One of the new watchOS 7 features highlighted at WWDC 2020 is the handwash detection, which helps users to wash their hands properly to eliminate germs. This feature is disabled by default, so read on as we explain how to enable and use handwash detection in watchOS 7.
The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends washing your hands for at least 20 seconds to make sure that most germs are killed. While handwashing is crucial in any situation, this habit became even more essential during the COVID-19 pandemic, since the virus can be transmitted by manual contact.
Apple Watch now displays a countdown to help you wash your hands for 20 seconds. There’s also haptic feedback and sounds to make the process more intuitive, so users don’t have to look at the screen while washing their hands.
The best part of watchOS 7’s handwashing feature is that it works automatically, so you don’t need to open any apps to get started. The system can identify soap and water sounds when you rub your hands together. The combination of these sounds with hand movements activates the countdown of hand washing.
Apple has chosen not to enable handwashing detection by default, but if you’re already running watchOS 7 on your Apple Watch, here is how to enable it:
- Open the Configurations application on Apple Watch
- Scroll down and tap Handwashing
- Turn on the Timer lever
- Turn on the Haptics toggle (optional)
Once you have enabled handwash detection, you can check more details about each time you washed your hands in the Health app on your iPhone. Just follow the steps below:
- Open the Health iPhone application (requires iOS 14)
- Tap on the Glance tap
- Search for To wash your hands
- Tap on the Handwashing option
Personally, the feature worked as promised most of the time with my Apple Watch, although it was randomly activated in some situations. Please note that watchOS 7 is still beta software and handwash detection is likely to improve until the final release.
watchOS 7 is available as a developer beta and is expected to be released to everyone this fall. A public beta version will be available later this month.
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