Apple Watches are water-resistant, which means that you can keep it on your wrist pretty much all day––through sweaty workouts, swimming in a pool, lake, or ocean, and even if you get caught in the rain.
To keep you from accidentally tapping the watch face while in the water, Apple Watches are equipped with a Water Lock feature that temporarily locks the screen and helps clear out any water from the speaker when you're back on dry land.
Here's everything you need to know about the feature and how to disable it when not needed:
What is the water drop icon on Apple Watch?
The water drop icon is associated with Water Lock, an Apple Watch feature that prevents you from accidentally touching or interacting with your Apple Watch screen when you're in the water.
When you turn off Water Lock, your Apple Watch will emit a few short sounds to clear water from the watch speaker. If you forget to turn on Water Lock before going into the water, the water resistance of your Apple Watch doesn't change (just your ability to interact with the screen).
You can clear the water from the speakers by manually turning Water Lock on and off once you're out of the water.
How to turn on Water Lock on your Apple Watch
1. Swipe up on an Apple Watch face to open the Control Center.
2. Scroll down, then tap the Water Lock icon. It looks like a raindrop.
How to turn off Water Lock on your Apple Watch
If your Apple Watch isn't responding to taps on the screen, Water Lock may be on. To turn it off, rotate the Digital Crown until the blue water drop fills the gray circle.
