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I may have missed this. Are they removing the feature on already sold AWs or will this only affect new ones going forward?
 
There was an excellent post about this very subject in December. Hopefully the user who is following the three court cases, continues to update us as things move along.
 
So why bother with issuing a new part number then? Which means replacing the whole existing inventory and boxes? Couldn't they simply check based on the date of first activation of the watch S/N with Apple Servers?

By inferring on this logic, I'm guessing if you're doing a bit of digging at a Best Buy & al. today, you can find some 'old' Ultra/S9 boxes without the LW/A?

No, because a watch previously sold as having the feature could have it potentially disabled then, it needs a new product ID so it can be definitively seperated.
 
“The Blood Oxygen app still works on previously-sold Series 9 and Ultra 2 models.”

Does this mean if someone went to a store today, say Bestbuy or Costco, with still available current stock, that the app would still work (since it was already sold by Apple)?
The wording is vague & confusing.
 
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Guess we just buy watches overseas now 🤷‍♂️

As long as you don't want cellular ones.

This is what happen in a country where patent troll are ruling (even if they aren’t, they acting like one here). Apple didn’t “poach” employees. They just offered better terms. Employees don’t belong to an employer. They are free to move as they wish

Exactly, that's at will employment. Just as they can fire you you are free to leave; in CA NDAs are regulated to prevent companies rom making it too hard to switch jobs.

I agree, when it is a patent troll I am glad when they are defeated in court, but Massimo and Qualcomm are far from it.

No, but companies often disagree on their scope and whether they actually infringe. I'm surprised Apple hasn't rolled out some patents it thinks Massimo is infringing on to drive a settlement that cross-licenses them. I would guess, with their patent portfolio, they'd find something.
 
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So why bother with issuing a new part number then? Which means replacing the whole existing inventory and boxes? Couldn't they simply check based on the date of first activation of the watch S/N with Apple Servers?

By inferring on this logic, I'm guessing if you're doing a bit of digging at a Best Buy & al. today, you can find some 'old' Ultra/S9 boxes without the LW/A?

As iMacDragon replied, one needs a different Product ID to definitively
separate. If one was sold a LL/W at Best Buy it would activate with the O2 function as only Apple is part of the court order.
 
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“The Blood Oxygen app still works on previously-sold Series 9 and Ultra 2 models.”

Does this mean if someone went to a store today, say Bestbuy or Costco, with still available current stock, that the app would still work (since it was already sold by Apple)?
The wording is vague & confusing.

Yes. Only Apple pulled them, at least the last time they were banned. Since those were already sold by Apple they are not part of the court order.
 
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“The Blood Oxygen app still works on previously-sold Series 9 and Ultra 2 models.”

Does this mean if someone went to a store today, say Bestbuy or Costco, with still available current stock, that the app would still work (since it was already sold by Apple)?
The wording is vague & confusing.
Yes, this only applies to watches purchased directly from Apple.

Eventually the other retailers will have the updated models in stock but it may take a few weeks for that to happen.
 
So why bother with issuing a new part number then? Which means replacing the whole existing inventory and boxes? Couldn't they simply check based on the date of first activation of the watch S/N with Apple Servers?

Sure, and once the ban ends simply restock with the old watches that were pulled.

Or three, ultimately Apple will work around the technology with their own method of reading, revolutionize the practice out of spite, and patent what they develop lol.

And the sue Massimo when and if the infringe.
 
From Apple's website footnote:

"The ability to measure blood oxygen is no longer available on Apple Watch units sold by Apple in the United States after January 18, 2024. These are indicated with part numbers ending in LW/A."

Previous models in the US had part #'s ending with "LL/A", which means that US inventory watch models ending with "LL/A" will likely retain blood oxygen functionality.
Also important as this is a hardware change and not a software one.

So if Apple gets it back by licensing or other means the watches purchased today will never regain this functionality.
 
Who actually uses the O2 monitor? It is useful in a medical setting, but for most people on daily life?

To me it looks like the feature is there just because it was possible to implement, not because it’s super useful. So, not much is lost.
 
What does this mean for people who own the model that has the sensor? Will it stop working for them? My wife has a launch day model of the Series 9. I'm also wondering because of my Ultra Series 1, I love the O2 sensor and use it often when I finish my runs.
 
I wonder if this will make the resale value in September increase if you have one of the original watches that still support it if there is no fix by then
 
Who actually uses the O2 monitor? It is useful in a medical setting, but for most people on daily life?

To me it looks like the feature is there just because it was possible to implement, not because it’s super useful. So, not much is lost.
Totally agree. I used it a couple of times on my Series 6 just because it was the "new" sensor. Even now when I go in to look I see numbers usually 97+. It's a reading I've pretty much forgotten about. Same can be said for the EKG (for me anyway). I very rarely ever check it. And the addition of the temperature sensor has done nothing to make me want a newer watch....especially since it only really tracks trends that might be useful to women.

Apple has been adding features just to have news on the newer watches. There's not really anything compelling in the new features. Heart rate and movement are definitely useful but I doubt most people use much more than those on a daily basis. If they made an SE with the same size/screen as the newest watches, I'd be just fine with that.
 
Tim Cook's continued brilliant leadership. Go back to bean counting... oh wait, his refusal to pay for patent licensing is bean counting.
 
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Blood Oxygen Monitoring was not a "medical grade" feature when introduced, and the watch was able to calculate movement (calories, etc.) without it. So it was a non-essential feature that did little to enhance the experience. So why does everyone care so much?
 
That would be on new devices where the hardware is added back. Not the ones on sale today.
Are we sure the hardware is actually removed? Seems more like the distinction that was there for Nike Apple Watches before. Now that there are no longer separate Nike Watches sold, they enabled the watch faces, etc on the non-Nike watches. There's probably just a line of software that checks something that identifies the model and disallows the sensor on these watches....I would bet there's no actual hardware change. And therefore it could be enabled in the future if things get settled and it becomes legal to do so.
 
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