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I am considering updating to an independent app for watchOS 6 (as Apple suggests) but it's not clear to me what will happen to users of older watchOS versions that have my app installed. More specifically:

What will happen if a user had the dependent app installed on their watchOS 5 watch but downloads an update of the iOS app (which now lists the watch app as independent) for their connected iOS 13 iPhone? Will the watch app be uninstalled or not function at all (since it will try watch connectivity with an iOS app that no longer supports it)?

This will definitely occur, since, according to official page:

watchOS 6 will be available for Apple Watch Series 1 and Apple Watch Series 2 later this fall.

stakri
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1 Answers1

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I think this is not a hard question. An independent app means that the app can work alone. But it doesn't have to. An independent watchOS app should work with or without the iOS companion app. If you watchOS app can't work properly without iOS companion app, it is not an independent app. You should refactor your Apple Watch Extension or just leave it as not independent.

Here are what I believe should be true:

  1. If you installed an Apple Watch app with its iOS companion app, both apps are removed if you remove the iOS app.
  2. However, if the Apple Watch app is independent, you could installed it alone without install the iOS companion app.

For the second rule, there are some pitfalls as a developer. When you are debugging an independent watch app, it is listed in Watch app on iPhone. However, since there is no iOS companion app, you can't remove it entirely on iOS. Even if you have removed it on Apple Watch, it is still shown as not installed in Watch app.

Owen Zhao
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