Apple Watch
The Apple Watch is a smartwatch produced by Apple Inc. It incorporates fitness tracking, health-oriented capabilities, and wireless telecommunication, and integrates with watchOS and other Apple products and services. The Apple Watch was released in April 2015, and quickly became the best-selling wearable device: 4.2 million were sold in the second quarter of fiscal 2015, and more than 115 million people were estimated to use an Apple Watch as of December 2022. Apple has introduced a new generation of the Apple Watch with improved internal components each September—each labeled by Apple as a 'Series', with certain exceptions.
Apple Watch Ultra | |
| Developer | Apple Inc. |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | |
| Type | Smartwatch |
| Release date | 1st generation: April 24, 2015 Series 1 and Series 2: September 16, 2016 Series 3: September 22, 2017 Series 4: September 21, 2018 Series 5: September 20, 2019 Series 6 and SE (1st generation): September 18, 2020 Series 7: October 15, 2021 Series 8 and SE (2nd generation): September 16, 2022 Ultra: September 23, 2022 Series 9 and Ultra 2: September 22, 2023 |
| Units sold | 100 million (estimated, 2020) |
| Operating system | watchOS |
| Backward compatibility | watchOS 1 – 3: iPhone 5 or later watchOS 4 – 5: iPhone 5S or later (GPS Only), iPhone 6 or later (GPS + Cellular) watchOS 6 – 8: iPhone 6S or later watchOS 9: iPhone 8 or later watchOS 10: iPhone XS/XR or later |
| Website | apple.com/watch |
Each Series has been initially sold in multiple variants defined by the watch casing's material, color, and size (except for the budget watches Series 1 and SE, available only in aluminum, and the Ultra, available only in 49 mm titanium), and beginning with Series 3, by the option in the aluminum variants for LTE cellular connectivity, which comes standard with the other materials. The band included with the watch can be selected from multiple options from Apple, and watch variants in aluminum co-branded with Nike and in stainless steel co-branded with Hermès are also offered, which include exclusive bands, colors, and digital watch faces carrying those companies' branding.
The Apple Watch operates in conjunction with the user's iPhone for functions such as configuring the watch and syncing data with iPhone apps, but can separately connect to a Wi-Fi network for data-reliant purposes, including communications, app use, and audio streaming. LTE-equipped models can also perform these functions over a mobile network, and can make and receive phone calls independently when the paired iPhone is not nearby or is powered-off, substantially reducing the need for an iPhone after initial setup. The oldest iPhone model that is compatible with any given Apple Watch depends on the version of the operating system installed on each device. As of September 2023, new Apple Watches come with watchOS 10 preinstalled and require an iPhone running iOS 17, which is compatible for the iPhone XS and later.