Apple has seeded the watchOS 9.6 Release Candidate to developers for testing purposes. The release comes one week after the release of the fifth beta. Release Candidates are generally identical to the final version of the operating system that will soon be released to the public.
The watchOS 9.6 Release Candidate can be installed on an Apple Watch with the proper configuration profile installed, via the Watch app on the device’s attached iPhone. Go to “General” -> “Software Update” to install the RC. The Watch should have at least 50% battery life, be connected to a charger, and be within range of the iPhone.
We don’t yet know what’s included in the watchOS 9.6 update. However, we’ll update this article if anything notable is found in the update.
This is likely to be one of the final updates to the watchOS 9 operating system, as Apple is now focusing on watchOS 10, the next-generation version of watchOS.
As usual, MacTrast and Apple both warn users to not install any betas or Release Candidates on their daily driver Apple Watch, especially early versions of new operating systems. Instead, only install betas on a device set aside for testing purposes.