As we approach the tenth anniversary of the Apple Watch, everyone’s building up to the expected launch of the Apple Watch 10.
In some corners of the internet, it’s being labeled as the Apple Watch X, although no confirmation on the name has yet been issued. Of course, the tech giant’s tenth-generation smartphone was called the iPhone X, so it’s rational to expect the same format again.
Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman has reported that the Apple Watch 10 is set to have a bigger display than its predecessors, but not quite as big as the screen found on the Apple Watch Ultra 2 or the bigger screen rumored to be on the Apple Watch Ultra 3.
The Apple Watch 9 has a screen size between 1.6 and 1.8 inches, but it is believed the Apple Watch 10’s screen will be nearer two inches in size.
This might suggest a slight design change to accommodate a larger screen. A previous CAD file leak from 91mobiles shows a thinner model with a bigger screen.
One of the more controversial changes anticipated is the potential introduction of a new magnetic band mechanism. That may mean bands will no longer be universal across all Apple Watch generations. That might be a very controversial move in the eyes of those with a collection of Apple Watch bands that they may not be able to use on the Apple Watch 10.
There are three new features Apple has been working on for the Apple Watch, according to Gurman. However, two of them may not be available in time for the Apple Watch 10.
Firstly, the blood-pressure monitor has been in production for some time now but, there have been several snags in testing which may or may not be ironed out before the 10th-generation Watch’s release.
Then there’s the sleep apnea sensor, which relies on reading blood-oxygen levels. Apple has been forced to disable its blood-oxygen tool in Apple Watch devices due to an ongoing legal dispute with Masimo Corp. If that isn’t resolved in time, a sleep apnea sensor is unlikely to be present in the next Apple Watch release.
The only other new feature that will reportedly be included is a glucose monitor. This might use short-wave infrared absorption spectroscopy. That involves shining lasers through the skin into the interstitial fluid between blood vessels and cells. The intensity of the light’s reflection can supposedly be used to calculate the glucose concentration in the bloodstream.
Elsewhere, we can expect watchOS 11, which was announced at WWDC in June, to be present out of the box, which includes a stack of new features, including new training modes, a new vitals app, and an update to the Photos watch face.
Meanwhile, the Apple Watch 10 is set to receive a brand new chip, named S10, according to Gurman. Like the rumored Apple Watch Ultra 3, this new chip will be able to power new AI features in the future.
However, there are no expectations to find Apple Intelligence present in Apple Watch models for the foreseeable future. AI features are going to be limited to the likes of iPhones and iPads for now but the inclusion of powerful chips suggests Apple is planning to bring AI to its wearable range at some point.
Apple has always promised users will get the same battery life regardless of all the new features it adds to future generations of Apple Watches.
However, with a potential new case design and larger display, we may be in line for more than the usual 18 hours a day users are used to getting.
According to The Elec, this may happen via tweaks to the device’s display, such as including low-temperature polycrystalline oxide (LTPO) and thin-film transistor (TFT) technology which could improve the display’s power consumption.
There is a general expectation that we can also expect to see a new, cheaper SE model when the Apple Watch 10 is released.
However, what that looks like in terms of design and features remains to be seen at this point.
Apple last released an Apple Watch SE model alongside Apple Watch 8 in September 2022, two years after its first SE edition which arrived at the same time as Apple Watch 6.
Apple’s release schedule for its smartwatches is pretty set in stone, with a new one arriving every September.
Therefore, we should expect Apple to announce its 10th-generation Watch in September 2024, alongside the reported iPhone 16 and Watch Ultra 3.
There’s a widespread belief that we won’t see Apple steer too far away from the pricing we’ve come to expect from Apple Watches in the past.
With that in mind, we should expect prices for the Apple Watch 10 to start at around the $399 mark for its baseline model, with the larger model being priced at around $429.
Meanwhile, if there is going to be an SE model, then we could be in line for another price cut, although that’s purely based on Apple’s previous two SE releases. Its first, in 2020, launched at $279 but 2022’s SE model launched at $249. Could Apple make its next SE model even cheaper? Who knows just yet, but it’s a possibility.
Featured Image: Apple
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