watchOS 27 arrives later this month, and Apple Watch owners will find that three familiar features have been removed after they update. The changes affect how you communicate, multitask, and navigate apps on the wrist.
Walkie-Talkie is gone
The most notable removal is Walkie-Talkie, Apple’s real-time voice communication app that worked exclusively between Apple Watches. The app allowed users to hold a button and speak instantly to another Apple Watch wearer, functioning like a two-way radio.
Users who relied on Walkie-Talkie in real-world scenarios will notice its absence once they install the update this month. New Apple Watch buyers running watchOS 27 out of the box will not have access to the feature at all. No built-in replacement ships with the update.
Digital Crown multitasking shortcut removed
watchOS 27 also eliminates the Digital Crown double-click multitasking gesture. Previously, double-clicking the Digital Crown let users quickly switch between two apps, or between an app and the watch face. In the new release, double-clicking the Digital Crown performs the same action as a single click, effectively removing the fast app-switching shortcut.
The single click of the Digital Crown has invoked the full app launcher since the very first release of the operating system, back when it was branded Watch OS 1. The most significant earlier change to that behavior was when Apple stopped having the first click center the app grid before returning to the watch face.
The dynamic app grid takes over
Clicking the Digital Crown a single time now opens the dynamic app grid instead of the traditional launcher. The new interface presents five intelligently suggested apps, the Siri app, and an icon that opens the full app grid.
Users can tap the app grid icon to see all their apps, or scroll the Digital Crown upward to reveal the complete grid or list. The redesigned layout uses larger tap targets with fewer icons on screen, which makes selection easier on the small display. Placing the Siri app front and center follows a broader pattern across Apple’s OS 27 updates, which emphasize Siri throughout the system.
The dynamic app grid serves as the default experience in watchOS 27, though the layout requires more steps to reach a specific app compared with the older full launcher. The update has been available to testers since the first developer beta launched in June, ahead of its public release later this month.
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Image: 9to5mac.com
