All the latest Apple Watches are water resistant and will not be damaged by water. That means you can wear your smartwatch in the shower or go for a swim without any worries. Surprisingly, the Apple Watch even has a nifty little Water Lock that offers additional protection. This feature has been around for years, but with the latest watchOS updates, it acts differently. Here’s why and how to activate Water Lock on your Apple Watch.
How to Use Water Lock on Your Apple Watch
When you select swimming, surfing, or any other water-based activity, you automatically enable the Water Lock feature on your Apple Watch. The Water Lock watchOS feature lets you enable it once, shutting down the screen and preventing accidental taps.
When immersed below 10 meters deep, the smartwatch automatically enables the Water Lock on the Apple Watch Ultra, which simply engages the digital crown to prevent accidental key inputs. For example, this feature is activated automatically when you start scuba diving.
- Click on the Side button on your Apple Watch to open Control Center. On watchOS 9 or earlier, swipe up from the bottom of the watch face to reveal the Control Center.
- Now, tap the Water Lock icon. The feature is shown by a water lock icon at the top of the face.
- Once enabled, all of the input associated with the touchscreen will be blocked. You can even continue to use the Digital Crown to scroll through your active workout or see a new notification.
How to Eject Water From Apple Watch
After completing your water-based activity and your Apple watch is no longer in water, you must wipe off the display with a soft towel or microfiber cloth.
- To turn off the Water Lock and ejection water from your smartwatch, press & hold the Digital Crown.
- When you hear a series of tones saying that water has been flushed from the speaker, you can relax the Digital Crown.
- You can manually remove water from your Apple Watch by going to the Control Center.
Tap the Water Lock icon. - Press and hold the Digital Crown to unlock the screen and clear the water.
If you are going to wear your smartwatch to swimming, surfing or another water-based activity, we suggest using the Apple Watch Water lock. Water droplets won’t interrupt installed watchOS apps or call message people by accident.
If you have not enabled Water Lock on your smartwatch when you enter the water, enabling it and turning it off again when you get out of the water is fairly easy. That will at least let you eject water from your Apple Watch to avoid damage.
