Apple introduces new Watch models, watchOS 2 to release on September 16

Apple at its event in San Francisco unveiled new models of the Apple Watch Sport, Apple Watch Hermes in partnership with Hermes of Paris and announced the release date of WatchOS 2.

The Apple Watch will finally get the watchOS 2.0 update on September 16. With the watchOS 2, Apple Watch will get native support for third-party apps such as News, Facebook Messenger, Weather, GoPro app with viewfinder support, health care app called Airstrip and more. There is a new Time Travel feature that lets you rotate the digital crown to move forward or backwards in your appointments. It also  more ways to customise the watch faces from Photo, Photo Album and Time-Lapse. watchOS 2 also includes new communication features such as the ability to respond via Mail with dictation, smart replies or emoji, and Digital Touch which offers more creativity with multiple sketch colours.

Apple Watch

Apple Watch collections are expanding with new case colors and fresh new bands.

Apple Watch Sport is getting two new finishes- Rose and Rose Gold with anodised aluminum. They come in 38mm and 42mm sizes and with Sports Bands including Lavender, Antique White, Stone and Midnight Blue. The Apple Watch Sport silver aluminum edition now comes in orange and blue Sports Bands. 

The Stainless Steel collection also offers new bands including Classic Buckle in black or brown, space black stainless steel case and comes with a Black Sport Band. The Apple Watch Edition now has an 18-karat rose gold case with a Midnight Blue Classic Buckle. Pricing are same as the previous models. 

Apple Watch Hermès collection

Apple and Hermès introduced Apple Watch Hermès, a new collection of Apple Watch in stainless steel with finely crafted leather bands in distinctive styles from Hermès, including the Single Tour, Double Tour and Cuff. They will come in 38mm and 43mm variants with stainless steel cases, a customizable watch face with three exclusive dial designs inspired by Clipper, Cape Cod and Espace Hermes watches. 

The new Apple Watch Hermes Collection will be available at select Apple retail stores apart from select Hermes store starting October 5 in Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Japan, Korea, Russia, Singapore, Switzerland, the UK, and the US.

• Apple Watch Hermes 38mm stainless steel case with Single Tour Strap - $1150 (Rs. 73,000)
• Apple Watch Hermes 42mm stainless steel case with Single Tour strap - $1150 (Rs. 76,600)
• Apple Watch Hermes 38mm stainless steel case with Double Tour strap - $1250 (Rs. 83,000)
• Apple Watch Hermes 42mm stainless steel with Cuff - $1500 (Rs. 99,900)

Apple Watch gets new watch faces, native apps and more with watchOS 2 update

Apple at WWDC 2015, previewed watchOS 2, the first major software update for Apple Watch. watchOS 2 brings new smart applications, watch faces, support for transit in maps, Digital Touch and more.

WatchOS 2 will let users to make watch faces out of their favorite photos. You can also view your favorite pictures from the photo album with every rise of your wrist. There is a Time-Lapse watch face, that shows animations from major cities, depending on local time. You get to choose for a selection of time-lapse videos shot over 24 hours in locations including New York City, London or Shanghai. The new Time Travel feature lets you scroll with the Digital Crown to check upcoming or past events, temperature for the week, upcoming flight information and more.

WebOS 2 also provides easier and creative way to communicate. You can respond quickly to a mail using dictation, Smart Replies and emoji. You can create multiple friend screen, each can hold up to 12 friends. With Digital Touch, you can
draw and send sketches with multiple colors on the same canvas

Other features include: 

• Nightstand Mode that transforms Apple Watch into a bedside alarm clock, with the Digital Crown and side button serving as snooze and off buttons for the alarm
• the ability to use merchant rewards and store-issued credit and debit cards with Apple Pay, which can be added to Wallet;
• support for Transit in Maps, so you can view detailed transportation maps and schedules, including walking directions to the nearest stations with entrances and exits precisely mapped;
• workouts from third-party fitness apps contributing to your all-day Move and Exercise goals;
• using Siri to start specific workouts, launch Glances and reply to email; and
• Activation Lock, which lets users secure their Apple Watch with their Apple ID, preventing another user from wiping or activating the device if it is lost or stolen.

In addition, Apple is giving developers tools to build faster and powerful apps for the Apple Watch. The WatchKit for WatchOS 2 will allow developers to take advantage of hardware features of Apple Watch including Digital Crown, Taptic Engine, heart rate sensor, accelerometer and microphone.

WatchOS 2 for Apple Watch will be released this fall which is around September. The WatchKit for webOS 2 is now available for members of iOS Developer Program at developer.apple.com/watchkit. 

Source : Apple Press