Your Apple Watch Can Finally Track Your Sleep With WatchOS 11
Apple unveiled many exciting features coming to the Apple Watch lineup during WWDC this year. The next update to Apple Watch, watchOS 11 , will include new AI-powered features, training loads, and many other new features. But there are some features that Apple didn’t talk about in its presentation, including sleep detection and sleep tracking.
The first beta of watchOS 11 is now available, and I’ve already been testing out the new operating system to see what Apple has added. While I was looking forward to other major additions like the snazzy translation feature, sleep detection wasn’t what I expected. Luckily for me, a Reddit user accidentally fell asleep with their Apple Watch turned on and noticed that it was automatically recording data about their sleep.
watchOS 10 and earlier versions of Apple Watch required you to set it to Sleep Focus mode to collect sleep tracking data. In addition, it did not support sleep tracking, only a full evening’s rest. But based on what Reddit users have noticed, as well as what I’ve seen in my own testing, watchOS 11 does seem to now offer sleep detection.
Of course, there are some caveats. It doesn’t seem to break down the different stages of sleep like regular sleep tracking does. But it’s still a really nice change and one that many, including myself, have been hoping to see on the Apple Watch for a while. It’s unclear whether this means we’ll have fully automatic sleep tracking on the Apple Watch, or whether it will simply detect when you’re napping outside of your normal set bedtime.
Apple hasn’t mentioned this feature yet, so all eager Apple Watch owners can do is experiment and wait to see how it changes (if at all) in future betas.
How to install watchOS 11 beta
To check out sleep detection and other new features in watchOS 11, you don’t have to wait until the official release this fall. You can always install the watchOS 11 beta instead. Previously, you had to jump through additional hoops to download Apple’s various developer betas, or you had to purchase a developer account for $99 per year. But now everyone can find beta versions in their device settings.
Before I tell you how to do this, I want to point out that most people probably shouldn’t install the watchOS 11 beta . This is because Apple doesn’t actually allow you to go back to your previous operating system. So if you find any annoying bugs, you won’t be able to downgrade. You’ll just have to deal with them until the next beta update comes out.
If you’re comfortable with this risk, here’s what you need to do to update:
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First, open the Watch app on your iPhone.
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Open General and find Software Update .
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Find the Beta Updates option and click on it, then select watchOS 11 Developer Beta . Once the public beta is available, it will also appear here.
Once you have selected the developer beta, it will be downloaded. To install the beta, you’ll still need to charge your Apple Watch and charge it to at least 50 percent. Once installed, you can start experimenting with all the new settings and features. To use the new sleep detection feature, just make sure you open the sleep app at least once, and it should automatically detect when you’re taking a nap while you have your Apple Watch on your wrist.