Way back in 2020, a patent application revealed that Apple was considering adding Touch ID to the Digital Crown of the Apple Watch. Leaked code last year appeared to suggest that the new feature might be coming soon.
However, a leaker with a decent track record now says the company has rejected this idea over cost and battery life concerns …
As is often the case with Apple patent documents, the language was deliberately opaque, but the accompanying illustrations pointed very clearly to a Touch ID sensor in the Digital Crown.
In the summer of last year, Macworld found leaked Apple code which very much supported the idea and pointed to a 2026 introduction of the new feature.
Code for what clearly refers to the 2026 models of the Apple Watch mentions support for “AppleMesa,” which has long been Apple’s internal codename for Touch ID.
We expressed some doubts about the benefits of this at the time, and now leaker Instant Digital suggests the company has decided against introducing it.
At present, the claim that wearable devices such as Apple Watch should add biometric identification is pure rumor. Apple’s current logic still wants users to unlock by mobile phone linkage. Apple’s current focus is on stuffing larger batteries into it and including more advanced health sensors.
They suggest two reasons for the apparent change of heart. The first is the cost of the additional sensor at a time when Apple is facing squeezed margins due to the increased costs of memory and other components. The second is that the space occupied by the processing circuitry would reduce that available for the battery.
9to5Mac’s Take
There is clear evidence that Apple considered adding Touch ID to the Apple Watch, but I don’t find it difficult to believe that the company rejected the idea, as it would offer relatively little value to users. Unlocking the paired iPhone is already a convenient way to unlock your Watch.
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