Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4 new update out now, fixes random restart bug
Apple has listened to concerns from owners of the newly launched Apple Watch Ultra 4 and Series 12. On September 18, the Cupertino tech giant released its next-generation smartwatches. Soon after the release, complaints from buyers began surfacing online. Their concern was that watches are rebooting themselves while editing watch faces, making calls, using Siri, opening Apple Maps or the App Store and even mid-workout while recording. Buyers started flagging the issue on Reddit and Apple Community Support. Now, Apple has rolled out watchOS 27.0.1 on Wednesday, just over a week after watchOS 27.0 landed for everyone.
So what was actually going on? AppleInsider cited an Apple forum post that referenced something surprisingly specific: a Neural Engine timeout. Basically, a command sent to the watch's Neural Engine was supposed to complete within 2,000 milliseconds, but it took 2,020 milliseconds, just 20 milliseconds too long, and that tiny delay was enough to trigger a full reboot.
Apple hasn't said exactly what caused that timeout in the first place, only that watchOS 27.0.1 fixes it. And if you're wondering whether this update sneaks in any security patches too, it doesn't look like it. Apple's own support page shows no CVE entries tied to this release, which usually means there's nothing serious being patched under the hood. This one's purely about the reboot issue.
Also worth noting: watchOS 27.0.1 is only for the Apple Watch Ultra 4 and Apple Watch Series 12, the two 2026 models that were affected. If you've got an older Apple Watch, this update isn't for you, and you don't need it.
Updating is quick, but Apple does want your watch charged up first, at least 50 per cent battery, and connected to Wi-Fi. You can update it two ways.
Directly from your watch: open Settings, tap General, then Software Update, and tap Install if it shows up. Follow the prompts and you're done.
Or from your iPhone: open the Apple Watch app, tap General, then Software Update, and download it from there if it's available. Same deal, just follow the on-screen steps.
Either way takes just a few minutes, and it's worth doing sooner rather than later if you've been dealing with random restarts, especially if it's happened mid-workout or mid-call, which is about the most annoying time for your watch to decide to reboot itself.- EndsAlso Read | Before Hugging Face, rogue OpenAI agents hacked 4 other websites, all on their ownAlso Read | After warning Trump, Sam Altman tells UN AI could put future of humanity in dangerAlso Read | Mivi One 5G launched in India with 6,000mAh battery and Snapdragon 4 Gen 2
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