Apple Watches offer a remarkable amount of functionality on your wrist. However, unintentional taps and swipes can sometimes interfere with workouts, underwater activities, or just regular wear.
If you find yourself accidentally pausing workouts, changing music, or activating apps, it’s time to take advantage of the Apple Watch’s screen lock feature. This simple solution prevents the screen from responding to input, giving you peace of mind.
Feature Overview
The Apple Watch has a handy feature called “Water Lock” that’s designed to prevent accidental touches when you’re in the water. What’s great is that this feature can be used in various other scenarios to lock your screen and avoid unintended actions.
How to Lock Your Apple Watch Screen
Here’s how to engage Water Lock and prevent those accidental touches:
- Access Control Center: From your watch face, swipe up from the bottom of the screen to open the Control Center.
- Locate the Water Lock Icon: In the Control Center, find the icon that looks like a water droplet.
- Activate Water Lock: Tap the water droplet icon. Your Apple Watch screen is now locked.
How to Unlock Your Apple Watch Screen
When you’re ready to use your Apple Watch normally again, follow these steps:
- Rotate the Digital Crown: Turn the Digital Crown (the knob on the side of your watch) repeatedly.
- Eject Water: Your Apple Watch will make a series of sounds to clear any water and then unlock.
Other Benefits of Water Lock
Besides preventing accidental touches, Water Lock has an additional benefit:
- Clearing Water: After activities in water, Water Lock helps eject water trapped in the Apple Watch speakers to ensure optimal sound quality.
Remember: Water Lock is a versatile feature. If those accidental taps are disrupting you during workouts or activities, even out of the water, don’t hesitate to use this feature to your advantage!
Apple Watch Variants with Water Lock Feature
Here’s the breakdown of which Apple Watch models support the Water Lock feature:
- Fully Support Water Lock:
- Apple Watch Series 2
- Apple Watch Series 3
- Apple Watch Series 4
- Apple Watch Series 5
- Apple Watch Series 6
- Apple Watch SE
- Apple Watch Series 7
- Apple Watch Series 8
- Apple Watch Ultra
- Don’t Support Water Lock:
- Apple Watch Series 1
- Apple Watch (1st generation)
Important Note: While the original Apple Watch and Series 1 do have some water resistance, they lack the Water Lock feature designed to protect against accidental inputs and the speaker-clearing function.
