The old Siri face for Apple Watch has finally been removed since the launch of watchOS 11. It seems likely that the decision was made in order to push users towards the similar but newer Smart Stacks interface option (shown below). above), which Apple improved in the software update.
9to5Mac’s Zac Hall made the discovery and deserves extra credit for predicting it would happen this time last year.
“Since watchOS 10,” Hall wrote at the time, “the Siri watch face has had six versions. It started with a lot of potential and took steps to realize that potential before stopping. There is now a new widget system on Apple Watch that turns the Siri watch face into an antique.
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The new widget system mentioned is Smart Stack, a major interface change that debuted in watchOS 10 in 2023. Rather than being a watch face in its own right, the Smart Stack is an accessible view switch from any face. (other than Siri) by scrolling up on the Digital Crown. This brings up a stack of vertically scrolling widgets that the system thinks might be interesting.
Apple appears committed to Smart Stack and the system received an upgrade in the recently announced watchOS 11 update, which is currently in beta. This allows it to deliver live activities and more intelligently predict which widgets you’ll want to see based on your routine and additional information like location and weather conditions.
The Siri watch face looks and behaves much the same as the Smart Stack, but obviously has the disadvantage of being a face rather than a feature accessible from a face; you can’t easily revert to a default face with other complications (especially since Apple removed the simple swipe to switch between faces). It always seemed odd to have both the Siri face and Smart Stack even though, as Hall noted last year, Apple doesn’t typically remove faces.
Well, now it is. And the (presumably small) group of people who currently use the Siri watch face can be consoled by the idea that by switching to another watch face, and then accessing the Smart Stack from there, they will experience the same benefits , as well as improved performance and ease of use. access to other complications.
watchOS 11 will roll out to Apple Watch Series 6 and later as a completed update in the fall. (Here’s how to update watchOS on your Apple Watch.) For now, it’s available in beta for developers; a public beta version should appear in July.
