The Apple Watch was born as a luxury device, as an example of the ideal union between fashion and technology. The first edition was also available in gold, an idea recently revived by Huawei. However, Apple immediately understood that the comparison with the greats of watchmaking would be difficult, if only because a product so tied to technology was inevitably destined to age within a few years, a contrast too stark with the eternal duration of a noble metal (as well as with the investment necessary to purchase it). So the focus shifted to the idea that the smartwatch could be a sort of second screen for the smartphone, more limited but therefore more discreet. Here too, with the increase in screen size and the thousand possibilities to customize alerts and notifications, it has become easier to limit the intrusiveness of the smartphone: you just need to want it, and know how to do it. Then in Cupertino they understood that the path to take was another: away with precious metals, goodbye to ceramics, only steel and aluminum remain, while everything is focused on health and well-being. Over the years, fall detection, the electrocardiogram, the amount of oxygen in the blood, the body temperature, and an infinite number of options for tracking workouts of all kinds arrive, the last of which is dedicated to cycling.
The family grows: the original Apple Watch is joined first by the SE model, then, last year, by the Ultra, which marks a step forward in design, which has otherwise remained unchanged until today. In the standard models, however, nothing changes. And not even with the new model just presented, the Series 9, absolutely indistinguishable from the Series 8 of last year or the Series 7 of two years ago, but also from the Series 6 of 2020. Not that it’s a bad thing, on the contrary: but in the meantime the aesthetic language of Apple products has changed, with the iPhone adopting sharp edges and squarer shapes, then taken up on the MacBooks (and softened in the latest model just released). The only new feature of the Apple Watch Series 9 is therefore in the colours, or rather in one colour, pink, which wasn’t there last year. For the rest, midnight, galaxy, red and silver are confirmed for the aluminum case and gold, silver and graphite for the steel one. As always, the new models are available in two sizes: 41 and 45 mm, the same ones that have characterized the Apple Watch starting from Series 7.
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Inside, things change: if it is true that there are no new sensors, the S9 chip is new, which according to Apple marks a decisive improvement compared to the previous S6 of 2020, renamed S7 the following year. Made with the same A15 chip technology as the iPhone, it has a dual-core CPU with 5.6 billion transistors, 60% more, and an up to 30% faster GPU for even smoother animations and effects in apps designed for watchOS 10, such as Weather, Activity, Messages and Smart Stack. In our test we didn’t notice any big differences in daily use, also because the models from previous years certainly couldn’t be defined as slow. Where there is a change and is noticeable, it is instead in the adoption of a new 4-core Neural Engine for machine learning, capable of offering double the power compared to the 8 Series. In practice, Siri works better, especially for requests that do not involve remote processing, but are processed directly on the Apple Watch. Fewer errors, faster responses, greater accuracy in dictation, which on the Watch are even more important than on the iPhone, given the undeniable difficulty of typing on such a small screen without making errors. Apple also uses voice interaction on the Health app, which is easier to use without touching the screen: to find out how many hours we slept last night, for example, just ask Siri; and the same goes for starting a workout, to find out how much is left to close the Activity rings, or what the blood sugar level is, if we have connected a monitoring tool. with Siri you can record data such as weight, cycle or medications taken. It’s a shame that at the moment it is only possible to do it in English and Mandarin, Italian will still take some time.
On the left, Apple Watch Series 9, on the right, Apple Watch Series 8
What you see immediately is the display: Always-On retina as before, the same size but twice as bright, it reaches 2000 nits, and this means that it can be read better in broad daylight. But it also gets better at night, when brightness drops to as low as 1 nit in Sleep Focus mode.
From a hardware point of view, it is also worth mentioning the ultra-wideband U2 chip, which serves to make the use of the Dove è app more precise and more intuitive and allows you to control a HomePod simply by placing your wrist close to the device. Useful improvements, but certainly not decisive; in all likelihood, however, new functions will arrive in the next operating system updates.
The internal memory of the Apple Watch goes from 32 to 64 GB: in all likelihood it will never be used completely, but it’s nice to know that you can record many more songs and podcasts to listen to offline
Apple Widgets and training for cyclists: all the new features of watchOS 10 by Andrea Nepori 13 July 2023
Another new feature that we had the opportunity to try in preview in Cupertino, but which is not present at the time of launch, but will arrive in October, is the possibility of interacting with the Apple Watch using a new gesture, which Apple calls Double Tap . It consists of touching the thumb and index finger twice: thanks to an algorithm that combines the data collected by the accelerometer, the gyroscope and the optical sensor, the Apple smartwatch recognizes the double touch as intentional and activates a series of contextual commands. For example, you can answer a call, stop the timer, snooze alarms, play and pause music, swipe through home screen widgets, and much more. The double tap is essentially used to control the Apple Watch without touching it, and comes in handy when we have the other hand busy. But it is not an absolute first time, because upon closer inspection a similar function had been present in the Accessibility menu for some time: in that case, however, the operation was broader and not linked to specific apps; the two options cannot be used together.
The S9 chip consumes less energy, according to Apple, but evidently the new features of watchOS10 and the brighter display use more: therefore the duration does not change compared to the Apple Watch Series 8: up to 18 hours with regular fitness monitoring, sleep and always-on display enabled. But with energy saving mode some features are disabled, and the battery life reaches 36 hours.
We like it
Price lowered compared to last year (50 euros less for the Series 9, 100 euros less for the Ultra 2) watchOS10 Brighter display
We do not like it
Unchanged design Some features will arrive at a later date Not all Watch-strap combinations are carbon neutral
In fine
For those who have the previous model (or the one before that) of the Apple Watch there are no great reasons to change: most of the new watchOS functions, in fact, will also be available on those. Others will arrive later, such as the possibility of monitoring the temperature to understand if we have a fever (currently the sensors only detect changes relating to the menstrual cycle). The display is actually better, Siri on Apple Watch is very useful and works well, and Double Tap will arrive in a month: significant improvements to the user experience, so much so that for anyone who decides to buy an Apple smartwatch today it is certainly worth it to have this year’s model, which arrives on September 22 and starts at 459 euros (there is also Apple Watch SE, from 289 euros). But be careful: in 2024 the Apple Watch will turn ten years old, and this time big changes are expected.
The Ultra model, which this year adds a 2 to the name, introduces the same innovations seen on the 9 Series, with which it shares the new S9 and U2 chips. Here too the display is brighter – it goes from 2000 to 3000 nits – and the autonomy grows, reaching 72 hours of charge when the device is in energy saving mode. For the rest, no changes, apart from the exclusive Modular Ultra dial, full of information. Available in two shades of titanium, the price starts from 909 euros. So the most important innovations of the models presented last September 12th cannot be touched first-hand: one is the WatchOS 10 operating system, available on all models starting from the Series 4, the other is the certification as “Carbon Neutral” products .
It does not arrive on all models, but on specific combinations of watches and straps (which are no longer in leather due to a sustainability choice). Every carbon-neutral Apple Watch model, including specific Series 9, SE, and Ultra 2 configurations, meets rigorous criteria, such as being made and operated with 100% clean electricity, including at least 30% recycled materials or renewable by weight and a 50% reduction in the use of air transport in shipping. This strategy allowed a reduction of at least 75% in emissions for each model. Apple then offsets the rest with high-quality carbon credits. The carbon neutrality of the products is certified by SCS Global Services, an environmental standards and certification body. The manufacturing process for Apple’s zero-emission Watch models is completely powered by clean electricity from both the company and its suppliers, who have also committed to using 100% renewable electricity for all Apple production by end of the decade. Tim Cook’s company then collaborates globally with partner manufacturers to promote policies that encourage the widespread adoption of clean energy solutions. Thus the first Apple product certified Carbon Neutral may not bring revolutions in terms of performance or use, but it is the sign of a revolution in the way we see technology.
Apple Watch Series 9 zero-emission technology: what does it really mean? by Andrea Nepori 16 September 2023