Unlock Watch doesn't work (also after 14.7.1)

Reset and restore of the AppleWatch did solve the automatic unlock issue for me (Apple Watch + iPhone 12 Pro Max)!

Interesting observation - there is no more a notification on the iPhone saying that AppleWatch is being unlocked. Watch just gets unlocked silently when I unlock my iPhone with face ID, even if I don't do a swipe.

Unpairing my Apple Watch from my iPhone https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204568

Then pairing and restoring my Apple Watch to my iPhone https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204505

Cured my Apple Watch unlock via iPhone issues.

I found that the unlock sequence makes a difference .... for me anyway. If you phone is already unlocked and you try a wrist raise to unlock the watch you are taken to the password number pad and the watch doesn't unlock. On the other hand, if you

1. Raise your wrist with the phone locked
2. Unlock your phone (face ID in my case on my iPhone 12)
3. Swipe to the home screen or off of the lock screen

I get the "Watch unlock" message on the phone and (after a second or so delay) the watch unlocks

New information

Turn off "Unlock with Apple Watch" under iPhone settings -> Face ID & Passcode (for touch ID, it may be slightly different title).

This is a bug, and Apple will most likely issue an update in the next few days/weeks.

Unpairing and pairing again, turns off “Unlock with Apple Watch”, which is why it appears to fix things.

If you want both, you may be able to do the following dance (assuming you have Face ID; not sure if this will work for Finger Print Reader iPhones)

iPhone screen blank (screen off)

Raise Apple Watch until the numeric passcode unlock screen appears.

Then immediately wake the iPhone and unlock it.

If you wake the iPhone too early, it will not work.

If you wait too long to wake and unlock the iPhone, it will not work.

watchOS 8 and ios 15 has now fixed this for me. The little unlock banner at the top of the phone screen does not always appear but the watch is now unlocking every time when you unlock the phone - Face ID for me.

It works, but...

I have found that the window for Apple Watch unlock has gotten very narrow.

For me the Apple Watch has to have the unlock number pad displayed, when I unlock my iPhone via Face ID.

If the Apple Watch turns the display off before I unlock my iPhone, I have to start all over again.

Before, as long as I unlocked my iPhone after putting my Apple Watch on my wrist, the iPhone unlock would also unlock my Apple Watch. Now, it seems my Apple Watch needs to have the unlock screen up, and the screen on, when I unlock my iPhone.

Unlock (iPhone) with Apple Watch.

Not the other way around. If your watch is unlocked, and you're wearing a mask, the iPhone will unlock from the watch.

I don't think you're talking about the same thing.

I had a chat with Apple support this am and they suggested I reset and restore my watch, it seems to have worked.....it was working intermittently before hopefully it is fixed now.

The combination of iOS 15 and watchOS 8 fixed this issue for me as well. It took me a couple of wrist raises to get the watch to unlock but i does work for me now.

Just installed iOS 15.0 and watchOS 8.0. I would concur with NeilLamka above. My Apple Watch is now unlocking, as it used to, when I unlock my iPhone 12 Pro.

A network reset on my iPhone running 14.7.1 appears to have got unlock working again.

Just tried network reset for my iPhone and it did not help to unlock the AppleWatch automatically. Only Bluetooth off/on helps.

The same for me - Apple Watch running WatchOS 7.6 is not automatically unlocked when I unlock my iPhone 12 Pro Max with Face ID running iOS 14.7.1.

Switching Bluetooth off/on on the iPhone helps to do one AppleWatch unlock. Next time it doesn't work again.

> Turn off "Unlock with Apple Watch"

This definitely works for me! Just tried lots of times with "Unlock with Apple Watch" on/off and definitely when it's off, then automatic unlock of AppleWatch works flawlessly. Now waiting for the yet another iOS update, because having "Unlock with Apple Watch" Off is not an option in Covid times :)

>For me the Apple Watch has to have the unlock number pad displayed, when I unlock my iPhone via Face ID.

This is not the case for me. After I reset/restore my Watch, it gets unlocked even with screen off (I have SE model). I tried several times. As soon as I turn the Watch up, it lights up in unlocked state.

But since reset/restore, I never got a single notification on iPhone about my Watch being unlocked. It just happens silently which is kinda of security issue. I want to know when my Watch is automatically unlocked.