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Errr... another thing.... so the other 2 circles on the back of the S2 isn’t failed tech?!

I’m looking into that now! :)



Regards
Martin

No worries, I didn't take anything as a poke - you mentioned something I'd never seen any indication of, so I was curious where that impression had come from.

To my understanding, on the S2 and S3, two of the four spots are LEDs emitting light, and the other two are photodetectors reading the light bouncing back. Thus all four used. With the S4, they merged those into one "spot" on the back of the watch.

Thus, I'm not aware of any unused tech on the S2 or S3 models.
 
Hi Again Deed,


I looked into your link - perfect and detailed.... kinda what I should have looked in the 1st place, instead of chatting to the guy in the shop. Don’t know if I got it confused with another watch / Gadget he was trying to sell me!


The key takeaway from your link for me is:

The way optical HR sensors work is that they shine an LED light down through your skin to your blood capillaries. From there, the optical sensors (photodiodes) then pickup that light and measure the blood flow, and thus your heart rate. Apple employs two green LED’s, and two photodiodes on the back. The technology has been around for many years in a number of different forms. But it’s really only been the last 3-4 years that we’ve seen it migrate into the sport world (well before Apple got there).

AppleWatch-Series2-OpticalHR-Sensor



I am feeling so much better about the S2 now! Hillarious! :rolleyes:

What the heck was all that talk about oxygen sensors back when I was buying the Apple Watch?!

BTW great watch for the quiet things I never thought about:
1. Washes up fine, no water stains etc. quick dry
2. GPS - Strava great on the bike
3. No major hassles - just 1st world grumbles


Regards
Martin
 
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I came off a series 2 myself... bought that about when it came out. If you are like me and don’t upgrade often go with the latest and greatest. I’m sure the S5 would have been a huge bump also, but I know for a fact in the back of my mind I would have regretted not going with the newest. S6 will be slightly better future proofed and who knows what the U1 chip may be capable of someday.

And really after all that said.... They have a friggin red one. That’s the best selling point ever. 😬
 
Not accurate. That $200 difference you’re referring to, would be based on which model you actually own/and based on overall condition. Keep in mind, the aluminum Apple Watch actually holds value better than the stainless Apple Watch does for example, where consumers generally aren’t interested in the more expensive Apple Watch models, given they perform the same functionality.

Accurate. Feel free to revisit my post and notice, like OP, I used £ not $. Then check the state of the resale market in the UK on eBay.

on the whole, the difference between price received for a 44mm aluminium s5 and the cost of an s6 would be about £200. It only gets worse from there. Higher prices at first instance don’t necessarily translate to better resale values, meaning a greater gap.
 
I notice the AOD to me much brighter. I wasn’t unhappy with S5, but it is better. I lost the blood oxygen monitor I. The current beta so that’s a wash LOL.

I also like the faster charging. That’s noticeable.

Honesty I upgraded for cellular. That’s a nice change.
 
I upgraded my aluminum S5 to get one of the more premium metals. I was planning to get titanium, but when they announced the new darker stainless color, Graphite, I chose it. I also have severe lung issues that will likely require a lung transplant within a few years, so the addition of the SpO2 sensor is very much appreciated. I didn’t receive my new Watch until two days ago, so I had read a lot of posts saying the accuracy and reliability of the feature was subpar. That has not been my experience. I have a separate SpO2 finger monitor to compare results, and they have been identical every time. The directions Apple give for taking a measurement, however, must be followed. Needless to say, for me, the upgrade has been worthwhile.
 
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