watchOS 26 Moves Latest Apple Watch Models to New Architecture

watchOS 26 brings a important upgrade to the Apple Watch's architecture, transitioning the latest models to afloat arm64.


The alteration was revealed successful Apple's "What's caller successful watchOS 26" video for developers. The Apple Watch Series 9, Series 10, and Apple Watch Ultra 2 are acceptable to determination from arm64_32 to the afloat arm64 architecture.

The arm64_32 architecture was a modified mentation of the modular 64-bit ARM architecture with 32-bit pointers, specifically optimized for the constrained representation environments of wearable devices. This hybrid architecture allowed Apple to instrumentality the benefits of 64-bit acquisition sets portion maintaining a tighter representation footprint than afloat 64-bit systems.

The modular arm64 architecture provides 64-bit pointers and entree to broader representation ranges, enhanced performance, and accrued compatibility with general-purpose ARM computing standards. The determination besides opens the doorway for perchance much analyzable and computationally intensive watchOS applications, since arm64 provides entree to much registers and strategy resources compared to the much compact arm64_32, arsenic good arsenic much nonstop alignment with improvement tools and runtime environments utilized crossed different Apple platforms.

watchOS 26 apps indispensable present beryllium built with consciousness of some arm64 and arm64_32, depending connected the people device. Apple clarified that older models, specified arsenic the Apple Watch SE (2nd generation) and Series 8, proceed to usage the arm64_32 architecture. As a result, watchOS apps request to see abstracted binaries to enactment some acquisition sets. Xcode automatically manages the physique process for arm64 and arm64_32 arsenic agelong arsenic developers support due deployment targets and architectures successful their task settings.

Existing apps built for arm64_32 volition proceed to tally connected newer Apple Watches moving watchOS 26 via compatibility layers, but re-compilation for autochthonal arm64 is encouraged for champion show and guardant compatibility. It is apt that arm64_32 enactment connected the Apple Watch volition gradually diminish implicit coming years arsenic bequest hardware is retired. All of Apple's different platforms already usage the afloat arm64 architecture.
This article, "watchOS 26 Moves Latest Apple Watch Models to New Architecture" archetypal appeared connected MacRumors.com

Discuss this article successful our forums