Apple Seeds First Beta of watchOS 8 to Developers - MacRumors
Skip to Content

Apple Seeds First Beta of watchOS 8 to Developers

In addition to seeding the first betas of iOS 15, iPadOS 15, tvOS 15, and macOS 12, Apple has also seeded the first beta of the watchOS 8 update to developers for testing purposes.

watchOS 8 on Apple Watch feature
To install watchOS 8, developers will need to download the configuration profile from the Apple Developer Center. Once installed, watchOS 8 can be downloaded through the dedicated Apple Watch app on the iPhone by going to General > Software update.

To update to new software, an Apple Watch needs to have 50 percent battery life, it must be placed on the charger, and it needs to be in range of the iPhone. It's not recommended to install watchOS 8 on a main Apple Watch as the software may be unstable at this early date.

watchOS 8 is limited to developers at the current time, but Apple plans to provide a public beta later this year ahead of the software's fall launch.

Related Roundup: Apple Watch 11
Buyer's Guide: Apple Watch (Neutral)

Popular Stories

iOS 26

iOS 26.4 Adds Two New Features to CarPlay

Tuesday March 24, 2026 1:55 pm PDT by
iOS 26.4 was released today, and it includes a couple of new features for CarPlay: an Ambient Music widget and support for voice-based chatbot apps. To update your iPhone 11 or newer to iOS 26.4, open the Settings app and tap on General → Software Update. CarPlay will automatically offer the new features so long as the iPhone connected to your vehicle is running iOS 26.4 or later....
Apple Business hero

Apple Unveils 'Apple Business' All-in-One Platform

Tuesday March 24, 2026 8:53 am PDT by
Apple today announced Apple Business, a new all-in-one platform that unifies device management, productivity tools, and customer outreach features. The service is designed to be a consolidated replacement for several of Apple's existing business-focused offerings, including Apple Business Essentials, Apple Business Manager, and Apple Business Connect. It provides organizations with a single...
AirPods Pro Firmware Feature

Apple Releases New Firmware for AirPods Pro 3, AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4

Tuesday March 24, 2026 12:31 pm PDT by
Apple today released new firmware for the AirPods Pro 2, AirPods Pro 3, and the AirPods 4. The firmware has a version number of 8B39, up from 8B34 on the AirPods Pro 3, 8B28 on the AirPods Pro 2, and 8B21 on the AirPods 4. There is no word on what's included in the firmware, but Apple has a support document with limited notes. Most updates are limited to bug fixes and performance...

Top Rated Comments

akidokraja Avatar
63 months ago
Need low power mode on WatchOS. Please, Apple. And not that ultra-low power mode that is available now. That’s completely useless.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jayjay14 Avatar
63 months ago

Normally I’d be afraid to upgrade due to the hit on battery life you get with a new beta, but so far battery life has been trash on 7.5 so maybe I should just jump to 8.
The battery life on my S6 AW has been atrocious lately.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Johnny907 Avatar
63 months ago
Normally I’d be afraid to upgrade due to the hit on battery life you get with a new beta, but so far battery life has been trash on 7.5 so maybe I should just jump to 8.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
63 months ago
Damn, it looks like they’re activating the U1 chip in the Series 6 but only using it for CarKey. I was really hoping that it would be used to find AirTags with the new Find My app, but I don’t see any indication that’s the case.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MorePixels Avatar
63 months ago
Yawn…
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)