The Unwanted Communication
The Apple Watch includes a Walkie-Talkie app that functions exactly like a two-way radio, allowing you to instantly broadcast your voice through a friend’s watch speaker. Because this feature requires your explicit permission to connect, anyone in your contacts list who owns an Apple Watch can randomly send you an “invitation” to join the Walkie-Talkie network. If you have no intention of using this feature and are tired of constantly receiving notification banners asking you to accept voice chat requests from coworkers or distant relatives, you must permanently disable your visibility on the network.
How to Turn Off Walkie-Talkie Availability
You can completely sever your connection to the service directly from the watch face.
- Wake your Apple Watch screen.
- Place your finger at the very bottom edge of the screen and swipe up to open the Control Center.
- Look for the icon that looks like a yellow walkie-talkie radio. (If the icon is yellow, you are currently available and broadcasting your status).
- Tap the Walkie-Talkie icon.
- The icon will turn grey, and a brief message will appear saying “Walkie-Talkie Unavailable.”
Total Silence
The change is absolute. You have essentially taken your radio offline. Your Apple Watch will no longer accept incoming voice transmissions, and more importantly, it will completely block all incoming invitations to connect. Anyone attempting to invite you will simply see that you are unavailable, leaving you in peace.