Washing your hands with some frequency is probably one of the healthiest habits that exist to prevent the entry of bacteria and viruses into our body. This is something that we all know, even more so after the COVID-19 pandemic, but the truth is that we do not always remember it and we may not even do it all right. That is why the Apple Watch is prepared to help us in this task. Here we tell you all about this functionality.
Prerequisites and Apple Watch supported
The first thing to note is that this functionality is only available in watchOS 7 and later versions , so it cannot be configured on watches that have a system version earlier than this. It is not available on all watches either, as it can only be activated on Apple Watch Series 4 and Series 5. Series 3, despite being compatible with watchOS 7, do not have this functionality enabled.
Important: watchOS 7 is currently only available in beta.
How handwash works in watchOS
Unlike other functionalities such as measuring beats per minute or performing an ECG, this handwashing is not an application, but rather something that appears by itself, although it must have been previously configured. The operation is really simple and it is that the Apple Watch is capable of detecting when we are washing our hands and this it does thanks to the interpretation of the sound of water and soap, as well as the movement of our wrist when performing this action. This is why a Series 3 cannot support this feature, as its sensors do not have these capabilities.
Once the watch detects that we are washing our hands, a countdown of 2 seconds is activated, the estimated time that a correct hand wash lasts. It appears with a very visual interface in which the numbers are seen and a time sphere shaped like soapy water and bubbles. The countdown will stop if we stop washing our hands before finishing and will encourage us to continue, although we can skip it if we want. As soon as the process is finished, a congratulatory message will appear.
Set up handwashing
In order to activate this function and it can be run on the Apple Watch, go to Settings> Handwashing (or Handwashing) on the watch itself and activate the Timer option. You can also activate the vibration in this place to receive one when this function starts up and in this way know better that it has been activated. Once this has been done it should already work, although the truth is that there could be certain inaccuracies given by the methodology on which it is based, since it is sometimes difficult to detect whether or not we are washing our hands.
It is also assumed that the Apple Watch will send a reminder as soon as it comes from the street to remind us to carry out this hygiene measure, but the truth is that this option is not yet enabled. The way to make it work will be by tracking our location through Maps, having previously marked which is our house.