Guide

The Apple Watch ping feature makes your iPhone play a sound and flash, helping you find the phone fast—even from another room.

Apple Watch unread messages alerts are usually sync quirks; refresh filters, resync Messages, and reboot watch and iPhone to clear them.

Apple Watch unread message badges usually come from sync delays, alert settings, or read-receipt mismatches across your devices.

The steps readout on Apple Watch reflects counted footfalls from wrist-tracked motion and synced workouts across your iPhone and Health data.

The red lightning icon means the battery is critically low and the watch isn’t taking power yet—seat it on an Apple charger for 30+ minutes.

On Apple Watch, view steps in Activity, add a steps complication to a face, or check the Fitness app on iPhone for a live total.

Apple Watch SE launched in 2020; the second-gen arrived in 2022, and SE 3 landed in 2025.

Apple Watch SE (2nd generation) arrived on September 16, 2022, after a September 7, 2022 announcement.

On Apple Watch, open Find Devices → iPhone → Notifications → Notify When Left Behind, then turn it on; you can also enable it in iPhone’s Find My.

Find My on Apple Watch stops updating when pairing, Location Services, iCloud, or connectivity break—check settings, signal, and power modes.