Apple’s new Exercise Buddy function is intriguing—a voice out of your Apple Watch that gives you pep talks and stats as you exercise. However after I put in the WatchOS public beta (after studying and disregarding all of the warnings we’ve given about doing so), I found that my watch couldn’t run Exercise Buddy, though it’s a Series 10, which must be supported.
And sure, I ought to have learn the positive print slightly nearer, however this specific caveat isn’t precisely being communicated loud and clear: Exercise Buddy arguably isn’t actually a function of your watch in any respect, however a function of your Apple Intelligence-enabled iPhone. In the event you don’t have at the least an iPhone 15 Professional, you don’t get Exercise Buddy in your Apple Watch.
I discovered this out in probably the most embarrassing means, so be at liberty to chortle: I accepted the task to check out the general public beta and report on Exercise Buddy; I realized the best way to set up a public beta; I happy myself that I used to be OK with the risks of doing so. I backed up my iPhone, then put in the beta on my telephone, then put in the beta on my watch. Then I become working garments, drove to the park the place I wish to run, slathered myself in sunscreen, and as I used to be about to begin my first run with my new Exercise Buddy, discovered that the choice wasn’t there. I triple-checked every thing. The beta was put in, I had the brand new exercise display screen view, I used to be trying within the right menu…however I used to be carrying an iPhone 12 mini (the final telephone Apple ever made that matches comfortably in my pocket, however that’s a rant for an additional time). And which means no Exercise Buddy for me.
Exercise Buddy wants an iPhone 15 Professional or 16 to work, and it must be with you the entire time
In the event you’ve been paying shut consideration to Apple’s announcements about Apple Intelligence, you would possibly know offhand precisely which iPhones it means when it says (within the sixth of six paragraphs on the feature) that “Exercise Buddy will likely be obtainable on Apple Watch with Bluetooth headphones, and requires an Apple Intelligence-supported iPhone close by.”
What do you assume up to now?
Me, I’m only a dumb jock, so checking the list of Apple Intelligence-compatible iPhone versions didn’t happen to me. I simply seen that Exercise Buddy is listed among the many options of WatchOS, so I believed it was a WatchOS function. However to get that peppy coach voice, your watch has to get your Apple Intelligence-enabled iPhone to generate it. And Apple Intelligence sometimes sends requests off for cloud computing, which suggests your Apple Intelligence-enabled iPhone could should be related to the web for this to work.
So even in case you have the correct of iPhone, you may’t use Exercise Buddy for those who’re within the behavior of leaving it at dwelling (or in your fitness center locker) throughout exercises, and it could not work correctly in case your runs and walks take you to locations that haven’t any mobile sign—as lots of my path runs do. This makes it rather a lot much less helpful than you would possibly assume, even for those who aren’t a dummy like me who forgets what sort of telephone they’re carrying.
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