How to put my apple watch in water mode

The Apple Watch Series 2 and later have a nifty little feature called Water Lock mode. These Apple Watches are able to be submerged under water and still be okay.

With Water Lock mode, it will disable all hardware buttons and the Apple Watch’s display to prevent accidental taps and clicks.

Follow along as we walk you through how to enable Water Lock mode on your Apple Watch Series 2 or later.

How to enable Water Lock mode

1. On your Apple Watch, make sure you’re on the Watch face. Swipe up from the bottom to bring up Control Center.
2. Once there, tap on the Water Lock icon (looks like a water droplet).
3. After it’s enabled, you’ll see the Water Lock icon appear on the top of your Apple Watch face.
4. Now, your Apple Watch is in Water Lock mode and will disable all input on the device until disabled.

To disable Water Lock mode, simply turn your Digital Crown counterclockwise. Your Apple Watch will then start beeping multiple times. This is to allow any water in the speaker grill to escape. If you look at the side opposite of your Apple Watch, you may see some water spew out of your Apple Watch’s speaker port.

While Water Lock is on, your Apple Watch will still function as normal, the screen will still light up to check the time, and if notifications come through (if it’s not submerged completely underwater).

If your Apple Watch is submerged underwater the Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and Cellular radios may have trouble connecting. However, if you’re simply walking in the rain with your Apple Watch or are showering with it, the Watch should still be able to receive notifications, and check the time. Though, anything beyond that will be disabled such as pressing the Digital Crown to get to the Home screen, or triggering Hey Siri.

For more help getting the most out of your Apple devices, check out our how to guide as well as the following articles:

• iPhone: How to add email
• Apple Watch: How to enable Power Reserve mode
• How to use swipe or glide typing on iPhone
• iPhone: How to recover recently deleted photos
• iPhone: How to delete all photos
• Apple Watch: How to enable Elevated Heart Rate notifications
• Apple Watch: How to change bands
• Apple Watch: How to pair with new iPhone
• iPhone: How to block texts
• How to customize iPhone camera settings for a smoother experience
• How to manage Face ID access for specific apps

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About the Author

Peter Cao

@iPeterCao

Peter writes for 9to5Mac. He has a passion for music and technology and has accepted the Bluetooth audio revolution, but will never give up the beauty of vinyl.

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