{
  "id": 234500,
  "title": "iOS 27 basically turns your iPhone and AirPods into an Apple Watch at the gym",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/06/ios-27-basically-turns-your-iphone-and-airpods-into-an-apple-watch-at",
  "topic": "tech",
  "section": "Tech",
  "published": "2026-08-06T19:51:07.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "9to5Mac",
    "slug": "9to5mac",
    "url": "https://9to5mac.com/2026/08/06/ios-27-basically-turns-your-iphone-and-airpods-into-an-apple-watch-at-the-gym/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Apple’s iOS 27 brings a new feature called GymKit that essentially transforms your iPhone and AirPods Pro 3 into a portable Apple Watch gym experience. This makes it possible to track workouts on the gym equipment itself, rather than relying on an Apple Watch.\n\nThe process is simple: tap your iPhone to a compatible treadmill, choose the workout type, and start your exercise. The treadmill shares crucial information like heart rate, distance, pace, incline, and calories with your iPhone via AirPods Pro 3. Meanwhile, the Fitness app on your iPhone records all the workout data.\n\nOne of the advantages of GymKit is that it eliminates the inconvenience of wearing a heart-rate strap or contacting the treadmill during exercise. Instead, your AirPods Pro 3 act as your heart-rate monitor, while your iPhone serves as the workout controller. This allows you to monitor your progress without needing to hold any metal contacts.\n\nGymKit is a valuable backup option when your Apple Watch is unavailable or when you forgot to bring it to the gym. It also offers iOS and AirPods Pro 3 users a glimpse into the Apple Watch experience, potentially drawing them towards future Apple Watch devices.\n\nDuring testing with iOS 27 beta 1, the Exercise ring on the iPhone's Fitness app didn’t update during the workout. However, after putting the Apple Watch back on, the Exercise ring synchronized with the workout data in the Fitness app. In my 16-minute treadmill walk, the distance, calories burned, elevation gain, and heart rate matched the results I would have gotten if I had worn an Apple Watch.\n\nTo use GymKit, make sure to enable AirPods heart-rate permission in the AirPods settings under the privacy options. AirPods Pro 3 can also work in tandem with an Apple Watch for the most accurate heart-rate data.\n\nIn conclusion, GymKit on iOS 27 is a small but practical addition to Apple’s Fitness strategy. While Apple Watch remains the primary workout tracker for most users, GymKit provides a valuable alternative for those moments when your watch is not available. This update reinforces Apple’s commitment to making fitness tracking more convenient and comprehensive across its product lineup.",
  "summary": "Apple has introduced a new feature called GymKit, which allows iPhone and AirPods Pro 3 to track workouts at the gym, according to 9to5Mac. This feature, previously exclusive to Apple Watch, enables users to tap their iPhone to compatible gym equipment and share their heart rate, while the machine sends back metrics like distance, incline, pace, and calories.\n\nThe new GymKit experience on iPhone and AirPods Pro 3 provides a similar workout tracking experience to Apple Watch. This could be useful in various scenarios, especially for those who do not have an Apple Watch.\n\nIn other news, Apple has updated its U.S. trade-in estimates, raising values for most iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch models, as reported by MacRumors. The iPhone 16 Pro Max now tops Apple's iPhone estimates at up to $720, up from $695. Several Android phones have also been added to the list for the first time.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 4,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Mashable",
        "title": "T-Mobile is giving away the Apple iPhone 17 for free — how to qualify",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/06/t-mobile-is-giving-away-the-apple-iphone-17-for-free-how-to-qualify",
        "published": "2026-08-06T04:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "MacRumors",
        "title": "Apple Scrambling to Secure Memory Ahead of iPhone 18 Pro Launch",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/06/apple-scrambling-to-secure-memory-ahead-of-iphone-18-pro-launch",
        "published": "2026-08-06T13:23:02.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "9to5Mac",
        "title": "Apple prepares for iPhone 18 Pro and Ultra launch by expanding its reach",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/06/apple-prepares-for-iphone-18-pro-and-ultra-launch-by-expanding-its",
        "published": "2026-08-06T15:04:11.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}