watchOS 27 Drops Support for Apple Watch Series 8, Ultra 1, SE 2, and Older
Apple today confirmed that watchOS 27 will not support the Apple Watch Series 8, Apple Watch Ultra (first generation), or Apple Watch SE (second generation), effectively drawing a line at devices equipped with the S9 or S10 chip.
The only Apple Watch models compatible with watchOS 27 are the Apple Watch Series 9, Series 10, Series 11, Ultra 2, Ultra 3, and SE 3.
The cuts are the biggest loss of latest generation software support for the Apple Watch to date. watchOS 26 supported exactly the same devices as watchOS 11 before it: the Apple Watch Series 6 and later, Apple Watch SE (2nd generation) and later, and all Apple Watch Ultra models. With watchOS 27, Apple is effectively dropping three years' worth of device support in a single software update.
Update: Apple's initial compatibility list incorrectly said that the Apple Watch Series 9 would not support watchOS 27. We've updated this article following the company's confirmation that the device will indeed get the latest software.
Popular Stories
Apple is re-evaluating the Apple Watch lineup and considering a host of radical new designs, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.
In today's edition of his "Power On" newsletter, Gurman compared plans for the Apple Watch's evolution to the "revolutionary design change" that the foldable iPhone represents. It will be "something that...
Apple is planning to reintroduce its striking ceramic Apple Watch casing as soon as this year, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports.
Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.
Writing in his "Power On" newsletter, Gurman explained that the ceramic case option is expected to return either this year or in 2027. Apple first introduced a ceramic Apple Watch Edition with the Series 2...
On this week's episode of The MacRumors Show, we discuss how the Apple Watch is seemingly heading into one of its least eventful new generations, yet the rumors stacking up behind it describe the most radical rethink in the product's history coming later.
Subscribe to The MacRumors Show YouTube channel for more videos
The most eye-catching change potentially coming this year is not a new...
