Apple has just seeded the fourth beta of watchOS 2.2 to developers, two weeks after seeding the third watchOS 2.2 beta and more than two months after releasing watchOS 2.1, the first major update to the watchOS 2 operating system that runs on the Apple Watch. watchOS 2.2 has been in testing since January 11.
watchOS 2.2, along with iOS 9.3, introduces support for pairing multiple Apple Watches with a single iPhone. Both updates are required, with each watch running watchOS 2.2 and each iPhone running iOS 9.3. watchOS 2.2 also includes a revamped look for the built-in Maps app on the Apple Watch with access to the Nearby feature first introduced with iOS 9 and new buttons for quickly accessing directions to home and work.
To download the new beta software, you’ll need to be running an iPhone with the new iOS 9.3 beta already installed. You’ll then open the dedicated Apple Watch app on the iPhone, head into General and tap on Software Update. The Apple Watch has to have at least 50 percent battery, has to be placed on the Apple Watch charger, and has to be in range of the iPhone equipped with iOS 9.3.
There are were no other obvious outward-facing changes introduced in the first three watchOS 2.2 betas aside from the changes to the Maps app, but the update undoubtedly includes under-the-hood performance updates and bug fixes to address issues that have been discovered since the release of watchOS 2.1. WatchOS 2.2 is expected to debut in the spring, perhaps at Apple’s rumored March event.
Apple Seeds WatchOS 2.2 Beta 4 to Developers