How the Apple Watch'sWater Eject Feature Works
Ever wondered how your Apple Watch spits out water? We'll break down the tech, how it's different from your iPhone, and how it inspired WaterKick.
Key Takeaways
- Each Apple device has different water resistance. AirPods Pro: IPX4, Apple Watch: WR50, MacBook: none
- Apple Watch has built-in water ejection. Other devices need manual drying
- Universal rule: power off, wipe dry, air dry. Never use rice or hair dryers
Table of Contents
1. What is the Apple Watch's Water Eject Feature?
Starting with the Apple Watch Series 2, there's a built-in "Water Lock" feature. When you turn it off, the watch plays a specific sound to blast any water out of the speaker. That's Apple's official "water eject" function in a nutshell.
Here's How Water Lock Works
1. Before you get in the water, swipe up to the Control Center and tap the water drop icon π to turn on Water Lock.
2. This locks the screen to prevent accidental taps from the water.
3. Once you're out, just turn the Digital Crown to unlock it.
4. The watch will automatically play a series of tones to eject any trapped water.
2. How Does It Actually Work?
The magic behind the Apple Watch's water eject is pretty simple: it uses sound waves at a specific frequency to make the speaker's diaphragm vibrate like crazy, physically pushing the water droplets out.
The watch blasts a low-frequency tone from its speaker. This makes the diaphragm (the part that vibrates to create sound) move forcefully, literally shaking the water out.
watchOS has direct control over the speaker hardware, letting it run the perfect sequence of sounds to get the job done.
WaterKick brings this exact same principle to your iPhone, using a 165Hz sound wave to clear water from its speakers.
3. How to Use It
- Before a swim: Swipe up to Control Center β Tap the water drop icon π.
- After you're dry: Turn the Digital Crown until it unlocks β The watch will automatically play the eject sound.
- For an extra clear-out: You can manually trigger it again by simply turning Water Lock on and off.
Check Your Sound Afterwards
If your speaker still sounds muffled after the eject cycle, just repeat the process. Toggling Water Lock on and off a couple more times usually does the trick.
4. Why Doesn't My iPhone Have This?
So if the Apple Watch has this awesome water eject feature, why doesn't the iPhone? Good question.
Apple considers the iPhone's IP68 water resistance to be "good enough," so they don't see an active water eject feature as necessary like they do for the swim-focused Apple Watch.
But let's be realβwater gets in your iPhone speaker all the time. That's exactly why we built WaterKick: to bring the same proven water-ejection tech from the Apple Watch over to your iPhone.
Get Water Eject for Your iPhone
Using the same 165Hz sound wave principle as the Apple Watch, WaterKick clears water from your iPhone's speakers.
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5. Frequently Asked Questions
Yep, totally normal. That sound *is* the sound wave pushing the water out. If it sounds muffled or quiet, you might still have some water in there. Just run it again.
No worries, it won't damage the watch. The main risk is just accidental screen taps. Once you're out of the water, you can just turn Water Lock on and then immediately off to trigger the water eject cycle.