Apple has officially announced its smart watch that won’t be known as iWatch but Apple Watch. Tim Cook said the company is creating an “entirely new product” that will “redefine what people expect from its category.”
Apple Watch comes in two different sizes (38mm and 42mm cases) to fit differently sized wrists.The Apple Watch comes in two different sizes (38mm and 42mm cases) to fit differently sized wrists. Although Apple noted it will support lefties, what they’ve shown on stage prompted anger from left-handed people across the Interwebs. It could be too early for such reaction since the Watch won’t be available before early 2015…
The Watch is water resistant, but not waterproof, meaning it can be worn in the rain, and it doesn’t mind your sweat, but before you shower or jump in the pool you’ll need to remove it.
The Apple Watch will be charged with a Magsafe wireless adapter which has a magnet that guides the charger to just the right place.
Screen & Apps
Apple’s wearable boasts a square OLED touchscreen covered with sapphire composite, ceramic back and supports changeable wristbands. Said display will not be always-on — it activates only when you lift your wrist. The Glances feature lets you can swipe through pages of information on the touchscreen, which [screen] also happens to be force-sensitive and supports custom gestures (with swipes and presses).
Apple also included what it calls the digital crown to interact with the watch, including zooming in on the maps app.
Finally, there’s Siri which will be used for any text input; no keyboard input is possible, though you can tap on pre-defined answers, and emoji or quick sketches on the touchscreen.
Apple Watch is controlled with a touchscreen, digital crown and voice (Siri).Other apps include messaging, photos, social networking and fitness tracking apps. That, however, is just a start with third-party developers getting to chip-in using the also-new Watchkit.
Once the Apple Watch hits the stores, users will be able to do many things on their wrist, including read tweets and Facebook updates, browse Pinterest, check flight information, and even unlock hotel rooms at the door supported hotels.
Customizations
To make the Apple Watch appealing to the wider audience, Cook & Co. will make it available in three collections: Apple Watch, Apple Watch Sport, and fancy Apple Watch Edition, with gold and “all that jazz.”
Apple Watch will be available in three collections: Apple Watch, Apple Watch Sport, and fancy Apple Watch Edition.Users will also get to pick between different styles and body materials. Apple Watch band styles include Link Bracelet (in brushed stainless steel and polished space black), Sport Band (black, blue, green, pink and white), Leather Loop (bright blue, light brown and stone), Classic Buckle (black and midnight blue), Modern Buckle (midnight blue, brown, soft pink, rose gray and bright red) and Milanese Loop (stainless steel).
Furthermore, the Watch comes with different body material options, including Silver Aluminum, Stainless Steel, Space Black Stainless Steel, Space Gray Aluminum, 18-Karat Yellow Gold and 18-Karat Rose Gold.
Apple Watch and mHealth
Like pretty much any modern smart watch released in recent years, the Apple Watch also integrates a number of sensors such as a gyroscope, accelerometer and infrared sensors that track heart rate. It can keep up with one’s fitness activities but it can’t track sleep. At least not yet, but since all the hardware is in place to do that, we assume that feature will be added at a later date. Or not; Apple may not realize that its users are so dedicated that they may actually go to bed with the Watch.
Focusing on fitness, the Apple Watch has two built-in apps – Fitness and Workout. The former aggregates data from a variety of sensors, while the latter is focused on helping competitive athletes track their accomplishments.
The preloaded Fitness and Workout apps aggregate data from a variety of sensors, and help competitive athletes track their accomplishments, respectively.The Fitness app monitors users’ health and activity on three fronts using three “rings,” each of which is used to track progress in a similar way Misfit’s Shine does its thing (full circle = goal reached).
The Move ring measures how many calories you burn during your normal day to day activities; the Exercise ring tracks anything from a brisk walk and above as long as it’s 30 minutes long; while the Stand ring shows how often you take a break from sitting. This ring will close when you reach a full minute of standing for each hour of the day.
As for the Workout app, it’s an all-in-one fitness app/sports watch in one, measuring body movement, heart rate and distance. Apple said it will go beyond quantifying movement, and include the quality element to the mix.
Users select workouts from a list of popular activities, set goals and the Apple Watch guide them through the process, collecting all the information it can along the way. When you’re done, Workout will give you a summary of your session, and perhaps even rewards or achievements for meeting goals. This information is then synced back to the Health app on the iPhone and HealthKit on Apple’s servers.
Over time, the Apple Watch will get to know you, delivering intelligent reminders and offering goals based on your progress.
Availability
Apple Watch will be available in early 2015 starting at $349 with a Stainless Steel Link Bracelet. It will be compatible with the iPhone 5, iPhone 5c, iPhone 5s, as well as the new iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, running the latest version of iOS 8.
Aside from the Watch, Apple also announced two new (bigger) iPhones and its own mobile payment service, Apple Pay.
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