Apple Watch Hacked to Display Custom Watch Faces

Tuesday August 18, 2015 3:06 pm PDT by Juli Clover

Apple doesn't allow developers to create custom watch faces for the Apple Watch, preferring to maintain control over the general look of the device, but that hasn't stopped iOS developer Hamza Sood from tinkering with the Apple Watch and getting a custom watch face uploaded onto the device.

In a tweet posted this afternoon, Sood shared a video of a custom animated watch face with multiple color options.

After some haxx... Custom watch faces on Apple Watch! Watch face source code is on GitHub: https://t.co/7ZvOz8nK34 pic.twitter.com/nQGJKlp6kt — Hamza Sood (@hamzasood) August 18, 2015

The watch face source code that was used to create the custom watch face has been made available on GitHub and will require watchOS 2. Earlier this summer, Sood also joined several other developers in efforts to hack watchOS 2 to run truly native apps like Canabalt and a Flappy Bird clone.

customwatchface
It is not clear if Apple has plans to allow third-party developers to create watch faces for the Apple Watch in the future, but it's possible that as watchOS and the Apple Watch mature, Apple will be less restrictive. For now, hacks like Sood's are the only way to get custom watch faces on the device.

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Top Rated Comments

magicschoolbus

147 months ago

Why they did not launch this with customizable watch faces you could download from app store for a fee is beyond me.

Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)

xlost6

147 months ago

Finally! Now that watch OS2 is about to release!

Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Rogifan

147 months ago

Maybe Apple launched the Watch six months too soon. The fact that they announced it in September 2014 and launching it 7 months later probably means they decided not to wait any more to reveal it — maybe because of the competition?

We know Apple takes its time — look at the App Store on Apple TV —, but maybe for the Watch they felt they couldn't wait any more to reveal it.

The real Apple Watch experience will be with watchOS 2 — The actual logic of running the app on the iPhone is probably a compromise Apple came up with to be able to launch the device in Spring 2015 rather than the end of the year.

As an Watch owner I can say 3rd party watch faces are not on the top of my list for things I want. Native apps, 3rd party complications, 3rd party access to hardware, podcast support are all things I care more about than third party watch faces. Maybe some people want a skeuomorphic Rolex face on their watch. I don't.

Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Pakaku

147 months ago

I'm really not sure Apple would ever let developer install watch faces without some severe, severe curation on their part - keeping the Apple Watch Apple Watch-like and all.

I wonder how long Apple can keep up the facade that this is a luxurious jewelry piece that requires pristine curation. Yes, it's good to keep a quality standard, but come on.

Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)