Apple Watch

Apple used the word ‘courage’ recently to describe its decision to remove the headphone socket from the iPhone 7, and much fun was poked at the company by those who missed the reference. But what I personally found far more courageous was Apple effectively admitting that it got the original Apple Watch user-interface badly wrong, and completely revamping it in watchOS 3.

Glances never worked. They were supposed to be a fast way to see information from your favorite apps, and to go on to quickly open those apps when required. In reality, neither objective was achieved: data was slow to load, and so were the apps.

And the side-button for immediate access to contacts was simply the waste of a button. Using the Watch Dick Tracy-style for phone calls was never more than a novelty, and sending scribbles and the like to contacts was even more of a gimmick.

So Apple had the courage to abandon both. Glances are gone, replaced by the app Dock, and the side button has been repurposed to access it. These two changes have transformed my use of my Watch …

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Apple is known to be notoriously bad at social — look no further than Ping, a social feature embedded in iTunes that Tim Cook killed because no one used it. That’s fine for the most part because Apple makes the platform (iOS) where the best social network apps (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, etc.) exist and people continue buying iPhones.

Apple isn’t completely socially awkward either. Music lets you tweet and post playlists, Photos lets you share Photo Streams with contacts and on the web, and iOS share sheets facilitate the majority of my social sharing. It’s Apple’s new Activity Sharing feature that I’ve been enjoying the most since iOS 10 and watchOS 3 were introduced.

Activity Sharing lets you automatically share fitness data captured from the Apple Watch with other Apple Watch wearers. Adding a social aspect to activity tracking is especially motivational for staying active and shows Apple doing social right (even if Activity Sharing has opportunities to improve).

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Kantar reports that Apple has retained its dominance of the smartwatch sector, even as overall growth has started to slow. The data is based on sales as of July of this year, so pre-dating the launch of the Apple Watch Series 2.

Apple continues to dominate this segment with a 33.5% share, although that lead shrank slightly in the last three months as the market awaited the Apple Watch Series 2 announcement. The EU4 countries show a similar trend, with […] Apple leading at 31.8%.

The company says that the Apple Watch Series 2 seems ideally placed to appeal to those intending to purchase a wearable within the next 12 months, offering the two key features they are seeking …

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Apple Watch Series 2 hit stores on Friday and I’ve spent the weekend testing its new features. From outdoor cycling and swimming in the ocean to comparing it to the first-generation Apple Watch, I had my own list of questions I wanted answered and I’m mostly happy with my experience.

I used the first-generation Apple Watch every single day since April 2015 and reviewed it in May 2015 after a couple of weeks. For me, the original Apple Watch was a tremendous improvement over my Pebble and basic digital watch with features like Siri, iMessage and Apple Pay plus a design that was good enough to continue with Series 2. A year in, I fully realized how effective Apple Watch can be as a fitness tracker which is where much of the focus on Series 2 exists.

Apple Watch Series 2 is similar enough that it’s easy to draw several conclusions about the new version after just two days. It’s a more capable fitness tracker and a better smartwatch thanks to its hardware changes, but the differences are more nuanced than what a spec sheet can tell you.

I’ll start by jumping straight to my conclusion:
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Along with the iPhone 7, I was able to go hands-on with both new flavors of Apple Watch: The Apple Watch Series 1 and Series 2.

Apple Watch Series 1 doesn’t contain much new in the way of features, but it does come with a faster processor, which makes it worth considering. Series 2 is a larger upgrade, but depending on how you use your Apple Watch, it might not be large enough to warrant an extra $100.

Whatever the case may be, both new watches are much better than the notoriously slow original Apple Watch, which Apple no longer sells. Another thing that flew the coop with this latest update is the somewhat confusing Apple Watch Sport nomenclature. Now, it’s just Apple Watch, and you can get it in either Series 1 or Series 2.

Watch our hands-on video for an explanation of the new Apple Watch and a look at several of its new features.
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iFixit didn’t waste any time on a teardown of the iPhone 7 Plus, and has now done the same with the new Apple Watch Series 2.

The main discovery is a much higher-capacity battery. The 273mAh battery offers almost a third more capacity than the 205mAh one in the first-gen Watch. However, all that extra power doesn’t extend the battery-life of the device – it’s rated for the same 18 hours as the original – it instead powers the built-in GPS and much brighter screen.

iFixit also identified what seems to be the main secret to the greatly-improved waterproofing of the Series 2 …

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Following complaints regarding iPhone 7 availability through Apple’s iPhone Upgrade Program, Apple has started informing customers that it’s making more reservations times available to pick-up the device at Apple Stores this Friday. Additionally, 9to5Mac has learned that most Apple Stores will have limited or no stock of iPhone 7 units for walk-in customers on launch day. 

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After reviews of the iPhone 7 and AirPods, it’s now the turn of the Apple Watch Series 2. Similar to the iPhone 7, the latest-generation Watch doesn’t look particularly different on the outside, so the question is whether the under-the-hood changes make an upgrade worthwhile?

Answering this question is particularly tricky given that watchOS 3 transforms the performance of the existing first-gen Watch, so some of the things being commented on by reviewers are actually more of a function of the new operating system than the new hardware …

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Now that watchOS 3 is out of beta and available for everyone as a free update, it’s time to start using the new features including a major speed boost, new watch faces, new apps and much more. See how to update to watchOS 3 here then read on to see what’s new in the latest Apple Watch software update:

Apple has officially released watchOS 3, the major software update that significantly improves all Apple Watches. Apple Watch owners can download and install watchOS 3 for free from the built-in Watch app on iPhone. There are a few requirements to keep in mind before updating…

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I’ve never been one to shy away from admitting when my first impression of a technology turns out to be wrong. I initially saw smartwatches as a solution in search of a problem, and didn’t think I would keep mine. It took just four days of use to make me think that maybe I’d hang onto it after all, one week in I was tentatively sold – and by the three-month point, I had to call myself a convert.

The only question this time around, then, was whether I was going to upgrade to the Series 2. The new fitness features sold it (and the Nike+ version) to Zac, but after almost 18 months of ownership, my usage patterns mean that I can’t see any benefit in upgrading myself …

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Following Apple’s announcement of the Apple Watch Series 2, department store Macy’s announced today that it will soon begin to sell Apple’s wearable in its retail stores. According to a report from Fortune, Macy’s will open an Apple Store within its flagship location at Herald Square in New York City, while the Apple Watch will also come to all of the chain’s “top buildings” for the holiday season.

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The Apple Watch Series 2 announcement isn’t earth shattering. Swim proof, built-in GPS, brighter display, faster chip, and same design. Most first-gen Apple Watch users will be satisfied with the speed gains that the watchOS 3 software update offers and won’t consider upgrading, and first time Apple Watch buyers will have a better experience with the new hardware and software from day one.

I’m hardly disappointed personally. I asked for a better sports watch and that’s what Apple delivered. The Series 2 message is so clearly targeted toward health and activity that it’s easy to miss features like Siri and Apple Pay!

It’s especially interesting to me that Apple actually introduced two new Apple Watch models: Series 1 and Series 2. The first-gen Apple Watch is dead. That’s absolutely the right thing to do even if it’s a new move for Apple and implies we were all beta testers for the original.

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Apple’s new ‘Series 2’ models start from $369 and ship starting next week with pre-orders kicking off this Friday as we learned in today’s keynote. Apple has also shared official details for its new swimproof models including the price for the new ceramic white model which is put in the Apple Watch Edition category (so it’s pricey). Head below for details including location availability and more…

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Apple has announced a new Apple Watch app specifically for hikers, called Viewranger. The app takes advantage of the built-in GPS in the new Apple Watch Series 2 …

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Apple has announced that Pokémon Go is coming to the Apple Watch. Niantic Labs CEO John Hanke revealed that the iPhone app has been downloaded 500 million times, players walking almost three billion miles while playing.

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Apple CFO Jeff Williams has unveiled the next generation of Apple Watch on stage at its big event today.

The new model is called Apple Watch Series 2. Adding to the splash proof feature of the original model, the new Apple Watch is actually swim proof. Apple Watch Series 2 adds swim tracking to the Workouts app including pool swimming and open water swimming. The Apple Watch speaker is the only unsealed part of the casing and it intelligently ejects water after a workout.

Apple Watch Series 2 features a new S2 chip with a faster dual-core processor and a new GPU with 2x graphics performance. The new display is also 2x brighter at 1000 nits, the brightest for any Apple display.

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Apple will be announcing the iPhone 7 for real in just a few hours, but if you are itching for the latest, we have one set of purported new iPhone images for you before Apple’s event at 10 AM PT. The photos apparently show a working 4.7 inch iPhone 7 unit in high resolution.

The pictures feature close-up looks at the new larger camera, 4-LED camera flash, redesigned rubber gasket SIM tray and a shot of the new ‘dark black’ iPhone 7 color variant. More photos after the jump …

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As is typical with an Apple keynote day, the company has halted business from the Apple Online Store with its usual “Please check back soon” message. Apple takes down its website to build hype for imminent product launches. At 10 AM PST, Apple will kickoff its fall media event where it is expected to unveil its new iPhone 7 and a second-generation Apple Watch.

The site says: ‘We’ve got something special in store for you. And we can’t wait for you to see it’.

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Research firm IDC is today out with its latest data concerning the wearable market. IDC’s data, which reflects the second quarter of 2016, shows an overall increase in the wearables market but smart wearables, described as those that support third-party apps, saw a significant decline.

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