The Apple Watch Ultra 2 may have been the star wearable at today’s Apple Wonderlust event, but the Watch Series 9 also made its debut with some exciting features and upgrades. The new wearables bring a S9 Apple silicon chip that is claimed to offer improved performance. Series 9 introduces gestures that allow you to control specific functions without physically touching the watch. In addition, Apple has included a range of new bands to choose from. Here are the details.
The Apple Watch Series 9 has a new Apple silicon chip with 60% more transistors and 30% faster performance than the Series 8. The new chip has a four-core neural engine for 2x faster neural tasks. Apple says the Siri requests are processed on the watch itself for speed and security. Dictation is 25% more accurate thanks to secure on-device processing. The battery life on the Series 9 is still 18 hours.
The Series 9 has ultra-wideband support for Precision Finding, which is similar to AirTag functionality. It also integrates more deeply with HomePod. Apple has updated the always-on Retina display to be brighter, reaching up to 2000 nits, and can dim to just one nit for night or theater use.
The Series 9 introduces a new hand gesture called “Double Tap” for touchless interaction. Users can simply tap their thumb and index finger together to interact with the device without touching the screen for tasks like answering or ending a call, stopping a timer, snoozing an alarm, pausing or playing music, and more.
The Apple Series 9 comes in new colors, including pink, and has a more environmentally friendly design with recycled materials and smaller packaging. Leather bands have been discontinued, and are replaced by “FineWoven” bands, as well as options from Hermès and Nike.
The new Apple Watch Series 9 starts at $399 and is available in 41mm and 45mm sizes, in aluminum and stainless steel. Pre-orders start today, and the watch will be available in stores on Friday, September 22.
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