The Apple Watch Smart Stack is a dynamic list of widgets on your watch face that automatically updates throughout the day to show you timely information based on your current context, like your next calendar event, the current weather, or apps you use frequently. It's a quick way to see glanceable information without having to open multiple apps.
Here’s how to effectively use and customize the Smart Stack on your Apple Watch:
Accessing the Smart Stack
To access the Smart Stack from your watch face:
- Simply turn the Digital Crown upwards.
- The widgets will scroll into view, showing relevant information.
How the Smart Stack Works
The Smart Stack uses on-device intelligence to display widgets based on factors like the time of day, your location, activities, and app usage. For example, it might show:
- Your Activity rings in the morning.
- Calendar appointments or reminders during the day.
- The weather before your commute.
- Contols for audio playback when listening to music.
Customizing Your Smart Stack
While the Smart Stack is designed to be smart and automatic, you can also customize which widgets appear and their order.
- From your watch face, turn the Digital Crown to open the Smart Stack.
- Long press anywhere on the Smart Stack.
- Tap the Edit button (looks like three horizontal lines with circles).
- You are now in editing mode.
Managing Widgets
In editing mode, you can make several changes:
- Remove Widgets: Tap the minus (-) button next to a widget to remove it from the stack.
- Add Widgets: Tap the plus (+) button at the top left to see a list of available widgets you can add. You can choose from recommended widgets or browse by app.
- Rearrange Widgets: Tap and hold the reorder icon (three horizontal lines) on the right side of a widget, then drag it up or down in the list.
According to the provided reference:
- "You can tap remove. And add to change the shortcuts in the triple complication widget." - This highlights that you can use the remove and add options specifically to change the available shortcuts or complications that can appear in certain widget types, such as a widget configured to show three small complications.
- "And tap the PIN to keep a widget at the top of the list." - This tells you how to keep a frequently needed widget easily accessible.
Pinning Widgets
To ensure a specific widget always appears near the top of your Smart Stack, you can pin it:
- In editing mode, tap the pin icon (looks like a pushpin) next to the widget you want to keep at the top.
- Pinned widgets will appear with the pin icon visible and will stay above the dynamic, context-aware widgets. You can pin multiple widgets, and they will appear in the order you arrange them.
- To unpin a widget, simply tap the pin icon again in editing mode.
Summary of Customization Actions
Here's a quick look at the main actions in editing mode:
| Action | Button/Icon | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Edit Mode | Three circles lines | Enter customization view |
| Remove | Minus (-) | Remove a widget from the stack |
| Add | Plus (+) | Add a new widget to the stack |
| Reorder | Three horizontal lines | Change the position of a widget |
| Pin | Pushpin icon | Keep a widget near the top of the stack |
By using these customization options, you can tailor your Smart Stack to provide the most useful information to you throughout the day.
