app on your iPhone.

23. Wind Down & Sleep
Use the new Sleep mode to get ready for bed. When enabled Sleep mode, turns on Do Not Disturb and prevents your screen from lighting up suggesting that its time to get ready for sleep.
Wake up time generates a haptic alarm or an audible alert. The weather report and battery info are the first glances displayed on your wrist-worn device.

Does this article include Apple Watch tricks that you weren’t aware of in 2020? Let us know with the help of the comments section available below.

Related: Check out 50 iOS 14 new features for iPhone or iPad!