Apple Announces the Apple Watch

Apple watch

When Tim Cook took the stage and said “We’ve really gone through enough to call it a day,” you knew something was coming. That One More Thing: the Apple Watch.

Tim Cook received huge rounds of applause for the classic Apple line, and he started talking about a new product that will redefine what people expect from its category. He was visibly excited to introduce the new product category that Apple has launched today, the Apple Watch.

Apple watch faces

The Apple Watch is the most intimate Apple product yet, and it is a comprehensive health and fitness device. It is equipped with the Digital Crown and a Home screen that will look familiar but bring a totally new experience.

To scroll or zoom with the Apple Watch, you will use the Digital Crown,  an innovative way to scroll, zoom and navigate fluidly, without obstructing the displayThe Digital Crown is Apple’s most revolutionary navigation tool since the iPod Click Wheel and iPhone Multi-Touch. Apple Watch will enable you to communicate in new ways right from your wrist by sending and receiving messages, answering calls to your iPhone, and with Digital Touch, sending something as personal as your own heartbeat.

The Apple Watch is crafted from custom alloys of stainless steel, aluminum, and 18-karat gold. It has a flexible Retina display laminated to a single crystal of sapphire, the hardest transparent material after the diamond. It also comes with multiple watch straps:

– the high-performance elastomer Sport Band;

– the Milanese Loop in a flexible magnetic stainless steel mesh;

– the Leather Loop in soft, quilted leather that conceals magnets for quick fastening and adjustment;

– the leather Modern Buckle, which closes with a solid metal clasp;

– the leather Classic Buckle; and the stainless steel Link Bracelet.

Apple Watch features a unique charging system that combines Apple’s MagSafe technology with inductive charging for a quick connection that snaps into place.

 

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As expected, the device is packed with infrared and visible-light LEDs, along with photosensors to detect your pulse rate.

The Digital Crown also serves as the Home button and a convenient way to access Siri. The Retina display on Apple Watch features Force Touch, a technology that senses the difference between a tap and a press, providing a new way to quickly and easily access controls within apps. Apple Watch introduces the Taptic Engine and a built-in speaker that together discreetly enable an entirely new vocabulary of alerts and notifications you can both hear and feel. Apple custom-designed its own S1 SiP (System in Package) to miniaturize an entire computer architecture onto a single chip. Apple Watch also features Wi-Fi 802.11b/g and Bluetooth 4.0 to pair seamlessly with your iPhone.

Taking advantage of its location on your wrist, Apple Watch provides timely information that can be viewed at a glance. Smart Replies and dictation let you respond quickly to messages, and with Handoff, you can start a message on your Apple Watch and continue where you left off on your iPhone. Swipe up from the watch face for Glances that quickly show you information you care about, such as your current location, stocks or your next meeting. Pressing the side button brings up Friends, a view of your favourite people, so you can contact them quickly and easily. Digital Touch allows you to send a sketch, a gentle tap, an audio message through Walkie Talkie, or even your own heartbeat. Apple Watch lets you interact quickly and conveniently with the world around you, so you can pay for coffee using Apple Pay,* board a plane with a Passbook boarding pass, control your Apple TV or get directions.

Apple Watch comes in three distinct collections—Apple Watch, Apple Watch Sport and Apple Watch Edition—available in two different sizes, 38 mm and 42 mm.

The Apple Watch starts at $349 (US) and will be available in early 2015 and it will be compatible with iPhone 5, iPhone 5c, iPhone 5s, iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus running the latest version of iOS 8. 

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