In the rapidly growing and evolving world of smartwatches, no player is larger than Apple. The California tech giant's Apple Watch series has come to define public expectations for smartwatches in both design and functionality. As the brand seeks to maintain its market share amid a constantly expanding field of competitors, it continues to refine this series. The latest iteration, the Apple Watch Series 7, offers a surprisingly deep revision of the now-classic rectangular design, focusing more on durability, usability, dial size, and a wider variety of available finishes than ever before.
Much like Rolex, the design of the Apple Watch case generally evolves through small refinements rather than complete reimaginings. However, by the brand's standards, the Apple Watch Series 7 case is significantly different from its predecessors. While maintaining the rounded rectangle silhouette, the aluminum or stainless steel case has been increased from 40mm and 44mm in length to 41mm and 45mm in length, ensuring a more secure fit on the wrist. The sides of the case have also been slightly altered and now feature a smooth, pebble-like continuous curve that seamlessly transitions into the new-shaped sapphire glass all the way to the case back.
This new, thicker glass is one of the most significant advancements of the Apple Watch Series 7. It not only offers increased shatter resistance compared to the Series 6 but also allows the Series 7 to have an IP6X dust protection certification. Although Apple claims the Series 7 watch is 'swim-proof' with 50 meters of water resistance, this claim should likely be approached with caution. However, where the new crystal truly excels is in conjunction with the new enlarged Always-On Retina display.
Thanks to the reduced size of the inner bezel, the dial and crystal can create a wraparound effect in the Ressence style, allowing the dial elements to spill over onto the case sides, creating a striking and futuristic look. Apple offers the Apple Watch Series 7 in cases of stainless steel and completely re-engineered aluminum. The stainless steel models continue the clean polished look of previous generations in 'bare' stainless steel, graphite gray tone, and deep muted gold tone variants. The re-engineered aluminum models, on the other hand, are offered in five new matte finish colors. These colors range from bare aluminum to black, rich hunter green, vivid anodized ocean blue, and rich ruby (PRODUCT)RED.
The Always-On Retina display has also received substantial updates for the Apple Watch Series 7, including 70 percent brighter indoor display brightness with the wrist down, aiding in discreet time-checking. Apple also utilizes the new display's 20 percent larger surface area than the Series 6 to offer a wide range of new dial display options. These include simple quality-of-life updates, such as two larger text font sizes, enlarged touch buttons for easier interaction, and a new QWERTY keyboard with Apple QuickPath, allowing text entry with a single swipe. Apple also introduces several entirely new watch faces, including new faces for Apple Watch Nike and Apple Watch Hermès, a new world time face, and a new Modular Duo design, which adds two new center complications. However, the most striking of all options is the new Contour dial. With dynamic Arabic numerals that stretch to the dial edge, highlighting the wraparound effect of the new crystal, and becoming bolder to emphasize the current hour, this new display concept effectively highlights the strengths of the new Series 7 features.
The updates made by Apple to the Apple Watch Series 7 smart module are relatively minor compared to the cosmetic updates. Nevertheless, the brand strengthens its environmental focus by using 100% recycled rare earth elements in all the watch's magnets, including the complex Taptic Engine.
Charging speed has also been increased by 33 percent compared to the Series 6, and the Apple Watch Series 7 offers 18 hours of battery life on a full charge. While hardware improvements may be minor, the software of the Apple Watch Series 7 has seen significant changes with the debut of the Apple watchOS 8 operating system.
The watchOS 8 system brings improvements to Apple's proprietary apps across the board, but the most significant updates have been to the workout feature set of the Apple Watch Series 7. The Apple Watch Series 7 features a new Mindfulness app for guided meditation, as well as new workout tracking capabilities for tai chi and pilates.
However, cyclists receive the largest set of workout updates: GPS, heart rate, accelerometer, and gyroscope data automatically detect when the user starts cycling and offer to start a tracked workout. Cycling workout tracking features in the Apple Watch Series 7 have also been optimized for cyclists, and new fall detection algorithms determine when a cyclist has taken a hard fall and automatically place a call to emergency services if the user remains motionless for one minute after the fall.
The Apple Watch Series 7 also offers a wide selection of new bands while maintaining compatibility with all existing Apple Watch bands. For example, the braided Sport Loop band for the Apple Watch Nike has been significantly updated with three new color options and now features the Nike swoosh logo woven directly into the band. For the Apple Watch Hermès, several new strap options have been added, including the Circuit H strap with a printed anchor chain pattern and the luxurious Gourmette Double Tour leather strap with a double wrap and striking chain link design inspired by Hermès dog collars from the 1930s.
With significant aesthetic upgrades, new workout features, and a more durable design, the Apple Watch Series 7 is a bold step forward for the world's most popular smartwatch. Apple Watch Series 7 will appear at authorized dealers in late fall 2021 with a starting price of $399. For more information, visit the brand's website.