If a newly discovered reference to an unreleased Sleep app for watchOS is an indication, Apple is working on or close to releasing an official sleep-tracking solution for its wearable platform.
MacRumors has the story:
In the App Store listing for Apple’s preinstalled Alarms app on the Apple Watch, there is a screenshot of an unreleased version of the Alarms app with a ‘Sleep’ label and fine print that reads ‘set your Bedtime and wake up in the Sleep app.’ Similar functionality is available on the iPhone through the Bedtime tab of the Clocks app.
Mind you, there is no Sleep app or references to it in the Alarms app on watchOS 6.0.1 or watchOS 6.1 beta. It’s also worth mentioning that MacRumors last month uncovered evidence from an internal build of iOS 13 which suggests that the Cupertino tech giant may have been working on a first-party Sleep app for the watchOS platform.
According to Bloomberg and an earlier report from 9to5Mac, the feature code-named “Burrito” will let you choose to wear your Apple Watch to bed as a bedtime watch. The feature will track your quality of sleep using the device’s multiple sensors and inputs, taking into account your movement, heart rate and noises while you’re asleep.
From that report:
When wearing the Watch during bedtime, if the user wakes up and starts their day before their alarm goes off, it will automatically turn off the alarm. The alarm will also play only on Apple Watch, using the iPhone as a backup. There will also be an option to use a silent alarm that only vibrates the Apple Watch. The new bedtime system will enable Do Not Disturb automatically when the user goes to bed. There will also be a new complication available for sleep tracking.
“Data about the user’s quality of sleep will be made available in the Health app and a new Sleep app for the Apple Watch,” the report noted. What remains unclear from these reports is whether the Sleep app will arrive as a Series 6-exclusive next year or if Apple might be planning on launching the feature for the current models via a software update.
Who’s looking forward to officially sanctioned sleep-tracking? While we’re at it, we’d love to hear about your favorite third-party apps for tracking the quality of your sleep via Apple Watch.
Let us know about them in the comments!