Are you an Apple Watch user who was looking forward to the news of the Apple Watch Series 3 at WWDC? If that’s a yes, the lack of a next-generation Apple smartwatch announcement may have struck you hard. However, it shouldn’t all be doom and gloom, as with the announcement of WatchOS 4, the next wearable OS to release, it’s possible that we can see the route Apple is taking with its next device.
WatchOS 4 hints At Apple Watch Series 3 possibilities
Some of you may think this is a bit of a stretch. However, other than the inclusion of Toy Story watch faces, WatchOS 4 really does give indications of what to expect. In fact, we think it’s almost clear as day that Monday’s announcement shows how the Apple Watch Series 3 may take shape thanks to tweaks in the OS.
Possible minor update
Of course, you should take the following with a grain of salt, as it is all based on conjecture. Apple has yet to announce information of any kind about the Apple Watch Series 3, but when it does, we will inform you.
Having said that, if you take a look at how the Series 2 wearable progressed from the first device, it could have been considered to be a minor update, but it was enough to convince those already using an Apple wearable to upgrade. It also tempted some consumers away from competing Android devices. As such, the Series 2 has gone on to become the market leader, with sales far in advance of any individual Android Wear device.
It got a faster chipset, which improved upon the laggy 32-bit ARMv7 chip in the first device. Next, there was the inclusion of a longer-life battery, plus waterproofing, all of which were required for the second device to compete in an increasingly ruthless marketplace.
WatchOS 4 doesn’t indicate a new and radical approach from the company for the Apple Watch Series 3. While we are likely to see some upgrades to features and internal components, it’s likely that the most significant changes will be in how the watch uses the fitness features of the wearable OS.
Improved waterproofing
There’s no doubt that with WatchOS 4, Apple is beginning to place more emphasis on the health/fitness of its wearable users. So for example, if you love to swim, you would probably appreciate it greatly if Series 3 would improve upon its predecessor’s water resistance capabilities.
While Series 2 does offer some waterproofing, the fact that it has been shown to be susceptible to changes in water pressure means that improvements are required if Apple‘s dream of being able to show underwater statistics to a user is ever going to be possible. It’s thought that better waterproofing would encourage those who love to swim to buy the Apple Watch Series 3.
Bigger, more efficient battery
With the form factor of a smartwatch being so small, no matter the platform, battery life has always been a concern. In fact, it is this conundrum that continues to hold back wearable technology. So with the Apple Watch Series 3, we’re hoping for some serious improvements.
As you may know, WatchOS 4 has features such as kaleidoscopic watch faces, which are great at making the display look cool, but not so good at saving battery life. So we can’t for one moment believe that Apple would include such draining features without countering them in the next version of its smartwatch, or at least putting in limitations to reduce their overall impact on the system.
As such, we think WatchOS 4 indicates that a bigger and/ or more efficient battery is coming. If not, or in addition to that, there could be software to manage battery life. We’ve seen it before, not on smartwatches, but on smartphones like the Galaxy S8. So it’s not beyond the realms of possibility that the next Apple Watch could have it too.
Smarter watch
You may consider the race to be smart, as in a smartphone, tablet or speaker, to be a novelty. However, it appears that along with iOS 11, WatchOS 4 picks up on this too. If you’ve been following WWDC 2017, it’s apparent that “smart” is becoming everything for Apple.
How could this help the Apple Watch Series 3? It could place on the wrist of wearers a more proactive assistant that understands its user more than ever before and as such can suggest appropriate health and fitness-based activities. Obviously, the usefulness of such suggestions would depend on how much free time the user has, but that’s where the “smartness” may come in.
Beyond fitness, it could be this smartness which helps keep a check on battery life usage. As we touched upon earlier, it could be something like machine learning that enables unprecedented control of power usage depending on the individual needs of the user
