Next week officially marks the 10th anniversary of the original Apple Watch hitting store shelves. To celebrate, on April 24, Tim Cook and Co. have a challenge for you: close your Activity rings on your Apple smartwatch, and you’ll be entitled to a mix of limited-edition digital rewards.
Best of all, the challenge is open to all Apple Watch owners, whether you have the best Apple Watch currently available — including the Series 10 and Ultra 2 — or the very first model.
In addition to the challenge above, Apple Watch lovers can also score a free piece of physical Apple Watch memorabilia to celebrate the occasion starting on April 24th. More on claiming that below.
April 24 is Global Close Your Rings Day
For Global Close Your Rings Day, Apple encourages Apple Watch owners everywhere to do just that: prioritize fitness and get active. Those who successfully close all three Activity rings — Move, Exercise and Stand — will earn 10 animated stickers and a special animated badge that can be used in the Messages app.
Apple notes that you'll need to be running watchOS 5 or later to be eligible for the challenge. Fortunately, even the original Apple Watch supports that version.
Need a little help completing the task? With watchOS 11, Apple made it possible to customize ring goals — you can even pause your rings — to better match your comfort and ability level (though you'll need a Series 6 device or later to run that version of watchOS).
After closing your Rings on April 24, Apple encourages you to take a screenshot of your achievement and share it on your social media with the hashtag #CloseYourRings.
How to get a free Apple Watch 10th anniversary pin
Unfortunately, this means that those without an Apple Store nearby will likely miss out.
But wait, there’s more. The brand will be handing out free Apple Watch 10th anniversary pins beginning on April 24th (no closed Rings needed). However, securing one may be tricky if there’s not an Apple Store near where you live.
"Customers can pick up a pin at Apple Store locations worldwide starting April 24, while supplies last," says the Apple blog post announcing the challenge.
Unfortunately, this means that those without an Apple Store nearby will likely miss out on what could end up being a cool and historic piece of free Apple swag.
There's also a chance the challenge will lead to people camping out overnight outside Apple Stores — presumably doing jumping jacks in line to stay warm and close their rings before the store opens — just to secure a pin. But, hopefully not.
As for me, I intend to participate in Global Close Your Rings Day on April 24. I'm also going to try and stop by my local Apple Store in Seattle, Wash. I’ll report back on how my potential acquisition of said pin goes. Stay tuned.
