What upgrades to you think next year’s Apple Watch will bring?

[The Cockney Rebel]

Many would argue that this year’s Apple Watch received hardly any upgrades.

I, for one, never bothered to buy a new watch.

What do you think next year’s Apple Watch will bring to the table?

I’m hoping there will be a new design, and possibly a new sensor.

You?

 

[Jackbequickly]

Until they have another “breakthrough” in technology, updates will be incremental and mostly in software tweaks. Satellite communications is on the horizon.

 

[The Cockney Rebel]

Until they have another “breakthrough” in technology, updates will be incremental and mostly in software tweaks. Satellite communications is on the horizon.

New design?

 

[Haga]

New design?

No, way too early.

 

[MisterSavage]

Third party watch face support.

(I know it's not happening but I like kidding myself.)

 

[goldmac2006]

Many would argue that this year’s Apple Watch received hardly any upgrades.

I, for one, never bothered to buy a new watch.

What do you think next year’s Apple Watch will bring to the table?

I’m hoping there will be a new design, and possibly a new sensor.

You?

BRING BACK BLOOD OXYGEN without the need of using your iPhone to check the results, for our Apple Watch series 9, 10-11 wearers in the states including for series 12!

Smaller Apple Watch Ultra for the small wrists!

 

[Chevyguy2021]

I have an ultra 2 with blood oxygen enabled.

My ultra 4 wish list would be new design, bigger screen with thinner case and bezels, better battery life. I have never owned an ultra until buying my U2 this year pre owned. I’ve had a series 4, series 7, series 10 and now ultra. Really enjoyed the series 10 thinness. Love the rugged and premium feel of the ultra paired with an ocean band.

 

[jz0309]

I expect a new SoC next year.
The Ultra might get a redesign, typically Apple keeps 3 iterations of a new design but then the Ultra has not had an upgrade at all back in 2024, so unclear at this point.
Regular AW is highly unlikely to get a redesign based on above.
Give that hypertension detection is based on existing sensors, don't see anything new coming here either.
And given that, blood glucose is definitely not coming.
So, other than BPM and CGM I don't know if there are any other sensors that could come, maybe there'll be new versions of the existing ones?
So, my expectations are quite low at this point ;(

 

[Jackbequickly]

New design?

We all hear rumors of a new design. I see people who are heavily invested in bands being pissed when they no longer work. I would like to see a bit larger screen on the standard AW.

 

[JCCL]

I expect a new SoC next year.
The Ultra might get a redesign, typically Apple keeps 3 iterations of a new design but then the Ultra has not had an upgrade at all back in 2024, so unclear at this point.
Regular AW is highly unlikely to get a redesign based on above.
Give that hypertension detection is based on existing sensors, don't see anything new coming here either.
And given that, blood glucose is definitely not coming.
So, other than BPM and CGM I don't know if there are any other sensors that could come, maybe there'll be new versions of the existing ones?
So, my expectations are quite low at this point ;(

For Apple’s Watch standards, the barely noticeable larger screen may count like a redesign for the Ultra…..Let’s face it, that’s been pretty much what all the redesign have been about.

 

[jz0309]

For Apple’s Watch standards, the barely noticeable larger screen may count like a redesign for the Ultra…..Let’s face it, that’s been pretty much what all the redesign have been about.

Fair enough, and that they are now 3D printing the Ulltra case without changing the outer dimension afaik but claiming 50% (?) less material, so there's more interior space for a larger battery and what not? So, is that a redesign? Maybe.
I was really referring to the general "look" and in 10 years that look hasn't changed, just the outer dimension on the regular AW.
So I still don't expect and "redesign" for the AW, Ultra - who knows?

 

[Howard2k]

I think that basic AI functionality processed locally on the watch, with more advanced AI capabilities through a connected and AI ready iPhone or the cloud, will be the bigger feature.

That will need a new SoC with stronger neutral engines than today, I suspect.

This should open the door, longer term, to further AI/ML based health features such as stress scores, metabolic measures, deeper sleep analysis, emotional measures etc.

 

[Howard2k]

Fair enough, and that they are now 3D printing the Ulltra case without changing the outer dimension afaik but claiming 50% (?) less material, so there's more interior space for a larger battery and what not? So, is that a redesign? Maybe.
I was really referring to the general "look" and in 10 years that look hasn't changed, just the outer dimension on the regular AW.
So I still don't expect and "redesign" for the AW, Ultra - who knows?

I could be wrong but I think that they "consume" 50% less material during the construction. I don't know that this means that there is more space internally.

 

[Howard2k]

Third party watch face support.

(I know it's not happening but I like kidding myself.)

That would just lead to Apple being responsible for billions of ugly watches, surely.

 

[jz0309]

I think that basic AI functionality processed locally on the watch, with more advanced AI capabilities through a connected and AI ready iPhone or the cloud, will be the bigger feature.

That will need a new SoC with stronger neutral engines than today, I suspect.

This should open the door, longer term, to further AI/ML based health features such as stress scores, metabolic measures, deeper sleep analysis, emotional measures etc.

well, I put a "sad" reaction to this as I sure hope not to see any "genAI" functionality on the watch, toggle on/off doesn't matter.
Now having said that, both sleep apnea and hypertension detection heavily uses LLM and I'm perfectly ok with that, and I was reading a somewhat credible post (can't remember where, not here) that blood flow might also indicate high blood glucose, so similar to hypertension the way Apple implemented it. So, further using the data that is already there - great. Using AW as your "input" to genAI - no for me. up until the point where a feature becomes truly useful for me (today that doesn't exist for me). My 2 cents

 

[bmark]

Apple Watch series 12 won't have any big upgrades at all!

 

[Howard2k]

well, I put a "sad" reaction to this as I sure hope not to see any "genAI" functionality on the watch, toggle on/off doesn't matter.
Now having said that, both sleep apnea and hypertension detection heavily uses LLM and I'm perfectly ok with that, and I was reading a somewhat credible post (can't remember where, not here) that blood flow might also indicate high blood glucose, so similar to hypertension the way Apple implemented it. So, further using the data that is already there - great. Using AW as your "input" to genAI - no for me. up until the point where a feature becomes truly useful for me (today that doesn't exist for me). My 2 cents

I think generative AI would really have to be offloaded for the most part, apart from the simplistic suggested iMessage response type stuff, which I can see being far more useful on a watch than on my desktop!

I do see LLMs being loaded with personal data and then the watch being able to answer a question about an email in your inbox. "Please remind me when my package from Temu is being delivered" or similar. I don't think that's a stretch. So super simple GenAI, sure.

But I don't expect my watch to write me a 10 page essay on the life and times of Oscar Wilde.

 

[MisterSavage]

That would just lead to Apple being responsible for billions of ugly watches, surely.

I don't disagree, but it would also give us some much better choices than what we have now also.

 

[TracerAnalog]

well, I put a "sad" reaction to this as I sure hope not to see any "genAI" functionality on the watch, toggle on/off doesn't matter.
Now having said that, both sleep apnea and hypertension detection heavily uses LLM and I'm perfectly ok with that, and I was reading a somewhat credible post (can't remember where, not here) that blood flow might also indicate high blood glucose, so similar to hypertension the way Apple implemented it. So, further using the data that is already there - great. Using AW as your "input" to genAI - no for me. up until the point where a feature becomes truly useful for me (today that doesn't exist for me). My 2 cents

I doubt those functions use LLM. I highly suspect they're based on good ol' fashion machine learning.

 

[jz0309]

I doubt those functions use LLM. I highly suspect they're based on good ol' fashion machine learning.

yea, you are correct, ML is being used, I might have typed too fast

 

[Abazigal]

I am not sure I need any extra features in an Apple Watch. I briefing went back to my series 5 when my Series 10 watch was being serviced, and aside from the smaller screen and worse battery life, I honestly didn't really see a difference either. I still use it for largely the same stuff (Apple Pay, notifications, fitness tracking) and I feel that suffices for me. Feels like the AW will just become something I upgrade every 5 years when it no longer receives any more software updates. 😛

 

[Adelphos33]

Good question...

1) The Series watches were redesigned with 10, and now we have 11. I would be surprised if there was a redesign for Series 12, but there have been rumors of some kind of new design for a couple of years.

2) The Ultra got a slightly new changed design with the 3, so I expect that design to remain next year

3) Both watches probably need some kind of new SoC, so I expect that to be a part of both watches, along with various other upgrades a new SOC would bring (think examples like on device Siri, the wrist flick, speakers, etc - I would expect both watches to get those kinds of upgrades)

4) I don't expect new health sensors or features as they don't seem to be ready yet (blood sugar, for example)

Overall probably another incremental year.

 

[Bichon]

Now that Garmin has introduced MicroLED display technology on the Fenix 8, albeit at an insanely high price point, it will be interesting to see if Apple follows suit and introduces a MicroLED display for one of their flagship models too.

 

[WarmWinterHat]

New SOC. That's it.

They *might* add satellite connectivity to the standard models, or maybe to the cellular models.

 

[Happy_John]

I am not sure I need any extra features in an Apple Watch. I briefing went back to my series 5 when my Series 10 watch was being serviced, and aside from the smaller screen and worse battery life, I honestly didn't really see a difference either. I still use it for largely the same stuff (Apple Pay, notifications, fitness tracking) and I feel that suffices for me. Feels like the AW will just become something I upgrade every 5 years when it no longer receives any more software updates. 😛

Agreed. It's a very useful product, rather than an "exciting" product. I use mine for motivational purposes ( the rings do work for me, they give me that extra shove to keep walking or running when the weather is bad or I'm feeling lazy), as an iPod and for alerts for calls, messages and as a phone, i.e., to stop me getting sucked into my phone unnecessarily.

It does all these things well, and as long as it keeps doing these things, I'll be curious about updates and extra functionality, but really only out of idle curiosity. I really don't expect to upgrade my watch until/unless it breaks or dies.