July 08, 2024 – Apple is gearing up for a significant revamp of its Apple Watch line this year, with reports indicating that the upcoming Apple Watch Series 10 will feature a larger screen, a slimmer design, and a more powerful processor. However, the tech giant has encountered some hurdles in introducing new health-related functionalities.
According to Mark Gurman of Bloomberg, who disclosed this information in his latest Power On newsletter, the Apple Watch Series 10, codenamed N217 and N218, will sport bigger displays. Gurman noted that the larger model among the two will have a screen size comparable to that of the Apple Watch Ultra.
This aligns with a schematic that surfaced last week, suggesting that the bigger variant of the Apple Watch Series 10 will be equipped with a 2-inch display, marginally larger than the 1.93-inch screen of the Apple Watch Ultra. Gurman also mentioned that the Series 10 will adopt a slimmer profile, although “the design itself doesn’t look like it will change much.”
Both the Apple Watch Series 10 and the Apple Watch Ultra 3 are expected to be endowed with enhanced processors this year. Gurman speculated that this upgrade might “lay the groundwork for some AI enhancements in the future.” Nevertheless, Apple currently has “no plans” to introduce the full suite of Apple Intelligence features to the Apple Watch.
Regarding new health features, previous reports indicated that the Apple Watch Series 10 would include blood pressure monitoring and sleep apnea detection. However, Bloomberg’s latest report revealed that while Apple made some progress in this area last year, it has since encountered “some significant hurdles.”
Specifically, the blood pressure monitoring technology for the Apple Watch has faced issues with “reliability not meeting expectations” during testing. These reliability concerns might force Apple to postpone the launch of this feature beyond this year. Even if the feature becomes available, it won’t display exact systolic and diastolic blood pressure readings to users. Instead, it will show trends in blood pressure over time, similar to the Apple Watch’s current temperature functionality.
The rumored sleep apnea monitoring feature for the Apple Watch is related to blood oxygen saturation data. Currently, due to an import ban by the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC), Apple Watches sold in the U.S. do not offer blood oxygen monitoring.
Gurman stated that Apple needs to resolve this issue or find a workaround before September. Alternatively, the company might announce the feature but delay its release or postpone it entirely.
Previously, Bloomberg reported that Apple plans to introduce an “Apple Watch X” to commemorate the device’s 10th anniversary, describing the upcoming revision as the “biggest change to the Apple Watch yet.” In his recent report, Gurman noted that it’s unclear whether Apple will name this year’s new Apple Watch as an anniversary edition or save a more significant overhaul for a 2025 release. Considering that the Apple Watch was announced in 2014 but only released in 2015, the company might choose to promote the anniversary this year or unveil a more substantial version in 2025.
The Apple Watch Series 10 and Apple Watch Ultra 3 are anticipated to be unveiled alongside the iPhone 16 in September.
