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You mean I may be able to one day glance at my watch band to see information like battery life?

This is going to save my eyes so much time not having to look 1/2-inch further up to get to the... actual watch screen.
 
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A patent for using an LED as a status indicator... what a joke the patent system is

To someone who can't read damned patent properly, like you obviously can't...I guess it would seem like a joke...
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We don't even have the most basic feature of a smart watch. User created faces.

You really think that's the most basic feature of a smartwatch? Not like, the whole telling time thing? We don't have user created iOS interfaces either, so I wouldn't hold your breath.
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Timmy found a way to charge more for watch bands. Go Timmy!
TracesOfArsenic found something new to complain about Tim Cook over! Go anonymous internet guy!
 
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Is it really too much to ask for just an always on display of some kind? Any kind? My battery already lasts two and a half days. How much longer will it take?

I'm not buying another Apple Watch until this exists.
 
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Lol. I love these patents. They always appear and show such a creative future... and then we watch the announcement videos resulting in the exact opposite: comprised of basic watchbands and Memoji.
 
Many on here are missing the bigger picture. A self-tightening band isn’t a lazy thing. When working out and throughout the day, human wrists tend to swell and return to normal. A band that could expand and contract automatically would be great instead of manually adjusting it, having it break contact, and needing to put a code in frequently.

Also, self-tightening bands is one step away from accurate blood pressure measurement. There’s a huge amount of potential with Apple Watches that just isn’t possible with any competitors. They are already behind Apple as it is
 
I'm getting tired of waiting for Apple's patents to see daylight. There are so many of them which are very cool and it's been years but Apple still hasn't shown us anything.
Because actually realizing those ideas into products are a simple flip of a hand, right? I men why can't we have flying acrs already? /s
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Lol. I love these patents. They always appear and show such a creative future... and then we watch the announcement videos resulting in the exact opposite: comprised of basic watchbands and Memoji.
People made fun of memojis, but don't realize the tech behind it. I mean you basically have a real-time motion capture device at a size of a phone. But yeah, let's keep making fun of memojis because who cares about the engineering behind it.
 
Lol. I love these patents. They always appear and show such a creative future... and then we watch the announcement videos resulting in the exact opposite: comprised of basic watchbands and Memoji.

You don’t have a clear understanding how patents actually work, they’re _not_ a guarantee of a future product, they’re simply implementing something that’s in the R&D phase. Patents may or may not be a reality, but it’s technology that Apple is experimenting with labeling something now for that they created and ultimately may never come to fruition.
 
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This is interesting, although, I don't know why that would warrant a "caution" warning on buying the current model. Would Apple really change the form factor already of the S4?
The S4 is either about to be obsolete or to have a decent price drop, so I would say a caution is warranted.
 
So this is like the "Back To The Future" self lacing shoes of Apple Watches huh?

Now that's a "smart watch"

All they have to do now is bring out the jacket and shoes.
back-to-the-future-2-light-up-shoes.jpg


Pretty retro.. You'll never get lost in a dark alley :)
 
Personally i'd be far more interested in seeing more health monitoring. Blood pressure / blood glucose etc. Although the self-tightening strap might be an indication that blood pressure testing is in the pipeline?
 
I would like a band with a battery in it that lets the watch run for a week without recharge.
nice idea, but i think the current lipo/liion tech is way more fragile to be combined with an inherently soft/flexible substance. when speaking of clasp bands made out of steel, getting conductivity where it's needed and avoiding where it isn't, and providing water/sweat resistance is quite some engineering challenge.
 
just give us an god damn AOD display...
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Is it really too much to ask for just an always on display of some kind? Any kind? My battery already lasts two and a half days. How much longer will it take?

I'm not buying another Apple Watch until this exists.
THANK YOU. I always feel like I am the only crazy one who wants that.
 
nice idea, but i think the current lipo/liion tech is way more fragile to be combined with an inherently soft/flexible substance. when speaking of clasp bands made out of steel, getting conductivity where it's needed and avoiding where it isn't, and providing water/sweat resistance is quite some engineering challenge.
[doublepost=1567600185][/doublepost]I don't think it needs to be a battery... how about a PV embedded strap that could send a trickle charge to the battery. If the watch is heavily used it may not make much of a difference, but with a lightly used device you may realize a few extra hours of charge. Yes?
 
Self tightening? Usually I end up loosening my watch when exercising.

Also, don't people change their bands depending on what they are doing to give it a different look. If these bands cost a lot it could be expensive to have bands for exercising, a night on the town, informal event, and formal events.

I think it’s a great idea actually. I like to wear my watch somewhat loose. I’m sure I’m not alone. But I quickly discovered that my heart rate data during runs was missing or inconsistent. So now whenever I run I always tighten the band by one hole. Every now and then though I forget to tighten the band before my run. It’s annoying when I get home from a run and check my data to find out I have no heart rate data because I forgot to tighten the band. So this would be great. It’s a small user experience detail but those small details are what makes Apple stand out.

Takeo is right. You need the Watch fairly snug to get reliable heart rate data. Before runs, I always move my bands from the 4th hole to the 5th. Otherwise, I see occasional spikes in my HR data where the Watch is picking up my running cadence rather than my HR.

I agree with you on the expense factor, though. I have a lot of sports bands, mostly non-Apple, but a few Apple ones from the Macy's $25 sale. I swap out colors almost daily. I also have a dressier brown leather band and a couple of leather loops (all third-party). I'd be hard-pressed to imagine a scenario where I'd trade cheap swappable bands for a single expensive self-adjusting band.
 
A patent for using an LED as a status indicator... what a joke the patent system is

The patent isn’t simply for using an LED as a status indicator. The following is actually what Apple has been granted a patent on:

1. A watch comprising: a housing; a processor within the housing, the processor being configured to: track multiple types of data associated with a wearer during operation of the watch; and calculate a progress value based on one of the multiple types of data being tracked by the processor; a band releasably attached to the housing and comprising an indicator operable to show a progressively illuminated region based on the progress value; and a display within the housing, the display being configured to show a symbol indicating which one of the multiple types of data corresponds to the progressively illuminated region shown on the indicator of the band.
 
I adjust the Velcro strap on my Apple Watch several times a day, depending on how hot I am or how constricting it's feeling.

But how lazy are we getting that we need self-tightening watch bands?

I have smart outlets to control lights in my home, but they often feel like more effort than they're worth, and flicking a light switch is not hard at all.

It’s not about being lazy. The patent talks about numerous features and benefits that the self-tightening watch band can provide, that go well beyond replacing your self-tightening or loosening of your velcro band based on your comfort level.

Likewise, smart outlets to control lights, when controlled by software, can do much more and provide new features and benefits that go well beyond replacing your having to manually flick a switch.
 
It’s not about being lazy. The patent talks about numerous features and benefits that the self-tightening watch band can provide, that go well beyond replacing your self-tightening or loosening of your velcro band based on your comfort level.

Likewise, smart outlets to control lights, when controlled by software, can do much more and provide new features and benefits that go well beyond replacing your having to manually flick a switch.
Smart outlets introduce a whole slew of "first world problems" to controlling your lights, though.
Sometimes my internet will go out. Alexa doesn't work, and smart outlets don't work.
Sometimes a smart outlet will have trouble connecting to the wifi.
And on rare occasion (because it's a software-controlled device) the smart outlet will lock up and have to be manually rebooted.
 
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