Apple’s watchOS 27 update removes a useful Digital Crown shortcut that let Apple Watch users quickly switch between their current and previously used apps. The change affects older models after updating and will also apply to the upcoming Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4, where Apple is reserving the gesture for a new audio feature.

Apple released watchOS 27 on September 14. The Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4 are scheduled to launch on September 18, with Live Rewind expected to arrive on those models later this year.

What changes in watchOS 27

In watchOS 26, double-clicking the Digital Crown switched between the active app and the last app used. The shortcut also worked when moving between the watch face and the most recently opened app, offering a quick way to multitask without touching the display.

After installing watchOS 27, that double-click action no longer switches apps on older Apple Watch models. Instead, it opens the new dynamic app grid, which is also accessed with a single click of the Digital Crown.

That means owners of compatible older watches lose the shortcut even though they cannot use the feature that has replaced it.

Live Rewind takes over the gesture

On the Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4, Apple plans to use a double-click of the Digital Crown to activate Live Rewind. The Audio Intelligence feature can provide a transcript of spoken audio captured by the watch during the previous 15 seconds.

Live Rewind is limited to the newer hardware, but the change to the Digital Crown gesture also affects owners of earlier models who install watchOS 27. Apple has not provided a separate setting that restores app switching for those users.

No alternate setting is available

The change may also be inconvenient for Series 12 and Ultra 4 buyers who do not want to use Live Rewind. Because Apple has assigned the gesture to that feature, users cannot currently choose between Live Rewind and the previous app-switching behavior.

A customizable option could allow users to keep the existing shortcut or assign the double-click to Live Rewind. For now, Apple Watch owners have no built-in way to change the gesture’s behavior in watchOS 27.

Users who rely on the shortcut can send feedback to Apple and ask for the option to return in a future update, such as watchOS 27.1 or a later release. Pre-orders for the Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4 are available ahead of their September 18 launch.