watchOS 27.2 Beta 2 Restores App Switcher With New Long-Press Gesture
watchOS 27.2 beta 2 restores the Apple Watch App Switcher via a long-press gesture, not the Digital Crown double-click.
The change was spotted by the Apple Den Discord server and shared by a user named Bones on X, according to 9to5Mac. In watchOS 27.2 beta 2, users inside an app can press and hold the bottom of the screen to bring up the App Switcher. Once it appears, the App Switcher works much as it did before: users can turn the Digital Crown to scroll through recently used apps, or swipe left on an app and tap the X button to remove it from the switcher.
The new gesture does not restore the old shortcut. 9to5Mac reported that watchOS 27 had eliminated the ability to quickly switch between recently used apps by double-clicking the Digital Crown. Earlier this month, 9to5Mac’s Zac Hall wrote that there was no longer any way to jump quickly between recent apps and wished Apple would restore the gesture before releasing watchOS 27 or in a future update.
Apple did not bring back the Digital Crown shortcut in watchOS 27.2 beta 2, but it did restore the App Switcher itself. The report said the addition suggests Apple is listening to user feedback and looking for a way to bring the App Switcher back.
As with any beta, there is no guarantee that this exact interaction will make it into the final release. 9to5Mac reported that the final version is likely to come next month.