Latest news with #WorkoutBuddy
Tom's Guide
5 days ago
- Health
- Tom's Guide
One UI 8 Beta rolling out now — here's the 3 biggest upgrades for your Samsung Galaxy Watch
Samsung Galaxy Watch owners are about to get a bit more insight into their health and sleep, and even get some more encouragement when they go out on runs. The company today launched One UI 8 beta, the latest version of its operating system for its wearable devices, which contains several new features that should make Samsung's devices more competitive with not just the best smartwatches, but also the best Garmin watches, too. Here's a rundown of all the new features, as well as the devices they'll work with. Running Coach The Running Coach feature will analyze your fitness level — you just need to go on a 12-minute run — and then deliver detailed training plans for running a 5K, 10K, half marathon, or a full marathon. The Coach will provide training designed to improve your performance, but not push you too hard to cause potential injuries. More interestingly, it will also provide motivation during your training by saying encouraging phrases while you're running, as well as telling you your current pace and effort level. This reminds us of the Workout Buddy in Apple's watchOS 26. Bedtime Guidance and Vascular Load Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips. While some Galaxy Watches can detect sleep apnea, the new Bedtime Guidance feature aims to get you to bed at a more reasonable hour to ensure you're getting enough shuteye. The watch will analyze your circadian rhythm and "sleep pressure" — how much you need sleep — over a three-day period and suggest a bedtime for you to get the optimal amount of sleep. Samsung says this feature will be especially helpful if you have to travel across multiple timezones, and your normal sleep patterns are interrupted. While you sleep, the watch will also measure your vascular load — an indicator of overall heart health — to see if you need to make any other adjustments to your overall routine. Antioxidant Index Are you eating enough fruits and veggies? The Galaxy Watch Ultra's Bio-Active sensor can now measure the amount of carotenoids (antioxidants found in green and orange vegetables and fruits) stored in your skin. To activate the feature, you simply hold your finger to the sensor, and after a few seconds, the watch will return a figure stating if your carotenoid levels are too low. The One UI 8 Beta is available for the Galaxy Watch 5, Galaxy Watch 5 Pro, Galaxy Watch 6, Galaxy Watch 6 Classic, Galaxy Watch FE, Galaxy Watch 7, and Galaxy Watch Ultra. However, not all features in One UI 8 will work with every model. The Running Coach feature will be available with the Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 or later. The Bedtime Guidance will work with a wider range of Galaxy Watches, but the Vascular Load feature will only be available with the Galaxy Watch Ultra or later. Similarly, the Antioxidant Index will only be available with the Galaxy Watch Ultra or later. We expect that all these features will be available with the Galaxy Watch 8, which we anticipate will be announced during a Galaxy Unpacked event next month.
Tom's Guide
5 days ago
- Tom's Guide
I didn't ask for an AI bot on the Apple Watch, but we're getting one anyway
Last week at WWDC 2025, Apple announced a ton of new features coming to iPhone, Mac and iPad later in the year. But as a former fitness editor, I was most interested in what's going on with the Apple Watch. When watchOS 26 lands in the fall, the best Apple Watches will get a Liquid Glass refresh (no, this isn't a new type of screen, but a translucent design language), a simplified Control Centre for quick access to settings and some new customization features. But the main event of Apple's smartwatch plans is the new AI-backed Workout Buddy. In the Newsroom post announcing all these features, Apple suggests that it'll give you a 'personalized pep talk' like: 'Way to get out for your run this Wednesday morning. You're 18 minutes away from closing your Exercise ring. So far this week, you've run 6 miles. You're going to add to that today.' Does that sound helpful? Not to me, anyway. I'm not sure that I need to pay several hundred dollars for a device that'll tell me things I already know. Don't get me wrong; I think the Apple Watch is easily the best smartwatch available right now (it's just a shame it doesn't work on Android). I recommend it to pretty much anyone with an iPhone because, unless you need something more focused on intense training (in which case, a Garmin watch would do you well), there's nothing better. But the Workout Buddy sounds like Oura's similarly uninspiring AI Advisor — another tool I tend to just ignore. It's not the concept that I dislike — I think actionable insights based on your specific data could be really useful — but the implementation of these features feels a bit like an afterthought. The example Apple gave for Workout Buddy just sounds like it's reading numbers at you, not really understanding them. And from the WWDC demo, it seems to just add a few extra words to features that already exist in other fitness watches, like an audio summary of your run or updates when you've hit a certain distance. So, it's like what you can get already but with 'Added AI' — so you get friendly phrases like, "you're crushing it." It's a similar criticism aimed at Strava's Athlete Intelligence workout summaries, which tell you how far you ran and in what time with a few other metrics that used to just be on the screen at the end of a session, but with more words. In fairness, maybe this isn't an Apple problem, but the way that technology tends to reduce exercise to a series of goals to tick off or targets to hit. I go for a walk every morning, but I don't care if I hit a certain amount of steps — for me, the benefit is spending some mindful time outside. But how can an app on a smartwatch understand that? And that's the disconnect; the intelligence part of all these AI features just isn't there, at least, not yet. Your Apple Watch doesn't know why you chose to go for a run, do a yoga session or take a walk. Strava doesn't know if you're not feeling your best so ran slower, and your Oura Ring 4 doesn't know that it was the noise of a plane that woke you up early, effecting your sleep. All these apps can see is something quantifiable, easily read by a sensor and turned into a number for you to measure yourself against. But exercise, sleep and metal wellbeing can't be defined by numbers alone. And until Workout Buddy and other AI features can really understand this, I'll be leaving them firmly in the off position.
Hans India
14-06-2025
- Hans India
Apple Watch: New AI fitness coach ‘Workout Buddy' launches soon
Apple is enhancing your workout experience with its latest feature—Workout Buddy, set to launch with watchOS 26 later this year. This AI-powered personal coach uses Apple Intelligence to deliver real-time feedback, voice-guided encouragement, and personalized stats during your workouts. Whether you're running outdoors, cycling, walking, or doing strength training, Workout Buddy keeps you motivated. It greets you when you start, celebrates milestones mid-session, and summarizes key stats—like heart rate, pace, and distance—at the end. Workout Buddy uses a text-to-speech AI model, inspired by Fitness+ trainers, to make the voice sound more natural and human-like. All processing is done on-device, ensuring your privacy and data security. To use this feature, you'll need an Apple Watch compatible with watchOS 26, Bluetooth headphones, and a supported iPhone (15 Pro and above, or iPhone 16 series). watchOS 26 also brings a Liquid Glass UI, smarter notifications, larger Workout app buttons, and music recommendations tailored to your exercise style.
CNET
13-06-2025
- CNET
Apple's Workout Buddy Is Friendly, but What if It Could Adopt Other Personalities?
We all have different ways of motivating ourselves to exercise, so when Apple announced Workout Buddy for the Apple Watch at WWDC 2025, it made us think about what sorts of verbal encouragement would spur us to complete our workouts. We couldn't help but imagine the different types of future Workout Buddies -- and how they might help, cajole or even bargain with us to hit our fitness goals. Workout Buddy in WatchOS 26 will be available at the outset in eight workouts (such as running and cycling) that you can activate when the workout begins. It exists as a voice through the watch and Bluetooth headphones or earbuds and is modeled on actual Apple Fitness Plus trainers. Workout Buddy can deliver progress indicators, stats and vocal encouragement as you push through an exercise routine. Initially, Workout Buddy comes across as the type of friend who's there to give you a pat on the back and a helpful rundown of what you just accomplished. But people respond to different types of encouragement. As we wait for WatchOS 26 to arrive (the software is currently available only to developers), here are some different types of workout buddies that could someday -- or hopefully not, in some cases -- echo in our heads while we're sweating. I'm Impressed With iOS 26. Apple Just Made iPhones Better I'm Impressed With iOS 26. Apple Just Made iPhones Better Click to unmute Video Player is loading. Play Video Pause Skip Backward Skip Forward Next playlist item Unmute Current Time 0:04 / Duration 5:40 Loaded : 12.24% 0:04 Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 5:36 Share Fullscreen This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Text Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Caption Area Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Drop shadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Close Modal Dialog This is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button. Close Modal Dialog This is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button. I'm Impressed With iOS 26. Apple Just Made iPhones Better The cheerleader: "That light sheen of sweat makes your skin positively radiant! Good job hitting the half-mile mark! Wow -- you have the resting heart rate of a 20-year-old!" The drill sergeant (said in the sweetest voice possible): "Get off your ass and burn off those donuts! You've still got two miles to go before you reach the calories you consumed, champ!" Your fittest friend who never seems to exercise: "Listen, brah, if you don't push one more mile outta this run, you're never gonna refine that six-pack and ever, like, find true love or succeed at anything in your life. Just straight-talkin' ya, brah." Your friend who keeps stats at baseball games: "You've completed 1.39 miles of this run with a heart rate of 185 beats per second and burned approximately 140 calories, which is slightly below yesterday's run, probably because you got only 6.4 hours of sleep last night and ate 50g more pasta for dinner than your usual serving…" Your chill friend: "Hey, good set. I'm right here with you. Let's do another one." The guilt-tripper: "Way to complete that 30-minute walk! Those donuts are still waiting at home!" The buddy who knows you so well: "All right, you're doing it. Look, if you can push through another half a mile, you can justify that bagel and a glass of wine tonight to celebrate." The caffeinated spin class instructor: "Let's go babes, keep on keeping on! Yeah! One and two and… That's right! You can do this!" The zen dude: "Hello there. Good morning. Let's thank our bodies for being here. And let's be present in this workout. Only 15 gentle miles of uphill running to go. Namaste." The nihilist buddy: "Wow -- is that really all you could muster? Fine, whatever, it doesn't really matter anyway." Mom: "You got out there and did a workout. You did good, hon." Werner Herzog: "You have walked 20 miles. Can you feel the futility? I can tell you haven't even left your house. Why do you make me a participant in your lies?" Maybe the most important Workout Buddy: "Hey. Hi. I know it's early, and you're warm and comfortable, but you said you were going to wake up early and go for a ride. C'mon -- you can do this. Just get out of bed. We'll do it together. Your favorite coffee shop is right at the end of the route."
CNET
11-06-2025
- CNET
I Want Workout Buddy to Be More Boot Camp Trainer Than Cheerleader on the Apple Watch
I was expecting (and hoping) Apple would launch some kind of AI-powered health feature on the Apple Watch at WWDC 2025, but Workout Buddy wasn't exactly what I had in mind. I'm the kind of person who spoils any and all surprises by reading the last page of a good mystery novel, or the finale synopsis of a Netflix whodunit before I've even gotten through the pilot. So I went into WWDC, Apple's annual developers conference, having read all the rumors, feeling pretty confident that I knew most of what was coming to WatchOS 26: a smarter Health app with AI coaching that could finally turn all my fitness metrics into meaningful, personalized guidance. What we actually got during Apple's WWDC keynote was a bit different... and that's not necessarily a bad thing. Rather than unleashing a flood of generic coaching suggestions or unsolicited advice (like caffeine restriction windows which should not exist in my vocabulary), Apple is being intentionally conservative with its approach to AI on the watch, testing the waters with Workout Buddy and laying the groundwork for more meaningful, context-aware insights. Workout Buddy will take into account all your past fitness data including training load, move rings and past workouts. Screenshot by Jeff Carlson/CNET What Is Workout Buddy? Workout Buddy isn't meant to be a coach (at least not in the traditional sense). It won't train you for a marathon or map out a four-week plan to boost your VO2 max. What it will do is act as a voice in your ear, offering encouragement during a workout based on your past fitness data. Think: "That was your fastest mile ever," or "You've just crossed 500 miles for the year!". For some people, that kind of affirmation might be enough to keep pushing forward. But I'm the kind of runner who thrives on structure and tough love. I should note that I haven't tested Workout Buddy. But from what Apple showed off, Workout Buddy won't cut it for me -- at least not yet. I already rely on pace and heart rate alerts to let me know when I'm slacking. What I really need is a drill-sergeant-style coach that handles the math for me, so I can focus on my stride, my breathing and whatever podcast is carrying me through mile four. Apple unveils WatchOS 26 at its Developers Conference WWDC 2025. Apple Screenshot What Workout Buddy means for the future What Workout Buddy is doing is technically impressive, combining exercise and health information and turning that into a conversational voice that gives you a personalized pep talk. It proves that Apple has both the data and the processing power to analyze workouts in real time and turn them into something meaningful. It's the first step toward a more responsive, intelligent Apple Watch health/fitness experience that doesn't just track your fitness, but actively helps you improve it. It also offers a window into Apple's broader strategy for AI on the Watch. Whether due to hardware limitations (Workout Buddy relies on Apple Intelligence, which requires an iPhone 15 or newer communicating with the watch) or just Apple being Apple (cautious, user-first and deliberate), the result is a feature that feels thoughtfully scoped rather than rushed and half baked. It's not shouting unsolicited advice or drowning users in confusing metrics. It's dipping a toe into coaching, not diving in headfirst. Now that the groundwork is there, it feels like only a matter of time before we get a true AI-powered health coach. Workout Buddy could pave the way for more real-time coaching on the wrist. Apple Screenshot And if this voice assistant really is the start of something smarter and more didactic, can it please expand to other areas of health too? I've never been a fan of sleep tracking. But maybe, if I had the right incentives or feedback, I'd get on board. The new Vitals app already does a decent job of flagging early signs of illness, but now imagine a proactive sleep coach that tells me my room's too hot to hit deep sleep. That's the kind of data driven encouragement I'd actually listen to. For now, Workout Buddy is limited to eight workout types: indoor and outdoor running and walking, outdoor cycling, HIIT, functional strength and traditional strength training. It'll arrive in September with the watchOS 26 update -- alongside a handful of other features you can read more about here.
