We are now only 24 days away from September 14th, which is the expected date for Apple’s
September event, where we will 100% be getting a new Apple Watch, and we know that for sure
because Apple has released a new Watch in September every single year since 2016.
And if you take a look at YouTube, most videos on Apple Watch Series 7 leaks assume that
it’s getting a full redesign, but there is actually some evidence that points to no
redesign happening this year, which would be very disappointing, but it’s definitely
a possibility.
So what I’m gonna do in this video is lay out all of the evidence and reasoning for
both of those scenarios using common sense and very recent leaks and rumors from reliable
sources.
And before we begin, I want to first remind you guys of the Apple Watch update situation
over the past couple of years because it’s gonna be very important for this video!
Back in 2018, Apple finally gave the Watch a full redesign with the Series 4, giving
it a much larger display with rounded corners just like Apple gave the iPhone X a year before
that, and the Series 4 also came with an awesome looking rear sensor array as well.
But ever since then, the Apple Watch updates have been quite a bit disappointing.
In 2019, the Series 5 simply got a boost in storage and added an always-on display, and
that’s basically it! Because of that, many people stuck to the Series 4.
And then last year, Apple revealed the new Series 6, and the two standout features were
the new red and blue color options, as well as the new blood oxygen sensor.
Of course there were also small updates like the faster S6 chip, the brighter always-on
display, the always-on altimeter for elevation tracking and the new U1 Ultra Wideband chip,
but in reality, none of the new updates really changed that much for regular users, which
was again pretty disappointing.
And now, we’re expecting the Series 7 here in less than a month, and the big question
is this: Will Apple finally redesign the Apple Watch again, or will they hold off for one
more year?
And we’re gonna answer that question in this video, so let’s go ahead and start
off with the redesign scenario by looking into all of the evidence that points to this
happening.
Of course, back in May, Jon Prosser revealed renders of a redesigned Apple Watch which
look absolutely fantastic, matching up to the design of the iPhone 12 lineup, which
makes perfect sense.
The renders even include a new layout for the speakers, featuring two thin and long
strips on the side, and Jon says it’s a weird change but that’s exactly what he
saw on the leaked renders.
And just the other day, the actual CAD files that Jon used were leaked by 91mobiles, showing
basically the same design that Jon’s renders showed off, even down to those new speaker
slots, which makes his leak from back in May seem totally legit.
And just by looking at those CAD files, it seems like the current Apple watch bands will
fully support this new Apple Watch design, which is even better.
Now going back to a report from Mark Gurman in March, he said that Apple is considering
a new Apple Watch model with a rugged casing, aimed at athletes, which would be perfect
to launch alongside the redesigned watch.
And then in June, Mark reported that we should expect updated screens and performance this
year, and new functions next year.
He also mentioned that we should expect better wireless connectivity and new ultrawideband
tech, which will probably by the U2 chip.
And then finally, just a few days ago, Mark reported that he expects a bit of a redesign
on the Apple Watch, with flatter displays and updated screen technology using a new
lamination technique to get the display closer to the cover glass.
Now in my mind, if they’re gonna redesign the display, why not also redesign the body
as well, all in one foul swoop, which makes perfect sense to me.
On top of that, we got a recent report showing that the titanium Apple Watch Series 6 models
are now entirely unavailable, which would only make sense if Apple is planning to redesign
the body so that those titanium casings wouldn’t be able to be used for the Series 7.
But then again, there’s a small possibility that Apple could be completely ditching titanium
for good, but it just doesn’t seem likely since it’s a fairly new option.
So overall, that’s most of the evidence we have for the Apple Watch Series 7 to get
the full redesign next month, especially since 91mobiles.com is so confident that it’s
the Series 7.
And now, let’s get into the pieces of evidence that point to the redesign not happening until
next year.
First off, when Jon Prosser revealed the Apple Watch redesign renders back in May, he said
that his source didn’t tell him whether this was the Series 7 or not, so it was totally
possible that the renders could be of the Series 8.
On top of that, in Mark Gurman’s June 14th report, he mentioned that the new extreme
sports models aren’t planned until next year, and he believes that those models will
be more rugged by giving the Apple Watch a rubberized casing, making it more resistant
to damage.
And in reality, the easiest way to implement that rubber casing in an effective manner
would be if the design had flat sides and a flat display, just like Jon Prosser showed
off, allowing Apple to give the casing a raised edge or lip to help it avoid display glass
damage.
Going even deeper, in Gurman’s report from a few days ago, he mentioned that the Apple
Watch is getting a “bit” of a redesign, which is odd because when he talks about other
products like the iPad Mini 6, he claims that it will be getting a full redesign, but not
this time.
So there’s a chance that Apple could hold off on the redesign until next year when they
also reveal the new rugged models.
And the really weird thing is that Mark Gurman said that the Series 7 will be a bit thicker
than the Series 6, and this detail is important because the leaked CAD files by 91mobiles
claim that the redesigned watch will be 1.7mm thinner, which goes against what Mark Gurman
said about it actually being a bit thicker.
So if Apple does delay the redesign, the big question is what will Apple add to the series
7 to make it a worthwhile upgrade?
Well, this brings us to a very old report from the economic daily news back in 2019,
claiming that Apple will switch from OLED to microLED displays in Apple Watch as soon
as 2020, which obviously didn’t happen.
So what if the Series 7 is finally getting this huge display upgrade without getting
a full redesign yet?
If you think about it, a new microLED display would go perfectly in line with Mark Gurman’s
report of a new flatter display with upgraded screen technology, with thinner bezels and
a new lamination technique.
On top of that, MicroLED will probably also improve battery life at the same time since
it’s gonna be more efficient.
And going even further,, Mark said that the Series 7 will get a new S7 chip no matter
what, and it’ll be the first 5nm Apple Watch chip, compared to the S6 which is built on
the 7nm process. This will improve performance while also improving efficiency which will
lead to a big jump in battery life.
Now because of all of the battery life gains from the new chip and the new display, Apple
has more room to work with to enable better features like potentially 5G connectivity,
while keeping the overall battery life the same as it was before.
And since Mark Gurman mentioned that the Series 7 is getting a bit thicker, there’s a chance
that Apple is putting in an even bigger battery to help them enable 5G, because the new display
itself should technically allow them to make the watch thinner.
Now alongside the new chip, we should also expect Bluetooth 5.2 to match up to the new
iPhone 13 and the new AirPods 3.
There’s also a chance we could see the S7 chip get 2GB of RAM instead of one, and we
might even get WiFi 6E to match up with the iPhone 13 series because it’s more efficient
and it helps save battery life.
All of these things together will be a big enough deal that Apple could potentially delay
the full redesign that Jon Prosser showed off until next year.
But with that said, that’s all of the evidence and reasoning for the scenario where we don’t
get a full redesign this year.. And now.. Let me finally finish off with which scenario
I think is more likely and why.
I honestly think it makes more sense for this redesign to actually come on this year’s
Series 7 for a few different reasons.
First off, since the Series 4 got a redesign the year after the iPhone X got a full redesign,
it kind of makes sense for the Series 7 to get a redesign now because the iPhone 12 was
fully redesigned last year.
Which was a really good point that ZONEofTECH brought up in his recent video.
And to me, I don’t think Apple would want the watch to stick with the old Watch design
while the iPhone will be getting the new flat design for the 2nd year in a row.
On top of that, Jon Prosser was able to get his hands on those CAD files back in May,
so if they were actually for next year’s Series 8, that would be unrealistically early
for him to get his hands on them.
And one important detail to mention is that 91mobiles leaked those CAD files while also
claiming that they’re for the Series 7, so their confidence shows that they probably
know for sure that it’s for the Series 7 and not the 8.
Going deeper, Mark Gurman said we should expect new functions like sensors to come next year,
so it wouldn’t make sense for Apple to update both the design and the sensors at one time
next year, which is why the redesign should probably come this year.
And finally, Mark is usually pretty cautious with his rumors, which is why he said it’s
getting a bit of a redesign without calling it a full redesign, so just in case the display
alone gets changed, he would still be correct, but in my opinion, it makes sense to redesign
both the display and body at the same time.
And then next year, Apple will bring out the new functions and sensors, alongside the rugged
model to help boost sales.
Now if you disagree with my point of view, go ahead and let me know in the comments below,
but if you enjoyed this video, click that circle above to subscribe for more videos
like this one and definitely check out one of those two videos right over there. Thanks
for watching and we’ll see you in the next one!