If you’ve ever seen this screen on your Apple Watch telling you to turn the digital crown to unlock and eject water, then you’ve probably wondered why the feature exists. Well, it’s called water lock, and it’s exclusive to the Apple Watch since it’s designed to be used while swimming and showering.
But there are some issues with constantly submerging an electronic device underwater. First, touch screens don’t behave as expected when wet. Since water dissipates the electrical conduction of your finger. Plus, the touch screen has a hard time differentiating between water droplets and your finger. So to prevent usability issues while wet, the Apple Watch automatically locks the display when it detects moisture. But there’s another issue caused by water, and it has to do with the speakers. Since they’re the only opening in the Apple Watch’s exterior, water can easily accumulate and cause damage.
Especially if the watch is being submerged daily. So to prevent any issues, Apple created the eject water feature. Which plays a deep oscillating tone through the speakers to force out any remaining water. It does this when you rotate the digital crown, telling the watch that you’ve finished swimming or showering.
Now the water lock usually turns on automatically so you don’t even have to think about it. And you can tell when it’s on by the small waterdrop icon at the top of the display. But in some cases, you may want to enable it manually. Which you can do by going to the control center, and tapping the water drop button.
Now even though the Apple Watch is water-resistant, it isn’t waterproof. So you’ll want to avoid soaking it in water that has been combined with powerful soaps or solutions. Like dishwashing liquid or car washing soap. These powerful chemicals can deteriorate the Apple Watch’s seals over time, possibly leading to water damage. Although swimming in chorine and wearing it during a quick shower is okay.
