watchOS 10.1 for Apple Watch now available with double tap gesture and NameDrop

Zac Hall | Oct 25 2023 - 10:03 am PT

watchOS 10.1 is now available as a free software update for compatible Apple Watches. The latest version of watchOS delivers a flagship feature to the new Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2. The update also includes more features and bug fixes for watchOS 10.

Double tap gesture

Starting with watchOS 10.1, the new double tap gesture is available on Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2. Here’s how Apple describes the new hardware-exclusive feature:

With a new double tap gesture, users can easily control Apple Watch using just one hand and without touching the display. Users can tap the index finger and thumb of their watch hand together twice to quickly and conveniently perform many of the most common actions on Apple Watch. Double tap will also open the Smart Stack from the watch face, and another double tap will scroll through widgets in the stack.

Double tap controls the primary button in an app so it can be used to stop a timer, play and pause music, or snooze an alarm. The gesture can be used to answer and end a phone call, take a photo with the Camera Remote on Apple Watch, or even switch to the new Elevation view in the Compass app to see the relative elevation of saved waypoints.

Early reviewers with pre-release access described the gesture favorably. There’s also a less tuned version as an accessibility feature on other Apple Watch models. So if you see people doing finger puppets in the wild, it’s probably just this feature.

NameDrop

watchOS 10.1 also brings NameDrop to the Apple Watch, and this feature isn’t limited to the Series 9 and Ultra 2. NameDrop lets you selectively share specific contact information between other Apple Watches and iPhones. Similar to AirDrop, you can initiate a NameDrop share from the Contacts app on watchOS 10.1 when another updated watch or phone are nearby.