WatchOS 12 Is Coming! Here’s What We’re Manifesting for Apple Watch

The wait is almost over. In just a few days, Apple will unveil the newest software features coming to the Apple Watch and the rest of its ecosystem, at its annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), on June 9 in Cupertino, California. While the updates are likely already finalized, that doesn’t mean we can’t put a few wish list items out into the universe and hope they’ll stick.

The competition for your health data has gotten fierce with competitors like Google, Oura and Samsung leaning harder into AI coaching and preventive care so this would be a good time for Apple to remind us why its smartwatch is still at the top of the wearable game despite a drop in sales. Apple Watch sales are reportedly down 19% in 2024.

I’ve teamed up with longtime Apple Watch users and fellow CNET editors to round up the most requested features we hope to see in WatchOS 12, along with a few rumors we’ve dug up. We haven’t ruled out Inspector Gadget-style FaceTime calls from your wrist yet but since that’s not exactly on the radar, we’re keeping this wishlist within the realm of possibility for 2025.

Watch this: WatchOS 12 Wishlist: Top features we want on the Apple Watch

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A dream scenario would be for the regular Apple Watch and SE version to have the same three-day battery life of the Apple Watch Ultra 2. But software alone can’t work miracles; it still has to operate within the limits of the physical battery. So we’d settle for incremental improvements and optimizations to WatchOS 12 that minimize how much power gets used. That could come in the form of smarter battery-saving modes that automatically kick in when power-hungry features aren’t needed or a more efficient bedtime mode that doesn’t leave the battery drained by morning.

At a prequel to its developer’s conference, Google announced that its own Wear OS 6 will boost battery life by up to 10 percent. It’s not a huge leap, but it’s a welcome one — and a good reminder that meaningful improvements are possible through software alone.

UI tweaks and customization

Apple’s come a long way with letting us customize the Apple Watch’s UI but there’s still room for improvements. The app list, for example, is in desperate need of a refresh. You’re still limited to viewing it as either a grid or list and there’s no way to organize apps by how you actually use them. CNET Managing Editor Patrick Holland suggests adding options to sort by favorites or most used to cut down on the endless scrolling it takes to find what you need.

And while we’re on the subject of Apple Intelligence, the Watch could benefit from a smarter approach to notifications. Notification summaries on the iPhone are still hit-or-miss, but on a tiny screen they could actually be more helpful if done right. The current notification layout on the Watch feels crowded, and it’s hard to separate the important alerts from the rest of the noise.

Spam handling on the watch is another area that could use attention. “I’d like to be able to delete and report spam texts and calls the way you can in Messages or Phone on the iPhone — preferably right from the notification,” says Carlson. Right now, blocking a sender on the Watch requires several steps which defeats the purpose of having quick interactions on the wrist.

Smarter Siri 

Offline Siri has been a welcome improvement (Series 9 and later). But even offline, Siri is not the brightest bulb. And Apple’s voice assistant is long overdue for an upgrade.

At the very least, it would be great if Siri could understand requests on the first try. But as this is a wish list, why not ask for more? Smarter, more context-aware responses would make Siri far more useful, especially if the assistant can tap into its new Apple Intelligence tools. And please: fewer website links as answers. I’m not about to open a full webpage on my wrist.

Customizable workouts 

I also wish the Apple Watch had a way for me to flag external factors like weight or resistance that could impact workout metrics. This could be running or walking with a weighted vest, which in my case is a human child on a harness, or pushing a stroller while on a run. 

Gragert would also like to see the Apple Watch take a cue from other wearables and offer energy and sleep scores based on the data it collects. 

The sleep coach would then help interpret the data and give tangible recommendations on how to improve toward better recovery and energy. And no, the current bedtime reminder doesn’t count. That’s just a glorified alarm and a pretty annoying one at that.

Smarter vitals and health coaching

We’re already seeing Apple bring more health data together on the Watch, thanks to the Vitals app, which combines metrics like heart rate, sleep, respiratory rate and skin temperature. But for now, it’s still up to us to figure out what that data actually means and what to do with it.

What’s next? Apple could take a similar approach to what it already does with heart rate notifications. The Watch alerts you when your heart rate is too high or too low — now imagine that same kind of proactive insight but for your overall vitals.

Other wearables are already heading in that direction. The Oura Ring, for example, uses a Symptom Radar that can flag when your body shows signs of strain, like when you might be getting sick.That kind of heads up landing on your wrist first thing in the morning could help you plan your day better and maybe call in sick to the office before you drag your coworkers down with you. 

Rumor has it some of this smart coaching is already well underway. According to a report from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, Apple is working on a top secret project code named “Project Mulberry” which seeks to revamp the Health app with smart coaching and personalized recommendations. Just don’t make me pay for another subscription please.

We’ll find out what Apple actually has in store for us on June 10 during WWDC. Until then, there’s nothing stopping us from dreaming big.