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The next Apple Watch is expected to finally get one major feature it's been missing that Fitbit has offered for years. Here's everything we know so far.
The next Apple Watch is expected to finally get one major feature it's been missing that Fitbit has offered for years. Here's everything we know so far.
Lisa EadiciccoFeb 2, 2020, 23:06 IST
Apple is expected to release a new Apple Watch in 2020, as it's done every year since 2015.
The biggest new addition to this year's watch is expected to be sleep tracking, a feature that would help Apple catch up to rivals like Fitbit and Samsung.
Otherwise, the next Apple Watch, which is expected to be called the Series 6, is rumored to come with faster performance and better water resistance.
Apple has released a new smartwatch every year since 2015, and there's a good chance 2020 will be no different.
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While last year's Apple Watch brought improvements like an always-on display and a built-in compass, the biggest update expected to arrive on Apple's popular smartwatch in 2020 is support for sleep tracking. That's according to Bloomberg, which reported in early 2019 that Apple had been testing such a feature for a possible 2020 launch.
It would mark a significant upgrade for the Apple Watch, considering sleep tracking is the one major feature it's lacking compared to rivals like Fitbit and Samsung. That could further establish Apple's stronghold on the smartwatch market. Apple accounted for 47.9% of the smartwatch market as of the third quarter of 2019, according to Strategy Analytics, while Samsung followed with 13.4% and Fitbit placed in third at 11.3%.
Here's a look at everything we're expecting to see from Apple's next smartwatch.
Apple will probably call it the Apple Watch Series 6.
If Apple sticks with the branding it's used since 2016, we can expect its next smartwatch to be called the Apple Watch Series 6.
The watch will probably be released in September.
Apple typically debuts its new Apple Watch alongside its refreshed iPhones in September, so it seems plausible that the company may take a similar approach this year. In years past, Apple has revealed the new watch on stage during its fall keynote and launched the device in stores later in September, usually roughly 10 days after the launch event.
It may be able to track your sleep.
Apple is expected to bring sleep tracking to the Apple Watch in 2020, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. The Cupertino-based tech giant is said to have been testing the feature at its campus as of early 2019, according to the report. If the feature works as planned, Apple would integrate it into the Apple Watch in 2020.
From the report, it's unclear if that means sleep tracking is only being developed for a new Apple Watch model, or if it would be pushed to older watches through a software update.
It'll likely run on a new Apple processor and may offer faster performance.
Apple typically introduces a new processor in each new model of the Apple Watch, as it's done in years past. While there wasn't much of a performance boost when it came to speed between this year's Apple Watch and last year's, Apple said when announcing the Series 4 that it was capable of delivering twice the speed of its predecessor.
TF International Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who is known for his often accurate predictions about future Apple products, also said he expects the next-generation Apple Watch to offer faster performance, as MacRumors reported. The wireless transmission speeds will also reportedly be faster on the next Apple Watch, says Kuo, which means we may see a boost in Wi-Fi and cellular performance.
The next Apple Watch may offer better water resistance.
You can already go swimming with the Apple Watch Series 2 or later, but Kuo suggests that the next-generation smartwatch will be more water-resistant than the current generation. He doesn't offer any specifics, however.
The Series 6 will run on the newest software from Apple.
Apple's new smartwatches usually ship with the company's latest software, and there's little reason to believe 2020 will be any different.
The company usually takes the wraps off its new Apple Watch operating system in June at its Worldwide Developers Conference, so we can expect to get an idea of the new software features coming to the watch this summer.
Last year, Apple added new health-oriented features like the ability to monitor activity trends over time and female cycle tracking. It also made it possible to download new apps directly from the watch rather than having to do so from your phone.
