Apple Watch Series 10 Features Larger Display and New Chip, Health Monitoring Features in Question

Technology · 2 months ago

The Apple Watch Series 10 will feature a larger display and a new chip, but new health monitoring features for the device are now in question, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports. In the latest edition of his 'Power On' newsletter, Gurman said that the design of the Apple Watch Series 10 is 'unlikely to look much different' to its predecessor, but it will be thinner. Meanwhile, the Apple Watch Ultra will not get a new design this year. The new Apple Watch 'Series' models will continue to be available in two casing sizes codenamed 'N217' and 'N218,' and feature larger displays.

One of the models will have a screen roughly as large as that of the Apple Watch Ultra. Both the Apple Watch Series 10 and Apple Watch Ultra 3 will apparently feature a new processor that succeeds last year's S9 chip. While this could 'lay the groundwork for some AI enhancements down the road,' it will not run Apple Intelligence and there are currently said to be no plans to bring 'the full initiative' to the Apple Watch. Apple has been developing hypertension and sleep apnea detection features for the Apple Watch that were originally slated for release in 2024, but Gurman now says that the 'effort hasn't gone smoothly' and 'Apple has run into some serious snags.' The hypertension detection feature has been insufficiently reliable during testing and there are concerns about integrating it into the refreshed design, which could force Apple to postpone this feature until next year. Likewise, the sleep apnea detection feature is now in trouble because it relies on blood oxygen saturation, which Apple Watches in the United States cannot currently measure due to an ongoing legal dispute with Masimo.

Gurman postulates that the dispute with Masimo could be resolved by September, or Apple could find a way around it by arguing that the blood oxygen sensor could be used for purposes that are not directly related to blood oxygen levels. The company could also announce the sleep apnea detection feature and hold off releasing it until a later date. Apple is also purportedly continuing testing and discussing the prospect of 3D-printed casings for some Apple Watch models, which could accelerate production and use less material. Gurman says it is still not clear whether Apple will brand the new Apple Watches as special anniversary models or wait until next year, given that the original Apple Watch was announced in 2014 and released in 2015. Get weekly top MacRumors stories in your inbox.

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By Wes Davis, a weekend editor who covers the latest in tech and entertainment. He has written news, reviews, and more as a tech journalist since 2020. Here's some potentially good news for Apple Watch owners who have Apple Watch Ultra screen envy: the Apple Watch Series 10 -- may get the same size screen as the company's 49mm outdoorsy watch. That's in addition to other possible improvements, like a thinner case and a new chip that could 'lay the groundwork for some AI enhancements down the road,' according to Mark Gurman's latest Power On newsletter for Bloomberg. The screen rumor seems to back up a CAD render from last month that showed a Series 10 watch with a two-inch display.

Gurman says -- and that render appears to show -- that the watch won't otherwise feature any major design changes. If that means no magnetic watch strap attachments or whatever, I'm putting that part of the rumor in the 'good' column -- like many, I've accumulated a number of watch straps over the years, and I'd like to keep using them if I decide to upgrade. As for new sensors, that seems cloudier, as Gurman says Apple is struggling with two big health sensor updates it's been planning. The company reportedly hasn't been able to get its rumored blood pressure monitor's reliability up to snuff, and he writes that not being able to use its banned blood oxygen sensor is hampering its efforts to add sleep apnea detection. Apple is reportedly planning a cheaper version of the Apple Watch SE to bring pricing in line with Samsung's $199 Galaxy Watch FE.

One way it might do this, apparently, is with a rigid plastic case. That could make the watch cheaper, sure, and perhaps lighter -- I can think of at least one other Apple product that could stand to benefit from a similar decision (The Vision Pro. I'm talking about the Vision Pro.) Finally, Gurman says that the company is planning to release a Watch Ultra 3, but don't expect big visual changes. It will reportedly get the new chip that will power the Series 10, though. / Sign up for Verge Deals to get deals on products we've tested sent to your inbox weekly.