Apple announced watchOS 7 at the WWDC keynote. The new update brings support for features like native sleep tracking, new workout modes, and more. It also removes force touch from Apple Watch. However, one of the interesting features added with watchOS 7 is handwash detection, which seems like a perfect feature for the times we live in right now. However, hand wash detection is not enabled by default. So, if you want to use your Apple Watch for better hand washing, here is how to enable hand wash detection in watchOS 7.
How to Enable Hand Washing Detection in watchOS 7
Note: I demonstrate this feature on the Apple Watch Series 5 (GPS only). But it will also work on Apple Watch Series 3 and Apple Watch Series 4.
- Press the digital crown and go to Settings on your Apple Watch.
- Scroll down and tap on ‘Hand washing‘.
- Activate the toggle next to ‘Timer’ To enable hand wash detection in watchOS 7.
- You can also enable or disable haptics if you want. These are enabled by default and I chose to keep them turned on. However, you can also turn them off.
This much. Now your Apple Watch will detect when you’re washing your hands and start a handy timer on the watch face. This counts down from the recommended handwashing time of 20 seconds to properly get rid of germs. If you stop washing your hands, your watch will warn you to continue for a while. You’ll also get haptic feedback (if enabled) and a sound when the timer runs out.
See Hand Wash Details on Your iPhone
Handwashing details are synced from your watch to your iPhone. Thus, you can easily track how long you wash your hands each day. To view this data, simply follow the steps below.
- In the Health app on your iPhone, Tap on ‘Browse’. Scroll down and tap on ‘other data‘.
- Tap on ‘Hand wash’ You can also scroll down to see your saved data and add this to Favorites to see also on the main Summary page of the health app.
Use Apple Watch Handwash Detection to Stay Healthy and Safe
With the coronavirus pandemic, it’s more important than ever to wash your hands properly. So, this new hand wash detection feature kicks in at the perfect time. It can help make sure you wash your hands for the right amount of time so you can stay healthier and safer. While this is an opt-in feature, I recommend immediately enabling handwashing detection on your Apple Watch to get in the habit of washing your hands properly every time.
So what do you think about this feature? Does it look like something you want to use? Let me know in the comments.
