The Apple Watch Is Shaping Up To Be The Best Health Wearable Out There With The New Series 4

At its launch event in Cupertino yesterday, Apple debuted the three eagerly awaited new iPhone XS, XS Max, and iPhone XR. But while they certainly stole the show, another important launch you need to pay attention to is the Apple Watch Series 4.

The first thing you need to know is that it looks just like the leaks that have been emerging. The next thing, is that it packs in a whole lot more than we accounted for.

Display

For one thing, the Apple Watch Series 4 has a 30 percent larger display than its predecessor. ¡°We pushed the screen right to the edges and curved the edges to match the watch, said Apple¡¯s Jeff Williams. And that¡¯s with minimal changes to the case sizer. Basically, the watch is thinner so it has less volume than the Series 3.

UI

Every part of the UI has been redesigned to take advantage of the larger screen. This means more content show up on the Home screen, in maps and calendars, photos etc. The ¡°complications¡±, the modules that display information on a Watch face, are now more detailed as well. Apple has also added new dynamic watch faces that are constantly animated while the screen is on.

Hardware

The Apple Watch Series 4 is made of black ceramic and sapphire crystal, making it easier for radio waves to pass through, and therefore improving call reception. That¡¯s important here because this particular iteration also has an e-SIM, which clones your SIM card in your iPhone and lets you use it as a standalone device.

More important though is the digital crown, which has been tweaked to include haptic feedback. There¡¯s one more important feature here we¡¯ll get to in a bit. Aside from that, the speakers are also louder, so much so that the microphone has been moved to the other side to reduce echo.

On the inside is the new S4 chip, a dual-core 64-bit processor with a new GPU, which should offer overall twice the performance speed of the Watch 3. And all of this with the same 18 hour battery life as the previous Apple Watch.

Features

Aside from hardware and aesthetic improvements, Apple has a few nifty new features for the Watch Series 4.

For one, it doesn¡¯t just monitor your heart rate anymore, it also alerts you if it falls too low or detects an arrhythmia that seems like atrial fibrillation. For another, it can also detect a fall.

As Williams explained, backward slips, forward trips, and the like have your arms moving in different, but repeatable patterns. Thanks to this, the Apple Watch can detect when you¡¯ve fallen and pop up an emergency ¡°call SOS¡± button on the face for you to hit. And if you¡¯ve not moved in a minute, the watch does it anyway, while also sending your GPS location to your emergency contacts.

Apple CEO Tim Cook says this feature is launching to Watch users in the US this month, and they¡¯re working on getting it to other countries soon. It¡¯s honestly one of the best things you could get with the Apple Watch, especially for older users relying on it to monitor their health on daily basis. And speaking of health monitoring, that¡¯s where the crown comes in.

There are now electrodes on the back of the device that let you take an electrocardiogram. Just open the app and place your finger on the crown to complete the circuit. In 30 seconds you¡¯ll have a heart rate analysis you can share with your doctor on the fly. It¡¯s pretty amazing that a medical test you previously needed to wait in line at a hospital to take, can now be done with a piece of metal and plastic on your wrist.

Availability and Price

The Apple Watch Series 4 will be available in new stainless steel and gold stainless finishes. All straps and bands from all generations of the device will be compatible with each other.

Price starts at $399 (approximately Rs 28,600) with GPS and $499 (approximately Rs 35,800) with cellular connectivity. The Series 3 will remain available and will start at $20,000. (Obviously allow for inflation once they cross the ocean).

Orders open on Friday, and shipping starts September 21, with watchOS 5 available on September 17.