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Apple Releases watchOS 26.1 with Focus on Performance and Bug Fixes

Apple pushed the official watchOS 26.1 update to Apple Watch users on November 4th. This release, identified by the internal build number 23S37, comes 35 days after the previous official version, continuing the refinement of the watchOS platform.

watchOS 26.1

Currently, it is unclear what new features are included in this version. However, it is highly likely that the update contains crucial bug fixes and performance improvements that address issues identified after the initial launch of the watchOS 26 software.

The major watchOS 26 update brought several significant new features to the Apple Watch. These included the introduction of a new liquid glass design, a native Notes application, new swipe gestures for easier navigation, and the integration of Apple Intelligence functions.

 

watchOS 26 Release History:

The journey to this stable release involved numerous beta and release candidate versions. The timeline is as follows: 2025-10-29: watchOS 26.1 RC (23S36); 2025-10-21: watchOS 26.1 Beta 4 (23S5031a); 2025-10-14: watchOS 26.1 Beta 3 (23S5022e); 2025-10-07: watchOS 26.1 Beta 2 (23S5017d); 2025-09-30: watchOS 26.0.1 (23R8362); 2025-09-30: watchOS 26.0.2 (23R362 | 23R8362); 2025-09-23: watchOS 26.1 Beta (23S5002i); 2025-09-16: watchOS 26 (23R352); 2025-09-10: watchOS 26 RC (23R351); 2025-09-03: watchOS 26 Beta 9 (23R5350b); 2025-08-26: watchOS 26 Beta 8 (23R5350a); 2025-08-19: watchOS 26 Beta 7 (23R5346a); 2025-08-12: watchOS 26 Beta 6 (23R5340a); 2025-08-06: watchOS 26 Beta 5 (23R5328g); 2025-07-23: watchOS 26 Beta 4 (23R5317g); 2025-07-08: watchOS 26 Beta 3 (23R5307g); 2025-06-24: watchOS 26 Beta 2 (23R5296f); 2025-06-10: watchOS 26 Beta (23R5280m).

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