watchOS 11.4 Will Make Sure You Don't Miss Alarms

With the watchOS 11.4 update that's set to be released soon, Apple is making a small but useful change to the way that alarms work on the Apple Watch.

watchos 11 4 alarm
The update includes an option to allow the Wake Up alarm you set up for Sleep mode to break through when Silent Mode is activated on your watch, which means you'll be less likely to sleep through your alarm going off.

Right now, if you have Silent Mode turned on, your Apple Watch alarm will use haptic feedback vibrations to tap you on the wrist to wake you, but it won't make noise. Some people are able to easily sleep through the gentle tapping of the alarm, but a loud noise is harder to ignore.

The Break Through Silent Mode option can be found by going to the Sleep app on Apple Watch, tapping on Sounds & Haptics, and toggling on the setting. From there, wearing the Apple Watch to bed will cause the Apple Watch alarm to use both sound and haptic feedback to wake you up.

You can also turn on the Break Through Silent Mode option by opening up the Alarm app and tapping any active alarm you have set up.

watchOS 11.4 also includes support for Matter-compatible robot vacuum cleaners, and it solves an issue where face selection could become unresponsive when switching faces.

Apple provided developers with the watchOS 11.4 release candidate version today, and that represents the final version of watchOS 11.4 that will go out to the public should no additional issues be found. We're expecting watchOS 11.4 to launch in early April, as soon as next week.

Related Roundup: watchOS 11
Related Forum: Apple Watch

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro Render Front Page Tech

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 10 New Features

Sunday March 23, 2025 10:00 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. iPhone 17 Pro's alleged design via Front Page Tech Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of March 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone...
iCloud General Feature Redux

iPhone Users Who Pay for iCloud Storage Receive a New Perk

Thursday March 20, 2025 12:01 am PDT by
If you pay for iCloud storage on your iPhone, Apple has a new perk for you, at no additional cost. The new perk is the ability to create invitations in the Apple Invites app for the iPhone, which launched in the App Store last month. In the Apple Invites app, iCloud+ subscribers can create invitations for any occasion, such as birthday parties, graduations, baby showers, and more. Anyone ...
Generic iOS 19 Feature Mock

iOS 19 Coming in June With These New Features

Thursday March 20, 2025 2:04 pm PDT by
While the first iOS 19 beta is still more than two months away, there are already plenty of rumors about the upcoming software update. Below, we recap the key iOS 19 rumors so far. visionOS-Like Design In January, the YouTube channel Front Page Tech revealed a redesigned Camera app that is allegedly planned for iOS 19. According to Front Page Tech host Jon Prosser, the Camera app...
iOS 18

Top 5 New Features Coming in iOS 18.4

Friday March 21, 2025 3:26 pm PDT by
We're not getting new Siri Apple Intelligence features in iOS 18.4 as expected, but the upcoming update does have quite a few new additions that will be worth upgrading for. We've rounded up the five best features to look forward to, and if you're not running the beta, you can expect to get access to these in early April. Priority Notifications If you have an iPhone or iPad that supports...
Generic iOS 18

Apple Seeds iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 Release Candidate With Priority Notifications, Ambient Music and More

Monday March 24, 2025 10:07 am PDT by
Apple today seeded the release candidate versions of upcoming iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 updates to developers for testing purposes, with the software coming a week after Apple released the fourth betas. iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 can be downloaded from the Settings app on a compatible device by going to General > Software Update. With iOS 18.4, Apple is adding the Priority Notifications...
airpods max 2024 colors

Don't Buy Into Apple's Hype About AirPods Max Gaining Lossless Audio

Monday March 24, 2025 4:24 pm PDT by
Apple today announced that AirPods Max with a USB-C port will be gaining support for lossless audio and ultra-low latency audio with a firmware update next month, alongside the release of iOS 18.4, iPadOS 18.4, and macOS 15.4. For context, audio files are typically compressed to keep file sizes smaller. There are lossy compression standards like MP3, and Apple's own Advanced Audio Codec...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature Iridescent Search

Foldable iPhone Expected to Launch Next Year, Costing Around $2,000

Monday March 24, 2025 3:43 am PDT by
Apple will launch its long-rumored foldable iPhone next year with a ~$2,000 premium price tag attached, expects well-connected Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman. Gurman's comments on Apple's launch plans for its first foldable device appeared in the Q&A section of his latest Power On newsletter. Earlier this month, the reporter said Apple's foldable iPhone could be arriving "as early as 2026,"...

Top Rated Comments

tipoo Avatar
1 day ago at 12:50 pm
This is the kind of thing that makes you wonder how this wasn't thought of in years of Apple Watch OS's

Also how 10 models and 11 OS's later if an atom moves in your room while it's on the charger it flashbangs you in bright green light still
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
DCYorke Avatar
1 day ago at 12:54 pm
I'm glad they're making it an option, but I really love silent alarms. It wakes me up without waking up my partner.
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Johnny907 Avatar
23 hours ago at 01:18 pm

This should just be the default behavior. Doesn't even need an option.
No, it shouldn’t. I have my watch silenced because I wake up an hour before my wife. The haptic tapping is plenty sufficient to wake me up without needing a blaring alarm waking her up in the process.
Silenced devices should stay SILENCED.
THAT should be the default, but I’m fine with adding a toggle for those who prefer it otherwise.
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
KENESS Avatar
1 day ago at 01:02 pm

This is great, but they also need to make the Wake Up alarm harder to turn off! It's silenced too easily by bedding when tossing and turning.
I did this for the first time recently... The haptic alarm has always worked great, I find it a gentle way to wake up. But I must have done something and ended my alarm.

I slept SO LATE... But it was bliss, I have to say. There is no better sleep than when you shouldn't be sleeping.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
macjaffa Avatar
23 hours ago at 01:42 pm

Why is snooze 9 min... Why can't we select how much snooze we want?
This is an anchronism from back in the day. Snooze timers on alarm clocks would be 9 minutes because of technical reasons.
This was a problem, since they [alarm clock makers] couldn't adjust the clock's gear teeth to line up perfectly for a ten-minute snooze." This left them with a decision to have the snooze feature silence clocks for 10 minutes and 43 seconds or nine minutes and three seconds.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
hagar Avatar
1 day ago at 01:14 pm

What does the Early Riser setting do?
That's just the selected tune.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)