Apple Watch

Stay up-to-date on the latest Apple Watch news, and learn how to get the most out of your device with our comprehensive tutorials. From updates to features to troubleshooting tips, we’ve got you covered.

Five Apple Watch tips for a more accurate heart rate reading

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated April 30, 2015

There's no two ways about it: even under the most ideal of conditions, the Apple Watch may not be able to get a reliable heart rate reading every time for everybody. Now, our recent overview of the Apple Watch's heart rate sensor provided a good starting point for enthusiasts wishing to learn more about the feature. It gives you a better idea of the intricacies and benefits of the custom-designed hardware feature marketed primarily to fitness aficionados.

But the truth is, it's been designed for everyone, really. It's something every Watch customer will be using without even being aware of it, simply by wearing the device (for those wondering, the average human heart rate is about seventy-two beats per minute).

On the back of the Watch is a specially designed sensor protected by a ceramic cover with sapphire lenses, with infrared and visible-light LEDs and photodiodes detecting the amount of blood flowing through your wrist at any given moment.

Knowing your heart rate helps the Watch determine your intensity level during workout while improving the accuracy of your active calorie burn measurements. Therefore, knowing the sensor's limitations and pitfalls is important.

Luckily, there are some things you can do to help the Watch get the most consistent and best heart rate readings possible. Here are five sound tips regarding using this feature optimally and with minimal disruption.

Jony Ive talks Apple Watch’s mission and Apple’s approach to 21st century luxury

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 1, 2017

Jony Ive is in the limelight again. Earlier this morning, Condé Nast's inaugural International Luxury Conference kicked off in Florence, Italy — the birthplace of the Renaissance - and Ive, Apple's Senior Vice President of Design, was joined on stage by fellow industrial designer Marc Newson, who helped create the Apple Watch.

As reported by the British edition of the fashion magazine Vogue, Apple's wrist-worn device was the chief topic of conversation, with Ive discussing how Apple's approach to 21st-century luxury compares with traditional luxury as we know it.

Apple Watch Sport’s Ion-X glass goes under the knife (literally) in this scratch test

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated April 30, 2018

The Apple Watch Sport, which will likely be far and away the most popular version of the Apple Watch, comes equipped with a different glass panel than the Apple Watch and Apple Watch Edition models. While the latter two models ship with sapphire glass, which is known for its elemental hardness, the cheaper Sport models ship with something called Ion-X glass.

Ion-X glass is a panel stronger than typical glass—think Gorilla Glass levels here—but I don't think anyone's questioning the fact that it's inferior in some ways to the sapphire glass gracing the more expensive models of the Apple Watch. So the question stands to be asked: how well will the Apple Watch Sport's Ion-X glass stand up to wear and tear? How well will it stand up to outright deliberate abuse?

As noted by 9to5mac, Popular bearded YouTuber, Lewis Hilsenteger, better known around YouTube circles by his moniker Unbox Therapy, seeks to answer the question. If Hilsenteger seems familiar, it's because he's the same guy who brought us the infamous iPhone 6 #bendgate videos. Watch and see what happens when he puts the Ion-X glass under an extreme series of scratch tests.

How to check your Apple Watch shipment status via UPS

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated April 30, 2018

I just stumbled upon some great news: my Apple Watch will be here Friday. I was able to verify this via the UPS My Choice website. If you're already a My Choice member, log in here, and if your watch has shipped, you should see your Apple Watch shipment on a calendar with the scheduled date of arrival. My watch is scheduled to arrive on Friday, April 24th, between 2:15 PM and 6:15 PM.

Apple Watch: getting #BandGate and #ShowerGate out of the way

Sébastien Page ∙ April 21, 2015

It’s inevitable. Like clockwork, following each new Apple product launch, you can be certain someone, somewhere, will find a way to create a controversy based on an alleged design flaw. The controversy then makes its way up the chain, usually ending up being “verified” by some YouTuber. This is when the controversy gets appended the “gate” suffix, and becomes the mother of all weaknesses, the Holy Grail of Apple's negligence.

The issue with these problemgates, is that they’re often devoid of good commonsense, or simply devoid of actual understanding of the most basic rules of physics. Take Bendgate for example. Who wouldn’t have thought that applying a certain amount of force onto a device mostly made of aluminum would actually cause it to bend?

With Apple Watch arriving this Friday, I’m already anticipating a couple problemgates that may or may not materialize, but for good measures, I wanted to get ahead of the game and address them before they even start, because you know, good old commonsense can go a long way.

You can now control Keynote presentations with Apple Watch

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 27, 2018

Not to be outdone by rival Microsoft which earlier this morning updated its PowerPoint for iOS presentation software with the ability to start and navigate the slideshow on your iPhone from you wrist, Apple has quickly followed with a similar update of its own which brings the same functionality to Keynote for iOS, its PowerPoint alternative. Eagle-eyed readers would be right to note that controlling Keynote presentations from your wrist was first mentioned during Apple’s October 2014 media event.

Apple gives developers a chance for an expedited Apple Watch order

Cody Lee ∙ April 21, 2015

Apple on Tuesday began sending out emails to select iOS developers, giving them the chance to purchase a 42mm Apple Watch with a Blue Sport band that is guaranteed to arrive by April 28, 2015. Supplies are of course extremely limited, so Apple says that it is choosing the developers via a lottery system.

The move is part of an ongoing effort to help app developers test their WatchKit apps directly on Apple Watch, which can help them gather much better performance data than the Mac simulator. Prior to pre-orders, Apple was said to be inviting some developers to its Cupertino headquarters for such testing.

Deliveries: a great way to track your Apple Watch order

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated April 30, 2018

Like all of us at iDB, you're likely waiting on pins and needles with regard to your Apple Watch order. Will you get it on April 24th, the first official launch day? Will you have to wait a while?

Of course, the answer to that question is still up in the air. Many people saw movement yesterday, including credit card charges, and shipping status changes, but none of us at iDB, myself included, have seen an actual "shipped" message as of yet.

In the meantime, I'll keep watching my orders like a hawk. I find that the best way to track an Apple Watch order is to use the Deliveries iOS app. With Deliveries, you don't even need a standard UPS or FedEx tracking number to track your Apple Watch order, because it works directly with Apple's order numbers.

Apple awarded patents for Apple Watch Sport Band, Classic Buckle and Link Bracelet designs

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 21, 2015

Innovation that went into conceiving, designing and engineering the Apple Watch extends to the bands, too. And as we count down the remaining days until Watches start shipping, the United States Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) has just granted Apple a trio of patents covering designs for the most popular Watch straps, branded the Sport Band, Classic Buckle and Link Bracelet.

Interestingly enough, all three patents are titled just “Band” and described as covering “the ornamental design for a band”. The newly issued patent grants arrived just one month following another USPTO patent award for the Watch's Modern Buckle strap.

NimbleBit releases new word game ‘Letterpad’ with Apple Watch support

Cody Lee ∙ April 20, 2015

Long-time developer NimbleBit, responsible for several hit titles such as Tiny Tower and Pocket Planes, released a new game on Monday called 'Letterpad.' It's a word puzzler, and it's available for free for both the iPhone and iPad, as well as the Apple Watch.

The game tasks players with finding words related to the given topic, hidden within a group of 9 letters. So if the topic is 'Music,' you'll want to uncover words related to that such as radio or jam. Find all the words, and work your way through over 200 puzzles.

Apple preparing initial batch of Apple Watches for shipment

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 30, 2018

Apple on Monday began notifying pre-order customers that it is preparing their Apple Watch orders for shipment. Multiple members of the iDB team saw the status of their Watch orders change from 'Processing Items' to 'Preparing for Shipment' this afternoon.

Apple also began charging customer credit cards for their orders on Monday, something that it typically doesn't do for new products until they are ready to be shipped. Combined, these signs bode well for Apple's ability to get Watches out to customers this week.

How Apple Watch measures your heart rate

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 20, 2015

A support document Apple published earlier this month contains a number of interesting tidbits and nice-to-knows regarding the Watch's built-in heart rate monitor. We thought it'd be useful to give you a quick summation of the technologies the wrist-worn device uses to provide accurate readings of your heart rate.

The document also confirms that the Watch can connect wirelessly to external heart rate monitors such as Bluetooth chest straps for even more precise readouts.

All in all, Apple's done a fine job outlining in Layman's terms the tech and the sensors that measure a user's heart rate, a feature many reviewers have described as seamless. In Apple's parlance, it just works and here's exactly how it works.