NameDrop contact sharing from iOS 17 is coming to Apple Watch too, code leak reveals

(Image credit: Apple)

The latest beta of watchOS 10 has been found to include code that shows off NameDrop on Apple Watch.

According to Apple fan aaronp613, a video has been found within watchOS Beta 5. This showcases an Apple Watch ‘tapping’ an iPhone to transfer contact information.

For those unaware, NameDrop is one of the new features of iOS 17. You can use your iPhone to tap on another, with the gesture of sharing certain contact details with the recipient. It’s a helpful feature that can be a big timesaver, as it saves you from filling in contact details manually, transferring information almost instantaneously.

It makes sense that NameDrop could come to Apple Watch — the device you literally wear all day. You could tap your Apple Watch with another without even using your iPhone, with the Watch always ready to share and receive details. You’d never miss that opportunity to connect.

Apple clearly has big plans for this feature. And in fact, it may likely appear in a future release of watchOS 10.

Tap to Drop

watchOS 10 Beta 5 adds Apple Watch support for NameDrop! pic.twitter.com/Zp0b8CYL0IAugust 9, 2023

NameDrop has been available to use in the iOS 17 beta, and it’s been a fun feature during our time with it. But this code leak suggests that its availability in watchOS 10 is still in its early days.

Priority could have been shifted for NameDrop to work on iPhone first, followed by the feature to then appear on Apple Watch. We also doubt that this would be an exclusive feature for Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2, both rumored to debut in September. There’s no obvious reason it can’t work on any NFC-enabled Apple Watch.

But with iPhone being Apple’s priority product — it has been ever since its debut in 2007 — it’s no surprise the Watch feature plays second fiddle. We usually see features like this appear in iOS first, then trickle down to other devices. The same applied to Home Screen widgets. These debuted in iOS 14 in 2020, then iPadOS 15 the following year.

So we’re expecting NameDrop to appear in a watchOS 10.1 release. These usually include bug fixes and a couple of new features that Apple ran out of time to include in the original release.

But NameDrop is already a useful feature in iOS 17, and it only makes sense to see it appear in watchOS. It’s easy to use, and convenient for many. And we’re looking forward to using it once iOS 17 debuts later this year.

Daryl is iMore's Features Editor, overseeing long-form and in-depth articles and op-eds. Daryl loves using his experience as both a journalist and Apple fan to tell stories about Apple's products and its community, from the apps we use everyday to the products that have been long forgotten in the Cupertino archives.

Previously Software & Downloads Writer at TechRadar, and Deputy Editor at StealthOptional, he's also written a book, 'The Making of Tomb Raider', which tells the story of the beginnings of Lara Croft and the series' early development. He's also written for many other publications including WIRED, MacFormat, Bloody Disgusting, VGC, GamesRadar, Nintendo Life, VRV Blog, The Loop Magazine, SUPER JUMP, Gizmodo, Film Stories, TopTenReviews, Miketendo64 and Daily Star.