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The mystery of the diagnostic port

inkyoto

inkyoto

macrumors regular
Original poster
Oct 30, 2013
176
15
iFixIt's teardown reveals the ports are still there... looks like it's connected directly to the S1 via the ribbon in photo 1.

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I wonder whether there is another reason for the port. It may be used for diagnostics now, however I wonder whether apple will use it with bands in the future. There could be sensors/ monitors built in to bands sending data to the watch?
 
clukas said:
I wonder whether there is another reason for the port. It may be used for diagnostics now, however I wonder whether apple will use it with bands in the future. There could be sensors/ monitors built in to bands sending data to the watch?
Click to expand...

That's my thinking too. That would be pretty cool. Or maybe a way for future developers to plug it right into the computer. It would seem to affect waterproofing, though, since it doesn't look like(?) there's an O-ring around it.
 
inkyoto said:
That's my thinking too. That would be pretty cool. Or maybe a way for future developers to plug it right into the computer. It would seem to affect waterproofing, though, since it doesn't look like(?) there's an O-ring around it.
Click to expand...

Im not 100% as I haven't seen the watch yet, however I imagine the bands are a fairly tight fit, meaning it could be waterproof by design.
 
Maybe not in the first generation but in the future, they could build batteries into the bands. So instead of 18 hour batteries, it could double or triple that. And if you need more batteries and juice is running out, just swap bands.

Think of the leather loop, but instead of just magnets, it's batteries inside.
 
I wonder if this is how they upload the operating system at the factory? They couldn't do it wirelessly.

I wish I knew more about this... and had a lab... and a watch... and could see if charging was possible. Time will tell for sure..but why 6? Power, ground, then data +/-, and ?,??

What kind of communication needs 4 lanes?
 
Perhaps Apple had plans to force you to use their bands using a propriety connector, that would only allow Apple bands with a chip in them.

If that was the case, they probably ditched the idea due to the uprising/controversy it may have caused.
 
iregret said:
I wonder if this is how they upload the operating system at the factory? They couldn't do it wirelessly.

I wish I knew more about this... and had a lab... and a watch... and could see if charging was possible. Time will tell for sure..but why 6? Power, ground, then data +/-, and ?,??

What kind of communication needs 4 lanes?
Click to expand...

Quantum computing. :D
 
iregret said:
I wonder if this is how they upload the operating system at the factory? They couldn't do it wirelessly.

I wish I knew more about this... and had a lab... and a watch... and could see if charging was possible. Time will tell for sure..but why 6? Power, ground, then data +/-, and ?,??

What kind of communication needs 4 lanes?
Click to expand...

6 lanes happens to be what you need for many embedded CPU debuggers.

For ARMs you need:

- VCC
- SWDIO/TMS
- nRESET
- SWCLK/TCK
- GND/GNDdetect
- SWO/TDO
 
clukas said:
i wonder whether there is another reason for the port. It may be used for diagnostics now, however i wonder whether apple will use it with bands in the future. There could be sensors/ monitors built in to bands sending data to the watch?
Click to expand...

Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding!

I'm hoping for a way to connect it to my magneto-optical drive.
 
Im surprised no one has thought of this, but how would they get the Watch OS onto the watch if there was no connector at all.
 
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