For many years, the design of Apple’s smartwatches has stayed in a rectangular form with convex glass on top and underside. Frankly, this also made the entire Apple Watch family iconic and easy to distinguish. It is rumored that in Watch Series 10 or Watch Series X that Apple will finally introduce notably exterior iterations, including a new band system.
Around this year, Bloomberg has first reported that Apple’s Watch Series 10 is bringing a major change in the design. It was also mentioned that the connector system for the wristband works will be updated. Now, reliable leaker KosutamiSan is corroborating to this idea.
Over on X, the source is suggesting the new proprietary band system on the next-gen Apple Watch is entirely new and is going to break the compatibility with existing Watch models’ bands or straps. Likewise, the bands on the new Apple Watch won’t also fit with the older Apple Watch generations.
It was added that this will be the band design that the company is going to adopt in its future smartwatch generations, likely referring to the Watch SE and Watch Ultra ranges as well. Plus, the new connectors do make sense given the watch’s build is also expected to be changed. Hence, it would be easier for Apple to fully redesign the whole smartwatch from the ground up instead of finer touches and if they really want to future-proof the design.
In Bloomberg’s report, it was speculated that the connector could take cue from Google’s Pixel Watch and Pixel Watch 2 (review) by having a wider end section for more secure grip in addition to a slide and release button combination.
New Apple Watch Series 10 features
Beyond the new look, the Watch Series 10 or Watch X is said to add blood pressure level monitoring via high or low alerts instead of providing systolic and diastolic readings. A sleep apnea feature will also be integrated similar to the Samsung Galaxy Watch 6, which would track users’ sleep and detect of sleep apnea symptoms and associated illnesses.
With the ongoing patent dispute and preemptive ban on the Watch Series 9 and Watch Ultra 2, it’s unclear whether the blood oxygen level will make it to the Watch Series 10 and other Watch models at all. But with the usual release schedule not happening until September 2024, there’s still time for Apple to modify the affected sensor.
Apart from the new connector and design, what else do you want to see from Apple’s next-gen smartwatches? Share with us your answers in the comments.
