Apple Watch 6 rumors: Pulse oximeter, sleep tracking (and the battery to support it?)

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The next Apple Watch (likely a Series 6) remains months faraway from making its grand debut alongside the rumored iPhone 12, 12 Pro and 12 Pro Max. But there’s still many speculation surrounding a Series 6 smartwatch to carry us over within the meantime. We’ve compiled a roundup of plausible and compelling new features for the Apple Watch Series 6 supported the newest leaks, rumors and Apple patents.
Design: A round Apple Watch, but not this year

Save for a couple of minor changes like larger screens, different materials and various watch band designs, the design of the watch hasn’t changed much since Apple introduced the primary Apple Watch in 2014. And this year are going to be no different.

Rumors of a circular watch face on the Apple Watch are making the rounds for a couple of years now. a number of its Android counterparts just like the Samsung Galaxy Watch have circular designs, so it wouldn’t be an excessive amount of of a stretch to think Apple would imitate . to feature fuel to the hearth , the corporate has also issued a few Apple Watch patents that show a round display. But thus far , it’s just a possibility; the existence of a patent doesn’t guarantee Apple will use it during a product. albeit one among these patents does become a reality, it might likely take years. A change this big would require Apple to transform the hardware and software of the watch, then far we’ve not heard anything that might indicate it’s happening in 2020.
New watch face options, but no store

The Apple Watch has plenty of customizable watch faces (known as “complications”) starting from animated Disney characters to weather-centric interfaces. But Apple still hasn’t loosened the reins for third-party watch faces, and that we don’t see that changing anytime soon.

Instead Apple might allow users to share watch faces. consistent with a 9to5Mac, each watch face configuration are going to be shared as a singular file via AirDrop. The report, which cites leaked iOS 14 code because the source of its information, also says WatchOS 7, subsequent version of Apple’s smartwatch software, will add an analog-style tachymeter to its design options that might measure speed and distance.

You may even be ready to use shared albums from your photos app to make a customized watch face that cycles through the photos therein album. meaning relations could add individual photos to the shared album for everybody within the group to ascertain on their wrists.

Lastly, for patriotic users, WatchOS 7 may add an “international” option that allows you to choose a country’s flag as your watch face.
A new fitness app

Fitness has been at the core of the Apple Watch since its launch, and this year Apple may take it even further. consistent with MacRumors, the corporate is functioning on a standalone fitness app. Unlike the prevailing Activity app that tracks your progress and is already on the Apple Watch (and iPhone), this one would offer you guided workouts for an assortment of various activities like running, cycling, rowing, strength training, dance and yoga.

There’s no shortage of third-party fitness apps like this for the Apple Watch, but a native fitness app could put tons of these out of business. The app would be available on the iPhone and Apple TV also because the Apple Watch. And it’d be free. The MacRumors report says there is no evidence of in-app purchases, but that does not necessarily rule out a subscription based approach like Apple Music.
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Native sleep tracking may finally arrive

This could finally be the year when Apple Watch gets native sleep tracking. Since acquiring the sleep sensor Beddit back in 2017, a tracker that sits under the mattress, there are rumors about Apple integrating an identical feature within the Apple Watch. A “Sleep app” was also accidentally mentioned during a screenshot of Apple’s preinstalled Alarm app within the App Store. The image was spotted by a reader of MacRumors back in October, and has since been removed. An April 30 leak on Twitter seems to corroborate this rumor.

Currently, sleep tracking is out there on the Apple Watch through third-party apps and one among the most important hurdles for Apple to supply it natively has been battery life. the present Apple Watch models last a few day and a half normal use, but a feature like this is able to require overnight monitoring. this is able to likely drain the battery much faster. It’s within the company’s best interest to unravel this issue soon though; many Apple Watch competitors like Fitbit and Samsung have had it on their devices for years.
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Pulse oximeter to live blood oxygen levels

Even if the Series 6 doesn’t have native sleep tracking, Apple will likely continue expanding health and wellness features for subsequent Apple Watch.

This year’s big health feature might be what’s referred to as SPO2 tracking. this is able to allow the watch to live your blood oxygen levels, sort of a pulse oximeter, and provide you with a warning if it dips below a particular threshold, consistent with 9to5Mac. this is often good timing, because some doctors are recommending pulse oximeter devices to watch COVID-19 symptoms, and other people have begun purchasing pulse oximeters during the coronavirus pandemic. The April 30 leak corroborates this rumor also .

The Apple Watch already does something similar with pulse , and alerts you if it detects an abnormally high, low or irregular cardiac rhythm indicative of fibrillation (afib).

For this to be possible, the Series 6 could require a replacement sort of sensor, likely a pulse oximeter. Or it’d be ready to pull with a software update and use the prevailing hardware. The Apple Watch already tracks VO2 max (or maximum oxygen consumption) inside the Activity app using the GPS and pulse sensor during exercise.

Other health rumors include glucose and blood-pressure monitoring on subsequent Apple Watch, but these might be further off.
A kid-friendly Apple Watch

The leaked iOS 14 code reportedly also references new tools for folks . instead of give their kids an iPhone, parents looking to remain connected with their kids, could found out a second Apple Watch (completely break away theirs) using their iPhone and Apple ID because the host. this is able to also give parents the ultimate say on what quite content their kids can access on the watch like emergency contacts and music.

With a feature called SchoolTime in WatchOS 7, parents could even determine what apps are often used at what times to limit distractions within the classroom.

This would also mean adapting a number of the health features for younger users. consistent with 9 to five Mac, the ring system (used for activity tracking) would be supported different metrics. The red move ring, for instance , would track active minutes rather than active calories because it does with adults. The Watch also will incentivize kids to stay moving by offering virtual rewards once they participate in sports or outdoor activities.
Tracking panic attacks and stress

The Apple Watch Series 6 also will reportedly accompany several psychological state monitoring features, including the power to detect when the wearer is close to experience a scare (another timely feature, if it pans out, during the worldwide pandemic). This rumor was also mentioned within the April 30 leak, which referenced “Mental Health Abnormalities Detection.”