The first product reveal of Apple’s September showcase event came with the debut of Apple Watch Series 2.In the lead-up to the reveal, Cook spoke about the relative success of the device.
He says the Apple watch became the 8th best watch brand
“Survey after survey, the Apple Watch tops in terms of customer satisfaction,” he said.
Cook then invited Jeff Williams up to the stage to talk about WatchOS
3, which brings a new dock and additional watch face functionality to
the Apple Watch.
Williams highlighted a new meditation app called Breath and an emergency SOS application.
Williams says the company is working with established developers for
the platform to make sure major existing apps will be updated to get the
most out of the operating system.
He also revealed that Pokemon Go would be coming to the Apple Watch, bringing Niantic CEO John Hanke up on stage.
Hanke showed off the Pokemon Go Plus accessory and the new Apple Watch version of the game.
Players will be able to see the progress they’re making in terms of
hatching eggs, tapping off PokeStops and hunting Pokemon at a glance.
This version of the app also displays a number of health statistics like calories burned and distance walked.
Hanke says the app will be shipping before the end of the year.
Then came the main event: the reveal of the Apple Watch Series 2.
Williams says that Series 2 will be swim-proof and water resistant to a depth of 50 meters.
He says the company has extended its fitness lab to allow the device to track calorie burn information while swimming.
“We think swimmers are going to absolutely love this”
He then went into the technical specs of Series, saying it boasts a GPU twice the power of the previous iteration.
The original Apple Watch will be refurbished to feature this same dual processor.
The Watch also features a 1000-nit display that Williams says isn’t just bright but the brightest Apple has ever shipped.
Williams also confirmed the addition of built-in GPS to the Apple Watch, allowing for more accurate route-tracking.
Williams confirmed that the company’s watchband partnership with Hermes will support the watch with a number of new designs.
The Watch will arrive in the aluminum and stainless steel, along with a new ceramic model.
Finally, Apple revealed a partnership with Nike that will see it
further flesh out of the Apple Watch lineup with a new variation that’s
been designed specifically for runners.
“We think Apple Watch is the ultimate device for a healthy life and
we expect it to be popular for everybody but we expect it will be
popular with runners,” Williams said.
The Nike+ model comes in four different colors.
Apple have priced both this, and the mainline models at a $369US pricepoint.
Series 2 will go on sale September 16 with Nike Plus set for late-October.
