Users of the popular image based social media app will need to turn back to their iPhones again.
A new iOS update has quietly eliminated the Apple Watch Instagram app from devices. The iPhone maker recently implemented a new mobile app requirement. The social network’s application appears not to have met that requirement.
The iOS updating system triggered the removal of the photo sharing social app from the smartwatch.
The Apple Watch Instagram app removal is not the only instance of the smartwatch losing options. This most recent loss was made on the iOS update side. That said, reports are beginning to appear that point to a loss of a growing number of apps from the smartwatch platform.
The reports suggest that Apple chose to block all WatchOS app updates that require the iPhone to refresh its data. This new regulation went into effect at the start of the month. This meant that developers needed to upgrade their software right away or risk being taken down off the Apple Watch platform.
This Apple Watch Instagram app removal suggests that the smartwatch may be marketed in a new way.
The new requirement for app developers indicates that Apple may intend to market the smartwatch in a new way. Until now, the iPhone maker has sold the smartwatch as a form of extension of the iPhone – one that could be regularly wirelessly tethered to the smartphone. However, it looks as though it is now seeking to break the required pairing so the watch can function as a separate device.
That said, the reason for the app developer changes has yet to be revealed by Apple. It is unlikely that it will say anything until new products are launched or new ads are released. It is the company’s policy not to reveal any details about upcoming products or plans ahead of official unveilings and launches.
Still, that has not stopped those in the tech industry from speculating about the future of the smartwatch and whether Apple Watch Instagram will ever return. At the moment, the popular belief appears to be that the company is bringing its smartwatch in a direction toward independence from being paired with a handset.
