watchOS 26: Apple Watch to warn users about excessive power consumption

The Apple Watch Series 6 and other new models are set to receive one of the biggest updates in the fall. watchOS 26 will not only introduce Apple's new "Liquid Glass" look, but also add innovative features such as the "Workout Buddy", an AI program especially designed for athletes, as well as the possibility of deleting notifications by shaking the wrist. In this context, 9to5Mac has discovered yet another new feature in the beta version of watchOS 26.

The operating system detects when the smartwatch is consuming more power than usual and subsequently displays a warning to users. This notification allows users to directly activate Low Power Mode, which significantly extends the Apple Watch's battery life but also disables some features and background activities, such as automatic workout detection and the always-on display. According to 9to5Mac, the Apple Watch compares historical data on remaining battery levels to determine if excessive power is being consumed.

For example, if the smarwatch only has 50% battery capacity remaining at around 5 pm instead of the usual 70%, the aforementioned warning appears. This is intended to prevent the battery from becoming depleted without users noticing that the watch is consuming more power than usual. This can occur, for example, during a long workout or when the GPS module is active for long periods of time. However, at least in the current beta version, watchOS 26 generally leads to shorter battery life, even on current models such as the Apple Watch Series 10.