iOS 26.1 hints at iPhone adding support for third-party smartwatches

9 hours ago 2

iOS 26.1 beta 1 arrived earlier this week with a variety of new features and changes. But the beta’s code also revealed, as discovered by Macworld, Apple working toward the iPhone adding third-party smartwatch support.

iOS 26.1 code shows Apple working toward improved compatibility with third-party smartwatches

Filipe Esposito writes at Macworld:

The latest iOS beta code includes an unreleased feature called Notification Forwarding. As the name suggests, it will let users choose to show notifications from their iPhone on another non-Apple device or accessory. Once available, the feature can be enabled in Settings.

One of the strings found in the code suggests that notifications can only be forwarded to “one accessory at a time,” and that enabling this option disables notifications on the Apple Watch.

The article also mentions references to new frameworks related to accessory pairing, such as “AccessoryExtension.” They seem to suggest an easier method coming for pairing third-party accessories to iPhone.

Esposito notes that Apple may not actually offer improved smartwatch compatibility in iOS 26.1. Instead, it’s more likely to arrive in a later update, but Apple is laying the groundwork in its code now.

We also don’t yet know if the new features such as Notification Forwarding will be enabled for all users around the world, or limited to territories where legislation requires it.

The EU, for example, last year pushed Apple to improve interoperability of the iPhone with third-party accessories like smartwatches.

Just as EU users currently have access to territory-restricted features such as the ability to sideload apps and third-party app marketplaces, we may see Apple limit improved smartwatch compatibility to the EU too.

We’ll keep you posted on any additional discoveries found in iOS 26.1, especially as the beta cycle proceeds in the weeks ahead.

Would better iPhone compatibility make you more interested in using a third-party smartwatch over the Apple Watch? Let us know in the comments.