The Apple Watch has an OLED screen to read notifications and other updates, but what should users do when it zooms in and doesn’t return to normal? The Apple Watch has been around for a long time, and Counterpoint research shows it to be the most popular smartwatch in the world, with a market share twice that of Samsung’s Galaxy Watch line. While watchOS can do a lot and is generally very intuitive, users still have a hard time using the watch and navigating many of its functions.
Like the iPhone, the Apple Watch has a number of accessibility features that make it easier for users to interact with the watch. These features help users understand and capture the data on the Apple Watch screen, especially if the user has any visual, physical and motor, auditory, and learning needs. Some examples of accessibility features on Apple Watch are VoiceOver, Bold Text, Reduce Motion, Label On/Off, Side Button Click Speed, and Zoom.
Disable zoom to fix your Apple Watch
Zoom is an accessibility feature that allows users to zoom in on the Apple Watch’s screen if they have trouble reading any text. This feature is common on the Apple Watch and can be enabled in any menu, app, or navigation page to enlarge text on the screen. However, sometimes users inadvertently enlarge the screen of their Apple Watch. If this feature is enabled, double-tapping the Apple Watch’s screen with two fingers will magnify the screen, which usually happens by accident.
Users may think that something is wrong with their Apple Watch; why is it magnified? But it’s all about zoom support. When the feature is active, users can use the Digital Crown on the side or use two fingers simultaneously to navigate around the Apple Watch. To zoom out, double-tap the screen with two fingers. This will restore the screen to its normal proportions.
This feature can be disabled by the user to prevent the screen from registering double tap as a gesture to enable the magnifying feature. To turn off zooming with your iPhone, open the Clock app (usually on the Home screen), tap Accessibility, then choose Zoom. Turn off zoom on the next screen by tapping the green switch. Alternatively, the feature can be turned off on the watch by going to the Settings app and selecting Accessibility. Tao “Zoom” and turn off the feature.
However, if the watch is unresponsive and stuck in zoom mode, the user may have to restart the watch to fix the functional issue. To force restart your Apple Watch, press and hold the Side button and Digital Crown for at least 10 seconds.
Source: Apple 1, 2, Counterpoint Research