Release date, new hardware but also design, we take stock of all the rumors about the next Apple Watch!
Finally a design change?
Remember. Last year, all leakers et insiders Apple agreed that the Apple Watch Series 7 would sport an all-new design. More angular and less rounded corners, flatter edges, it should have been a small revolution for the headed smartwatch. In the end, nothing will have happened, sinceApple had to revise its plans at the last minute due to difficulties encountered by its subcontractors in the design of the watch.
Finally, it looks like Apple has learned from its mistakes and a makeover is off the table, at least for now. The screen would keep the same proportions and keep a curved shape. Identical since 2016, the design of the Watch is therefore obviously not ready to be modified. As for the available sizes, Apple would seriously consider offering a third size, even larger than the 41 and 45mm.
On the hardware side, the Apple Watch “Extreme” and the Series 8 would ship an Apple S8 SoC, more powerful, responsive and fluid than the previous model. This chip would also increase the autonomy of the watch, a significant asset for a smartwatch.
A model for extreme sports
This year, Apple should release not one, not two, but three new Apple Watches. In addition to the basic model which should, barring a reversal of the situation, be called Apple Watch Series 8, Apple would work on the design of a model dedicated to extreme sportsmen. It would have a much more robust case than the current stainless steel and aluminum ones, intended to better withstand shocks during mountaineering, hiking or athletics. Its “unbreakable” case would be, a priori, the only novelty that this new Apple Watch will bring, since its functionalities will remain the same as on the other models.
The other apple watch of 2022 should be the new iteration of the Special Edition. Released in 2020, Apple’s low-end watch is slowly starting to show the weight of the years with an aging S5 chip in particular, while the more expensive model should benefit from the S8. On the other hand, it is not known which will be the sensors or the functionalities that the smartwatch will have, even if it seems obvious that it misses out on a few sensors of the Series 8. Perhaps the new body temperature sensor will be exclusive to this “normal” model.
New health-oriented sensors
After a Series 7 very stingy in new software and hardware (if not sizes and autonomy), Apple could finally refresh its range with new features on the health side. Obviously, the Series 8 should carry a larger capacity battery, in order to exceed the day and a half of autonomy. But the Apple should not stop there this year.
The big novelty of the Series 8 should be a body temperature sensor. This should not, however, initially tell you the body temperature, but rather be used for fertility planning. Women could then get a glimpse of their ovulation cycle. However, it is not impossible that in the future, this thermometer could alert you if you have a fever.
On the other hand, Apple could choose to go a little further in the analysis of sleep with the detection of sleep apnea. The blood oxygen sensor already in place in the watch would then be used to detect this apnea, but Apple must adjust the frequency of capture, without this affecting autonomy.
Finally, the Series 8 would now be able to detect a car accident, as it currently does with falls, and automatically alert the emergency services. For this, it will use the accelerometer to measure peaks of gravitational force that occur during violent accidents.
Release date and price
As every year, Apple’s new smartwatch could be unveiled during the back-to-school keynote, around September – October 2022. If we are to believe the previous back-to-school conferences, then it should be scheduled for September, at around half of the month. Pre-orders will open a week later, and sales two weeks later.
As for the price, Apple should not upset its habits and keep the same price range as for the other models. Thus, the Series 8 could be marketed around 429€, while the SE should be sold around 299€. Impossible for the moment to know how much the “Extreme” model will be priced.
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