The Apple Watch is a versatile smartwatch that lets you access tons of apps right from your wrist. But like with an iPhone, apps remain open in the background until you close them down. If you start to see slowdowns or apps start lagging or freezing, it could be because there are too many apps open. Thankfully there's no need to restart your top-end Apple Watch Ultra. You can quickly and easily force close apps with a couple of button presses and taps.
How to force close apps on Apple Watch
- Before you begin, open the Watch app on your iPhone and Select Dock.
- Make sure Dock Ordering is set to Recents. This should be the default, but if you ever switched it to Favorites, the steps below won't force close the app you select.
- While on the Home app screen, press the side button (not the Digital Crown), which will be directly above or below the Digital Crown, depending on how you wear the Watch.
- A list of the apps you currently have open will appear.
- Scroll up or down on the app you want to force close.
- When it’s in the center of the Watch screen, swipe to the left.
- Tap the large red X and the app will disappear and close. Continue doing this for each app you want to close.
This simple way of force-closing apps mirrors how to force-close apps on an iPhone. It keeps the interface of the best Apple Watch models clean and ensures that everything works smoothly. Plus, it’s oddly satisfying to close the apps and see them disappear from the screen, like marking off items on a to-do list.
Personally, I have run into an issue where I needed to force close a workout app on the Apple Watch to ensure the next workout would sync properly once I initiated it from the app on my iPhone. Force-closing apps can also solve the issue of an app that might be frozen.
Note that if force closing doesn’t work, you can always resort to resetting the Watch as a last option. To do this, press and hold both the side button and Digital Crown until the screen goes blank and the Apple logo appears. Then wait until the Watch is back up and running. You won’t lose any data from the apps, but this will reset the finicky app, so you can get going once again.
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Apple Watch Series 8
The Apple Watch Series 8 is the 2022 smartwatch from Apple. It offers fresh features like crash detection, a temperature sensor, and more, in addition to existing ones, such as ECG and blood oxygen monitoring.
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Apple Watch Ultra
$749 $799 Save $50The Apple Watch Ultra is the highest-end smartwatch Apple makes. It's not for everybody, but if you spend a lot of time outdoors, are a serious athlete, or just want the ultimate protection, this is the watch to pick.
