All the new faces and complications coming in watchOS 7

Posted:
in Apple Watch edited July 2020
With watchOS 7, Apple has made several updates to watch faces and complications for the Apple Watch. We go in-depth with the new watch faces, the new and updated complications, as well as delve into how to share watch faces.

Apple Watch Series 5 on watchOS 7
Apple Watch Series 5 on watchOS 7 with Chronograph Pro watch face

watchOS 7 has a different user experience for the Apple Watch

Before getting into the faces, let's talk about the user experience changes Apple has implemented as part of the forthcoming watchOS 7 update.






In the new watchOS, when you go to edit a watch face, you do so by a long hold, rather than a deprecated Force Touch action. This isn't all that different and if you try to firm press, you likely will hold long enough to invoke the editing user interface anyway.

Once in that editing interface, before choosing a face, you will notice a share button in the lower-left corner. The "customize" action has been updated to "edit" below each face.

New complication picker in watchOS 7
New complication picker in watchOS 7


When editing those faces, choosing complications is much sleeker and more transparent to the user. Select any complication and the picker will overtake the whole display. As you cycle through, you see a full preview of each complication before you choose them, including curved ones for the corners of the Chronograph face or the large information-dense ones for the Infograph Modular. Prior to watchOS 7, the complications were presented very small, and overlaying the actual watch face.

Choosing colors for watch faces with watchOS 7
Choosing colors for watch faces with watchOS 7


Apple's watchOS 7 also implements an updated interface for choosing colors. When cycling through the colors of the watch face, not only does the face itself change and the name of the color appear below the face, but a column of colored dots goes up the right side. Here you can see where you are in the list of colors and what the before and after hue is -- which can be helpful when picking the exact shade of blue you're looking for.

New and updated complications in watchOS 7

Chronograph Pro watch face
Chronograph Pro watch face


User experience changes aside, there are several new faces and complications to explore. Most notable amongst the changes is the analog-inspired Chronograph Pro. This mechanical-looking interface is similar to Chronograph but adds a tachymeter to the center of the face, while still leaving room for complications on the corners.

The colored interior has a variety of hues to choose from, and it supports four complications. The tachymeter has various intervals that can be chosen between, going from three seconds to 60 seconds.

Using the tachymeter of the Chronograph Pro watch face in watchOS 7
Using the tachymeter of the Chronograph Pro watch face in watchOS 7


To access the tachymeter, it can just be tapped directly from the watch face. The lower right corner will start the dial as well as stop and the lower-left will return you to the normal watch face.

Color filters on the Photos watch face
Color filters on the Photos watch face


The popular Photos watch face has seemingly endless hues of color to tint the photos you assign. There are now many more ways to show your pride. The rainbow colors can be applied to many new faces including chronograph and others.

If you've used the X-Large watch face, it can now have its own extra-large complication in the center, either with an overlaid solid color or the original color of the original complication.

Within those faces are new complication changes and options. Some, such as the Compass complication have been modified to show additional information.

Others are entirely new. This year we have a new Shortcuts complication, astronomy, and one for the sleep mode.

Multiple complications for the Weather app
Multiple complications for the Weather app


New this year is the ability for one app the various complications. Within Apple's complications, you can see this with Shortcuts and Weather. Weather now is broken down into specific ones such as UV index, wind, rain, et cetera and Shortcuts is broken down between all of the different Shortcuts you have in the Shortcuts app. This is great for third-party apps and also makes it easier to filter through the list.

How to share watch faces

Watch faces add needed customization to data presented to the user, and everyone seems to have their favorites. Until now, there was no way to share these with others outside of a screenshot -- but watchOS 7 changes that.

Sharing a watch face
Sharing a watch face in watchOS 7


We've already mentioned that share button above in the new edit screen UI which is how you can share these faces yourself. To share a watch face:
  • Long-press on your Apple Watch face

  • Tap on the share button in the lower-left corner

  • Enter the recipient of the face at the top of the new share screen

  • Choose whether or not to include the complications

  • Optionally add a message to accompany the shared face

  • Tap Send
These face can not only be shared and received through Messages, but they can be found in the App Store, within third-party apps, and online. When you tap on any of these shared faces, it is added to your list of faces and will immediately be set as your current face.

Sharing your faces, new faces, and improved complications are just some of the new features coming to Apple Watch with watchOS 7. Stay tuned to AppleInsider for even more coverage.
Jantonelli81

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 15
    bonobobbonobob Posts: 382member

    New this year is the ability for one app the various complications. 
    I wonder what the author meant to say here.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 2 of 15
    igud71igud71 Posts: 4member
    So boring and disapointing watch faces. Hardware is great but people in Apple wich are responsible for watch face miss Steve Jobs directions.
    This is proof that simplest beautiful ideas and things are so hard to produce/make.
  • Reply 3 of 15
    BeatsBeats Posts: 3,073member
    igud71 said:
    So boring and disapointing watch faces. Hardware is great but people in Apple wich are responsible for watch face miss Steve Jobs directions.
    This is proof that simplest beautiful ideas and things are so hard to produce/make.

    Watch OS was a disappointment but this is the 3rd most successful Apple product in history. To say "Steve wouldn't" is ridiculous here.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 4 of 15
    StrangeDaysStrangeDays Posts: 12,844member
    bonobob said:

    New this year is the ability for one app the various complications. 
    I wonder what the author meant to say here.
    For one app to to host several different complications on a face.
    sphericwatto_cobra
  • Reply 5 of 15
    StrangeDaysStrangeDays Posts: 12,844member
    I don't have a problem w/ watchOS or its functionality.

    What I do have a problem with is their insistence on using 1/2-second ticks rather than 1-second (which is also 1-minute) ticks on all the analog faces. I can't imagine who 1/2-second ticks are useful to and why they override the vast majority of people who want to mark the seconds hand going past entire seconds, or mark the big hand against solid minutes.
    jony0watto_cobra
  • Reply 6 of 15
    igud71 said:
    So boring and disapointing watch faces. Hardware is great but people in Apple wich are responsible for watch face miss Steve Jobs directions.
    This is proof that simplest beautiful ideas and things are so hard to produce/make.
    Gotta admit I’m getting pretty board with these flat, boring watch faces. I still wear AW for its functionality, but the faces, mostly analogue, are less than desirable to look at. 
  • Reply 7 of 15
    JapheyJaphey Posts: 1,767member
    Have they added Vitamin C as a color option yet? Every other band that’s been released has had its color added except for that one. 
  • Reply 8 of 15
    jdb8167jdb8167 Posts: 626member
    I get that Apple doesn't want a million mediocre or copyright infringing faces but they could just curate watch faces like they do apps. There are a lot of really talented designers in the Apple ecosystem and cutting them out of having the ability to improve the Apple watch just doesn't make a  lot of sense to me. Every year, I hope for watch face editing and get disappointed again.

    This seems like a down year for the Apple watch. I already had sleep tracking via third party apps so that isn't that exciting even though I expect it will work better than what currently exists. I really like the look of the new Chronograph face and will probably use it when watchOS 7 is released. Other than that, there is not much new. Nothing that I saw was introduced to make the Apple watch a more independent device.

    I'm OK with a light update year for the watch but I hope that means that Apple is planning some big changes for 2021.
  • Reply 9 of 15
    I don't have a problem w/ watchOS or its functionality.

    What I do have a problem with is their insistence on using 1/2-second ticks rather than 1-second (which is also 1-minute) ticks on all the analog faces. I can't imagine who 1/2-second ticks are useful to and why they override the vast majority of people who want to mark the seconds hand going past entire seconds, or mark the big hand against solid minutes.
    I'm going to assume you're referring to the sweeping second hand (zero ticks at all). That's how high-end watches, especially Rolex, have always done it. Those buyers are spending upwards of $130,000 for a watch, and none of them complain about the sweeping second hand. There are the stopwatch and timer which count seconds. 
    svanstrom
  • Reply 10 of 15
    GeorgeBMacGeorgeBMac Posts: 11,421member
    Yawn...
    This is what happens when a revolutionary product matures:   Incremental changes.

    I suspect the big news in the AppleWatch will be new hardware sensors.   There they have room to run.
  • Reply 11 of 15
    neilmneilm Posts: 985member
    "Steve Jobs would/wouldn't" claims are an automatic page down command as far as I'm concerned.
    edited June 2020 watto_cobra
  • Reply 12 of 15
    radarthekatradarthekat Posts: 3,842moderator
    You know that little diagnostic connector that the watch bands cover?  I’d like that to transfer into the watch the band model ID so that as I swap from my dress band to my sport band it could automatically switch from a elegant watch face I have established for the dress band to a more sports oriented watch face I’ve selected for the sports band, including the color I’ve selected to match that band color.

    Are you listening, Apple?  
    watto_cobrasvanstrom
  • Reply 13 of 15
    StrangeDaysStrangeDays Posts: 12,844member
    I don't have a problem w/ watchOS or its functionality.

    What I do have a problem with is their insistence on using 1/2-second ticks rather than 1-second (which is also 1-minute) ticks on all the analog faces. I can't imagine who 1/2-second ticks are useful to and why they override the vast majority of people who want to mark the seconds hand going past entire seconds, or mark the big hand against solid minutes.
    I'm going to assume you're referring to the sweeping second hand (zero ticks at all). That's how high-end watches, especially Rolex, have always done it. Those buyers are spending upwards of $130,000 for a watch, and none of them complain about the sweeping second hand. There are the stopwatch and timer which count seconds. 
    No, that isn't what I was referring to. Not the sweeping of the seconds hand, but the physical tick marks rendered in between the numbers on analog faces.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 14 of 15
    StrangeDaysStrangeDays Posts: 12,844member

    Yawn...
    This is what happens when a revolutionary product matures:   Incremental changes.

    I suspect the big news in the AppleWatch will be new hardware sensors.   There they have room to run.
    Actually, it's what's always happened with Apple products: incremental changes. That's how Apple rolls, and you can go back to the Fat Mac to see it. Gruber wrote about this a decade ago:

    https://www.macworld.com/article/1151235/macs/apple-rolls.html

    ...iterative product development is the name of the game. It’s how we got from the original iPhone/Mac/Watch/whatever to the current versions, or iterations. There's nothing wrong or unpleasant with this.

    edited June 2020 watto_cobra
  • Reply 15 of 15
    Love this. By the way, what strap is this? It's perfect!
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