SwR Watch

SwR Watch puts a real shortwave radio on your Apple Watch. It connects to public KiwiSDR and Web-888 receivers run by radio enthusiasts around the world, and lets you tune them, watch the band and listen, right on your wrist.

It is a standalone watch app: there is no iPhone app behind it, no account and no sign-up.

RECEIVERS AROUND THE WORLD • Hundreds of public receivers, filed by country, each showing how many listeners it can still take • Nearest first when you allow your location, least busy first when you don't • A world map of the whole fleet: tap a receiver to see where it is and switch to it

A RADIO THAT FITS A WATCH • Tune with the Digital Crown, one detent per step of the mode • Tap the spectrum to jump to a signal, drag the waterfall to pan the band • Zoom into the band with a slide or a tap • Type an exact frequency on the keypad • AM, LSB, USB, CW and NBFM, with adjustable bandwidth, volume and squelch

SEE THE BAND • A live spectrum and a colour waterfall, in the same look as the SwR phone app • Station names from the current broadcast schedule and the name of the band you are in

KEEPS PLAYING • Audio carries on with your wrist down and the screen off • Controls in Now Playing • If a receiver drops you, SwR Watch reconnects by itself or moves to the next best receiver

The receivers are run by volunteers and hobbyists, so what you can hear depends on their antennas, the time of day and propagation. Some receivers limit how long anonymous listeners can stay. SwR Watch needs an internet connection on the watch.