If you have ever tried to fix Apple Watch software issues by restoring or factory resetting it, you know how big a hassle the entire process is. The Watch often gets stuck in a boot loop and never turns on.
If such a thing happened and you visited an Apple Store to get it fixed, you at least had to wait a couple of days, as no in-store repair option existed. The Apple Store had to mail it to an Apple Repair Center, wait for it to be shipped, repaired, and shipped back. Not exactly a great experience.
That’s about to change. According to a retail source that spoke to MacRumors, Apple is preparing to let its retail stores and Apple Authorized Service Providers fix Apple Watch software issues in-store, which would greatly reduce the repair time.
So, how will it work?
Apple Stores and authorized repair centers will get access to a dedicated Apple Watch repair dock that connects to a Mac and can restore the software on an Apple Watch directly in-store. What used to take days or even weeks could now be sorted out the same day you walk in.
Apple did introduce a wireless restore option with watchOS 8.5 and iOS 15.4, but it comes with a big catch. It only works when a restore prompt appears on the watch itself. Problems like failed updates, bricked devices, or boot loops? Those still need specialized tools that weren’t available in stores, until now.
Why did it take this long?
Early Apple Watch models had a diagnostic port that Apple Stores could use for software fixes. Apple removed it with the Apple Watch Series 7 when it switched to a wireless restoration process. After that, any software repair that the wireless method couldn’t handle had to go to an Apple Service Center.
That’s been the reality for a few years now, so this in-store fix is genuinely good news for Apple Watch users. Hopefully, it also means fewer people are stuck without their watch for days over what is, at the end of the day, a software problem.