watchOS 10.1 to Enable Apple Watch's New 'Double Tap' Gesture

The new Double Tap gesture for the Apple Watch Series 9 and the Apple Watch Ultra 2 will be enabled starting with watchOS 10.1, according to Marques Brownlee, host of the popular tech-focused YouTube channel MKBHD.

Apple Watch Ultra 2 double tap gesture 230912
The first beta of watchOS 10.1 will likely be available by next week, and Apple announced that the software update will be released next month.

Brownlee shared his impressions of the Series 9 and Ultra 2 in the video below, which was highlighted by @M1Astra on X, formerly Twitter.


Double Tap will allow users to tap their watch hand's index finger and thumb together twice to perform common actions on the Apple Watch, such as stopping a timer, playing and pausing music, snoozing an alarm, answering and ending a phone call, opening the Smart Stack, and more, all without touching the screen.

Apple says Double Tap is enabled by the S9 chip's faster Neural Engine, so the feature is only available on the Series 9 and Ultra 2. Apple said it developed an algorithm that detects the "unique signature" of tiny wrist movements and changes in blood flow when the index finger and thumb are tapped together.

A similar but more limited accessibility feature called AssistiveTouch is already available on the Apple Watch Series 4 and newer.

Both new Apple Watch models launch this Friday, but Double Tap will require watchOS 10.1. For now, the latest version is watchOS 10.0.1, released today.

Related Roundup: Apple Watch Series 9

Popular Stories

iPhone SE 4 Vertical Camera Feature

iPhone SE 4 Rumored to Use Same Rear Chassis as iPhone 16

Friday July 19, 2024 7:16 am PDT by
Apple will adopt the same rear chassis manufacturing process for the iPhone SE 4 that it is using for the upcoming standard iPhone 16, claims a new rumor coming out of China. According to the Weibo-based leaker "Fixed Focus Digital," the backplate manufacturing process for the iPhone SE 4 is "exactly the same" as the standard model in Apple's upcoming iPhone 16 lineup, which is expected to...
iPhone 16 Pro Sizes Feature

iPhone 16 Series Is Just Two Months Away: Everything We Know

Monday July 15, 2024 4:44 am PDT by
Apple typically releases its new iPhone series around mid-September, which means we are about two months out from the launch of the iPhone 16. Like the iPhone 15 series, this year's lineup is expected to stick with four models – iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max – although there are plenty of design differences and new features to take into account. To bring ...
iphone 14 lineup

Cellebrite Unable to Unlock iPhones on iOS 17.4 or Later, Leak Reveals

Thursday July 18, 2024 4:18 am PDT by
Israel-based mobile forensics company Cellebrite is unable to unlock iPhones running iOS 17.4 or later, according to leaked documents verified by 404 Media. The documents provide a rare glimpse into the capabilities of the company's mobile forensics tools and highlight the ongoing security improvements in Apple's latest devices. The leaked "Cellebrite iOS Support Matrix" obtained by 404 Media...
tinypod apple watch

TinyPod Turns Your Apple Watch Into an iPod

Wednesday July 17, 2024 3:18 pm PDT by
If you have an old Apple Watch and you're not sure what to do with it, a new product called TinyPod might be the answer. Priced at $79, the TinyPod is a silicone case with a built-in scroll wheel that houses the Apple Watch chassis. When an Apple Watch is placed inside the TinyPod, the click wheel on the case is able to be used to scroll through the Apple Watch interface. The feature works...
bsod

Crowdstrike Says Global IT Outage Impacting Windows PCs, But Mac and Linux Hosts Not Affected

Friday July 19, 2024 3:12 am PDT by
A widespread system failure is currently affecting numerous Windows devices globally, causing critical boot failures across various industries, including banks, rail networks, airlines, retailers, broadcasters, healthcare, and many more sectors. The issue, manifesting as a Blue Screen of Death (BSOD), is preventing computers from starting up properly and forcing them into continuous recovery...
Apple Watch Series 9

2024 Apple Watch Lineup: Key Changes We're Expecting

Tuesday July 16, 2024 7:59 am PDT by
Apple is seemingly planning a rework of the Apple Watch lineup for 2024, according to a range of reports from over the past year. Here's everything we know so far. Apple is expected to continue to offer three different Apple Watch models in five casing sizes, but the various display sizes will allegedly grow by up to 12% and the casings will get taller. Based on all of the latest rumors,...

Top Rated Comments

Joe Rossignol Avatar
11 months ago

so we have a new "leaker"? some YouTube "influencer"?
there's not even a 10.1 beta out ...
Marques Brownlee is the most well-known Tech YouTuber for over a decade and you are just casually referring to him as "some influencer." Alrighty then o_O
Score: 30 Votes (Like | Disagree)
t0rqx Avatar
11 months ago
Seriously. This is the only so called "new feature" which actually already exist on older watches and they still manage to not ship this with the "final product".

Whats with this BETA products on so called "final products".? Every hardware is shipped with a just released OS, that just get stable after the next major release is around the corner.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
antiprotest Avatar
11 months ago
watchOS 11...

"Our engineers have been working long and hard to develop features that help manage users' carpel tunnel syndrome and repetitive strain injury aggravated by watchOS 10. We think you'll love it."
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
xpxp2002 Avatar
11 months ago
That's a long wait to just move a feature that has already existed for years under Accessibility to a different menu.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
desslr Avatar
11 months ago
What? It isn’t even available at launch?!
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
AstroRexaur Avatar
11 months ago
This can be easily enabled in the AWUltra 1st gen.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)