Apple welcomes spring with new Apple Watch bands

Despite the availability of third-party Apple Watch bands, it seems Apple still has the advantage in creating seasonal replacement bands for their wearable.

Apple just  debuted a Spring collection of bands with vibrant colours and unique designs. This season’s updates include Woven Nylon bands with a fresh stripe that alternates white with colour for a crisp, clean look, exclusive Nike bands that colour-match with the latest Nike running shoes and a striking new edge paint colour for Apple Watch Hermès bands. Later this month, all new bands will be available to order from apple.com and for purchase at select Apple Stores, Apple Authorized Resellers and carriers.  

Apple Watch Series 3 can track skiing and snowboarding

Thanks to watchOS 4.2 apps like Slopes, snoww, Squaw Alpine, Snocru and Ski Tracks  can now accurately report metrics like vertical descent, distance, number of runs, average speed and calories burned thanks to the built-in altimeter which can develop elevation.

More importantly, this information is gathered and reported towards a user's fitness performance. Being able to track calorie burn, run count, and speed make use of hardware like the altimeter elevation readings, accelerometer and GPS.

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Apple Watch helps you ring in 2018 with fireworks on the clock face

One of the Easter eggs Apple hid inside the watchOS 4 update got debuted to users around the world as the clock struck 12 to welcome the New Year. If you own an Apple Watch, you might have seen (or you will be seeing) fireworks light up your watch’s face. The Apple Watch does the same for birthdays, too. So, if it isn’t midnight yet where you are, you can keep your eye out for this.

Source: 9to5Mac

Apple and Stanford University use the Apple Watch to study irregular heart rhythms

Apple, together with Stanford University, has just launched an app designed to collect irregular heart rhythm using the Apple Watch’s heart rate sensor. It’s part of the company’s Heart Study initiative the company announced back in September when it launched watchOS 4. The app, called Apple Heart Study, can detect irregular heart rates using existing Apple Watch tech. It makes use of green LED lights that flash hundreds of times per second as well as photodiodes that detect how much blood is flowing through the wrists. If it senses irregularities, it’ll send notifications to the user telling them they might be suffering from atrial fibrillation (AFib).

Launched in the US, those who choose to participate in the study are provided a free consultation with a study doctor and an electrocardiogram (EKG) patch for further observation. Apple is opening the study to users who are 22 years old or older with an Apple Watch Series 1 or later.

Source: The Verge