The First Apple Watch OS Update Is Now Available

Apple is rolling out its first software update for the Apple Watch, which brings the Watch OS to version 1.0.1. This update is designed to provide general bug fixes and performance improvements, and also adds display support for the new Emoji characters added to both iOS and OS X in recent updates.

To get the new software on your Watch, you can follow the simple process detailed in Apple’s knowledge base article on the subject, or follow the simple steps below.

Connect the Watch to power and make sure it’s charged to 50 percent or more and that your Apple Watch is connected to Wi-Fi.Open the Apple Watch app, navigate to the My Watch tab, then tap General and Software Update.Enter iPhone or Apple Watch passcode if prompted.Wait for Apple logo progress indicator to appear and complete, when Apple Watch will restart.

This update includes improved performance for Siri, stand activity measurement (which would sometimes register a need to stand while standing) and better calorie burn calculations, as well as improved support of distance and pace measurement during outdoor workouts and better support for third-party apps.

Apple also added support for seven more languages, including Brazilian Portuguese, Danish, Dutch, Swedish, Russian, Thai and Turkish.

After successfully updating my own device, I’ve noticed no problems and was able to use the new Emoji as advertised. Performance of apps in general seems more reliable, too, but we’ll keep you updated as we spend more time with the new OS version.

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Oculus Details Rift’s Recommended PC Specs, ‘Pauses’ Mac Development

We’re still a little while off from the Oculus Rift’s official consumer launch – pre-orders are starting later this year, the company revealed recently, with shipping beginning early next year. But the company has now revealed the recommended specifications for PC rigs powering the Oculus Rift headset, which gives potential buyers a good idea of what kind of system they need to save up for in time for next year.
The bad news is that the recommendations are starting fairly high, but the good news is that they’re now set, meaning costs should continue to drop for the required equipment in time for next year’s launch as newer and better GPUs and components come to market. Here’s what Oculus recommends for the best Rift experience, along with set-in-stone requirements for what yo absolutely must have on your hardware:
Recommended
NVIDIA GTX 970 / AMD 290 equivalent or greaterIntel i5-4590 equivalent or greater8GB+ RAMRequired
Windows 7 SP1 or newer2x USB 3.0 portsHDMI 1.3 video output supporting a 297MHz clock via a direct output architectureIn their blog post, Oculus’ Chef Architect Atman Binstock provides some of the reasoning behind these spec recommendations – GPU performance is highly important, since you’re basically running two, 2160×1200 displays at 90Hz simultaneously, which takes around three times the GPU power of your average full HD, 1080p rendering. Dropped frames are also fine on traditional desktop monitors, for the most part, while missing frames in VR results in considerable discomfort.
Basically, as it stands with those specs and current hardware, you’ll need a desktop PC to work with Oculus – notebooks are basically classed out, and in what may be worse news, Oculus has also announced that Mac development (and Linus support) are paused while the team focuses on getting Windows Rift software to where it needs to be for launch.
Binstock notes that Oculus still wants to develop for Mac and Linux, but that at this stage, they “don’t have a timeline.”
That’s bad news for Mac and Linux gamers, but understandable given Oculus must be under pressure to deliver Rift at an acceptable level of performance within their announced timeframe.

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This Week On The TechCrunch Gadgets Podcast: Verizon On The Horizon

Can you hear me now?

Hopefully you can after a month of silence out of the TC Gadgets Podcast team. But freshly acquired by Verizon, we’re back and ready to chat.

The deal, which is still subject to regulatory approval, is valued at $4.4 billion. I don’t want to ruin the surprise of the podcast, so I’ll just ask you to direct your attention to the player below.

Check out the meandering conversation on this week’s episode of the TC Gadgets Podcast featuring Matt Burns, Jordan Crook, Darrell Etherington, Natasha Lomas, and John Biggs.

We invite you to enjoy our weekly podcasts every Friday at 3 p.m. Eastern and noon Pacific. And feel free to check out the TechCrunch Gadgets Flipboard magazine right here.

Click here to download an MP3 of this show.
You can subscribe to the show via RSS.
Subscribe in iTunes

Intro Music by Mendhoan.

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