Factory resets no longer bypass screen locks in One UI Watch 5

Last updated: September 11th, 2023 at 14:57 UTC+02:00

Earlier this year, long before Samsung announced its One UI Watch 5 update, we showed you how and why you may want to set a PIN or pattern-based screen lock on your Galaxy Watch. With the One UI Watch 5 update, Samsung made some improvements to the system’s security, and there’s one new thing Galaxy Watch users should be aware of.

To prevent your Galaxy Watch from being used by someone else in the event of it being lost or stolen, PIN or pattern-based locks in One UI Watch 5 can no longer be bypassed by factory resets.

As a result, if your Galaxy Watch runs the latest update and you have a PIN or pattern-based screen lock enabled when you reset the device, you will be asked to provide said PIN or pattern during the initial setup. If you can’t do that, you can’t set up your watch and use it as you would normally.

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You can still bypass your PIN or pattern by confirming your Google account

Imagine you’ve accidentally set the wrong pattern lock because a water droplet or hair was in the way and interfered with your smartwatch’s touchscreen. Not being able to recover your Galaxy Watch would be disastrous.

Thankfully, One UI Watch 5 offers a way to recover your Galaxy Watch after a factory reset if you forget your PIN or pattern. And that is by confirming your identity through your Google account and smartphone.

It’s worth noting that we tested this new system last week and were unable to confirm our Google account using the fingerprint scanner. We kept getting the following error on the smartphone we were using for the setup process through the Galaxy Wearable app.

Thankfully, we were able to confirm our identity and unlock the watch by entering the Google account’s password manually. It is possible that the system had a hiccup at the time we tested this feature, and your mileage might vary. But worry not. If you forget your Galaxy Watch PIN or pattern, there certainly is a way to recover your Samsung smartwatch, whether through your fingerprint or Google ID.

The One UI Watch 5 update debuted with the Galaxy Watch 6 series and is now available for download on the Galaxy Watch 4 and Watch 5 lineups in several markets.