Amber Neely
Apple has begun testing a fix for the known bug that prevented iPhone 13 users from using the Unlock with Apple Watch feature.
First reported on September 24, the bug would prevent users from unlocking their iPhone 13 with their Apple Watch. Instead, users would get an error that read "Unable to communicate with Apple Watch."
Users had reported that they had attempted to fix the bug through nearly every measure possible, including setting up their Apple Watch as a new watch, resetting passwords, and wiping and resetting their devices, but to no avail. Unlock with Apple Watch offers an easier way to unlock an iPhone with FaceID while wearing a mask.
On Tuesday, Apple rolled out the iOS 15.1 developer beta. The new beta fixes the bug, allowing users to unlock their iPhone with an Apple Watch once again.
Also included in the iOS 15.1 beta is SharePlay, as well as verifiable COVID vaccination cards.
Both AppleInsider and Apple itself strongly recommend users don't install the betas on to "mission-critical" or primary devices, as there is the remote possibility of data loss or other issues. Instead, testers should install betas onto secondary or non-essential devices and ensure there are sufficient backups of important data before updating.
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Wesley Hilliard
AppleInsider Staff
Andrew Orr
William Gallagher
3 Comments
Yes, it works. Hurrah
So my watch and iPhone 13 Pro Max AND iMac running Big Sur had the 'can't talk to watch' bug. Then last night when I was going to show my wife the error message by trying to enable it....it enabled and worked. I'm not running the beta, so not sure why it started working. This morning turned on 'unlock with watch' on my iMac, no problems.
Still doesn't work for me.