watchOS 26 adds a variety of improvements to your Apple Watch, like watch face hints, a new Notes app, and more. There’s also a new feature coming in watchOS 26 that should make noisy, disruptive notifications a thing of the past—at least, for some users.

Automatic volume adjustment is watchOS 26’s solution for obtrusive alerts

I’ve used an Apple Watch since its 2015 launch, and during that decade, I’ve had Silent Mode enabled the whole time.

When I first got a ding on my wrist unexpectedly, I immediately opted for haptic-only alerts. Yes, I keep my iPhone silenced at all times too.

But in watchOS 26, there’s a new feature coming that—for some users at least—may lead them to reconsider using the Apple Watch’s Silent Mode for notifications.

Per Apple’s press release:

• Apple Watch can also now automatically adjust the speaker volume based on the ambient noise in a user’s surroundings for notifications, timers, alarms, incoming calls, and Siri, allowing them to stay connected without worrying about disturbing those around them.

If it works well, this could prove an especially handy new feature.

Will it convince me to disable Silent Mode on my Watch? No, because I would still prefer to keep all my alerts haptic-only.

But for those who like getting audible dings from their wrist, hopefully watchOS 26 will make notifications less socially disruptive in noise-sensitive environments.

There is a key limitation though: like several other watchOS 26 features, automatic volume adjustment is only available on certain Apple Watch models.

Apple says it will work on Apple Watch Series 9, Apple Watch Series 10, and Apple Watch Ultra 2.

Source: 9to5mac