On September 9, 2014, in direction of the top of Apple’s iPhone 6 press occasion, CEO Tim Cook dinner introduced “one more thing,” and after a short video, appeared on stage sporting the primary Apple Watch. The date of the unique machine’s unveiling has led some to wonder if Apple’s upcoming iPhone 16 occasion on Monday, September 9 might see a particular tenth anniversary model of the Apple Watch debut.
The primary chatter a couple of attainable “Apple Watch X” appeared again in January 2023, when a French report claimed that Apple deliberate to skip the Apple Watch Sequence 9, very like the corporate did when it launched the iPhone X as an alternative of an iPhone 9 mannequin in 2017. Pronounced “ten,” the “X” branding referred to the iPhone’s tenth anniversary.
That did not occur. Certainly, if “Apple Watch X” had launched in 2023, solely 9 years would have elapsed since Cook dinner unveiled the unique mannequin, which is why the rumor was branded “sketchy.” For the “X” branding to logically make sense, Apple must announce it in 2024 – on Monday, September 9, to be actual, which occurs to be the date of Apple’s iPhone 16 occasion.
Nonetheless, there’s nonetheless uncertainty about whether or not Apple will unveil a particular version “Apple Watch X” or a extra customary concern Apple Watch Sequence 10 at subsequent month’s occasion. One cause is that after the unique Apple Watch presentation in September 2014, it truly took seven months earlier than clients received their palms on the smartwatch, with the machine’s official launch occurring on April 24, 2015.
Tim Cook dinner unveils the unique Apple Watch in Sept 2014
One more reason is that the machine Apple is rumored to be getting ready seems, on paper, to be a somewhat modest improve on its predecessor. Based on Bloomberg‘s Mark Gurman, Apple is planning to debut a thinner model of the Apple Watch this yr, however he has mentioned it’s “unlikely” that it’ll look a lot completely different than the present fashions. In August 2023, when Gurman first talked about a thinner tenth anniversary mannequin, he mentioned that Apple was contemplating a magnetic band attachment system that may liberate house within the Apple Watch. Nonetheless, his most up-to-date reviews haven’t talked about this performance.
Apple has additionally been engaged on hypertension and sleep apnea detection for this yr’s mannequin, however Gurman says these options is probably not able to launch. Apple is reportedly having points with reliability for the hypertension function, which might result in delays, and the sleep apnea detection depends on blood oxygen monitoring that Apple has needed to quickly take away from the Apple Watch resulting from patent points.
Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has additionally prompt that the 2024 Apple Watch could have a thinner physique with bigger display sizes. Kuo expects this yr’s mannequin to be accessible in 45mm and 49mm sizes, up from the present 41mm and 45mm measurement choices. Nonetheless, Kuo made no point out of the chance that this may very well be a tenth anniversary version.
Alleged next-generation Apple Watch CAD render
CAD renders of what may be the next-generation Apple Watch surfaced in June, allegedly depicting a bigger mannequin with a two inch show, which is a bit larger than the 1.93-inch Apple Watch Extremely. The scale are mentioned to measure roughly 46 x 39.7 x 11.6mm, so that may be a bit bigger than the Sequence 9 however smaller than the Apple Watch Extremely. The design appears to have the identical Digital Crown and Aspect Button, and it’s total much like the Apple Watch Sequence 9. However there isn’t a proof of a notably slimmed down case or a magnetic band attachment system.
In abstract, with the Apple Watch Sequence 9 accessible now, an Apple Watch Sequence 10 or “X” could be extra acceptable for 2024, not 2025, however the X naming is simply hypothesis at this level, and Apple could not really feel that the machine justifies the branding. Alongside the iPhone 16 and new AirPods, Apple plans to introduce the next-generation Apple Watch at its September 9 occasion, dubbed “It’s Glowtime,” with a launch more likely to observe on September 20. Are you anticipating an era-defining Apple Watch X? Tell us within the feedback.