Workout Buddy on Apple Watch no longer needs a nearby iPhone in watchOS 27. It works over Wi-Fi or cellular on its own, and it adds Spanish as a second language. Separately, GymKit gains support for AirPods Pro 3 heart rate syncing with compatible gym equipment and improved treadmill accuracy.
Both changes were announced alongside the Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4, and both arrive with software: Workout Buddy through the free watchOS 27 update on Monday, September 14, and the GymKit changes through the redesigned Health app in iOS 27 the same day.
Workout Buddy without an iPhone
The headline change is independence from the phone. Apple says Workout Buddy now works without a nearby iPhone over Wi-Fi or cellular, which means leaving the phone at home for a run or a gym session no longer takes the feature with it.
Don’t miss the best of The Mac Observer
Set us as a preferred source and our Apple reporting ranks higher in your Google Search results and Discover feed — one tap, no account changes.
The watch still needs a connection. Apple’s wording is Wi-Fi or cellular, so a watch with neither, for example a GPS-only model on a trail with no known network, is not covered by the announcement. Apple has not said whether any part of Workout Buddy runs fully offline.
Workout Buddy also adds Spanish. Apple has not said whether Spanish is available on September 14 or arrives later, and it has not listed further languages. That is a narrower rollout than Siri AI, which adds five languages in October.
| Workout Buddy in watchOS 27 | Detail |
|---|---|
| iPhone required | No, with Wi-Fi or cellular |
| Languages | Adds Spanish |
| Fully offline use | Apple has not said |
| Supported watch models | Apple has not specified beyond watchOS 27 compatibility |
GymKit adds AirPods Pro 3 heart rate
GymKit, Apple’s link between its devices and gym equipment, gets two changes in the new Health app. AirPods Pro 3 can now sync heart rate with compatible gym equipment, and Apple says treadmill accuracy improves through machine learning.
The AirPods addition matters for anyone who trains without a watch. AirPods Pro 3 also count as a heart rate source for the new VO2 max movement evaluation in the Health app, alongside Apple Watch and third-party devices. Apple has not named which equipment makers support the AirPods pairing, or whether existing GymKit machines need an update.
Where the new watches fit
Workout Buddy and GymKit are software features, but the Series 12 and Ultra 4 bring hardware changes for the same workouts. Series 12 offers up to 10 hours of outdoor workout time, 25 percent more than before. Ultra 4 offers up to 25 hours in Extended Workout mode and up to 45 hours in a new Max Extended Workout mode with one-second GPS intervals, which Apple aims at 100-mile races.
Both watches also add a Readiness score from 0 to 10, built from recent activity, training load, vitals and sleep, with four recommendations: Recover, Pace Yourself, Ready, Go For It. Apple has not said whether Workout Buddy uses Readiness in its coaching.
What happens next
watchOS 27 and iOS 27 arrive on September 14. Series 12, from $399, and Ultra 4, from $799, ship on September 18. Apple has not published a list of GymKit partners for the AirPods Pro 3 feature or a date for Spanish in Workout Buddy. The event recap covers the rest of the day’s announcements.
