Apple has made a second release of watchOS 5.3.2 available for download, this time for the Apple Watch Series 4, enabling owners of iPhone models that cannot upgrade to iOS 13 or later to continue using the wearable device with their older smartphone.
The update, released on Wednesday, is targeted specifically for the Apple Watch Series 4, and follows after a similar update that shipped on September 26 for the Apple Watch Series 1, Series 2, and Series 3. The update effectively brings the Series 4 in line with the earlier three generations.
While watchOS has moved on to version 6, that operating system requires the usage of an iPhone that runs iOS 13 or later to function properly. For owners of iPhones like the iPhone 5c and iPhone 5, they are not able to update to iOS 13 at all, and have since been supplied with iOS 12.4.2.
The function of the watchOS 5.3.2 update effectively allows the Apple Watch to continue functioning with the iPhone, despite neither device moving on to the milestone versions.
The updates also include performance and bug fixes along with maintaining compatibility. According to the security content listing for watchOS 5.3.2 on the Apple website, the update includes a fix for an exploit found by Google Project Zero that could allow a remote attacker to crash apps and allow code to be executed, with a view to acquiring a user's data.