The Apple Watch Series 8 has maine reasoning astir the Japanese concern doctrine of kaizen. The concept, made celebrated by Toyota, means continuous improvement. The Series 7 was a insignificant update to the Series 6, which was an incremental update to the Series 5, which was a tiny betterment implicit the Series 4. These updates weren’t overmuch connected their own, but they added up, and implicit time, they’ve widened the spread betwixt the Apple Watch and each different smartwatch.

2022 is simply a large twelvemonth for the Apple Watch, but the Series 8 isn’t the prima of the show. The caller Apple Watch Ultra is the astir absorbing ticker this year, and the second-gen SE replaces the Series 3 astatine the introduction level. That leaves the caller Series 8 successful the middle.

So no, this isn’t a terribly breathtaking update. Then again, does it person to be?

All the changes are nether the hood

You’d beryllium hard-pressed to spot the differences betwixt the Series 7 and Series 8. Full disclosure: the lone crushed I tin is due to the fact that my reappraisal units are antithetic sizes and colors. This is simply a fancy mode of saying nothing’s changed. The Series 8 inactive comes successful 2 sizes: 41mm and 45mm. There are less colour options this clip astir — RIP greenish and bluish —  and that’s astir it. The terms besides remains unchanged. The Series 8 starts astatine $399 for the GPS-only mentation and $499 for cellular. 

When I saw the 45mm Series 7 and Series 8 side by broadside past week, I was convinced that the Series 8’s show was a smidge bigger, but it isn’t. It was an illusion: watchOS 9 comes with caller watchfaces similar Metropolitan that marque amended usage of the watch’s thinner bezels. My Series 8 reappraisal portion is the 45mm cellular mentation successful starlight, which is simply a champagne-y colour that splits the quality betwixt golden and silver. I usually similar smaller watches, but this didn’t look excessively ridiculous connected my smaller wrists. I besides appreciated the flimsy boost successful readability that a larger surface provides. 

But portion everything looks the aforesaid to the bare eye, the Series 8 has immoderate important changes nether the hood.

Spoiler alert: it’s not a faster chip. As acold arsenic show and artillery beingness go, the S8 spot is virtually the aforesaid arsenic the S7, which is fundamentally the aforesaid arsenic the S6. (I’m sensing a taxable here.) What the S8 does adhd to the premix are a clump of caller sensors. Namely, you get 2 somesthesia sensors, a caller high-g accelerometer, and a caller gyroscope. These caller sensors are what powerfulness the Series 8’s 2 marquee features: Cycle Tracking and Crash Detection.

Temperature and rhythm tracking

A somesthesia sensor has long been rumored for the Apple Watch, and they’re becoming communal successful competing wearables. Fitbit added 1 connected the Sense successful 2020, and Samsung conscionable added them to its Galaxy Watch 5 series. (Though Samsung’s don’t really bash overmuch conscionable yet.) But Apple’s instrumentality is somewhat antithetic than Fitbit oregon Samsung’s. One of the sensors sits close nether the show truthful it tin measurement ambient temperature, portion different sits person to the skin. The thought is to destruct biology bias for much close readings.

The watch’s somesthesia sensing is mostly passive. Unlike the existing EKG, bosom rate, and humor oxygen sensors, you can’t instrumentality on-demand readings. You tin lone get wrist somesthesia readings erstwhile you person the Sleep Focus turned connected and slumber tracking enabled. Plus, you request to slumber with the Apple Watch for 5 nights to found a baseline. Once that’s completed, you’re lone going to spot deviations from that baseline. You’re ne'er truly going to look astatine your wrist and go, “Oh, I person a fever due to the fact that my somesthesia is 100 degrees Fahrenheit.” 

That’s not a sound against Apple. This is the aforesaid attack that the Oura Ring and Fitbit take. The thought is to show however definite factors — similar a hard workout, illness, oregon adjacent a fewer excessively galore margaritas — mightiness interaction your baseline. If you hap to way your cycles successful the Health app, enabling wrist somesthesia readings means you tin get retrospective ovulation estimates aft astir 2 cycles. 

There’s a crushed those estimates are retrospective and not predictive. For starters, this is strictly an consciousness instrumentality — if you amended recognize past cycles, you whitethorn person an easier clip erstwhile readying to conceive. Basal assemblage somesthesia is often utilized arsenic a instrumentality successful household planning, truthful this isn’t coming retired of near field. However, the Series 8 isn’t cleared for contraceptive usage and it’s perfectly not meant to beryllium utilized successful immoderate benignant of aesculapian capacity. There are apps that person been FDA-cleared for this purpose, similar Natural Cycles and Clue. Natural Cycles adjacent got the good precocious to usage wearable somesthesia information collected from an Oura Ring for commencement control — but that’s not the lawsuit with the Apple Watch. (At least, not yet.)

As for accuracy, it’s a small hard to say, arsenic I’ve lone had the Series 8 for astir a week. I don’t person 2 cycles’ worthy of somesthesia data, and I’ve lone conscionable established a baseline. For the fewer nights I do person somesthesia information for, however, it mostly corresponds to what I got connected my Oura Ring. For example, 2 nights ago, the Oura Ring said my assemblage somesthesia was 0.5 degrees higher than normal, portion the Series 8 said it was 0.41 degrees higher. 

I’m besides idiosyncratic who struggled for 2 years to get a polycystic ovary syndrome diagnosis — truthful it’s bully to spot that Apple tin present notify you erstwhile it detects a rhythm deviation. However, I wasn’t capable to trial however this works since I haven’t experienced a deviation yet. It’s besides not disposable for folks who whitethorn person a “cycle factor” similar hormonal commencement control. 

In the post-Roe v. Wade world, I wholly recognize if precocious rhythm tracking gives you the heebie-jeebies. If that’s the case, you should cognize that utilizing Apple’s Cycle Tracking diagnostic is optional. You tin besides way somesthesia without tracking your rhythm oregon wholly disable wrist somesthesia tracking successful the settings. If you do alteration somesthesia tracking, Apple says that wellness information is encrypted connected your instrumentality and lone accessible with a passcode, Touch ID, oregon Face ID. If you alteration a passcode and usage two-factor authentication, Health app information synced with iCloud is besides end-to-end encrypted.

Crash Detection is new

Apple has ever touted the ticker arsenic a instrumentality that could prevention your life. It possibly went a small ham with that messaging this twelvemonth erstwhile it introduced Crash Detection, but it’s a neat diagnostic that builds connected the watch’s different information offerings, similar Emergency SOS and autumn detection. Like the Ultra and second-gen SE, the Series 8 has an improved gyroscope and a caller accelerometer that tin measurement changes successful gravitational unit up to 256 g. These enactment with the watch’s barometer, GPS, and microphone to observe utmost interaction and abrupt changes successful velocity and direction. If a terrible clang is detected, the ticker volition telephone exigency services connected your behalf. You’ll besides get 10 seconds to cancel the telephone if it’s not needed.

I emotion my job, but I’m not going to clang my car (and wreck my security premiums) for a smartwatch review. We did strap the Series 8 to an RC motortruck that we “crashed” astir the Verge office, but arsenic you mightiness expect, it did nothing. (I fishy we mostly wanted an excuse to play with an RC truck.) I’ve worn the Series 8 successful aggregate dubious Lyft rides with immoderate unspeakable stop-and-go traffic, but that besides didn’t trigger the feature. That doesn’t astonishment me. Back erstwhile Apple introduced autumn detection, I — and respective different reviewers — tried to spot if you could trigger the diagnostic with fake tumbles. None of america succeeded. 

All this to say, I’d beryllium genuinely amazed if you got a mendacious alert. That’s a bully thing.

watchOS 9 is the bee’s knees

I’ve been futzing astir with watchOS 9 for a portion now, and there’s a batch to love. Too much, actually, truthful I’m going to absorption connected what’s caller successful the last mentation and the features I loved most. (You tin work immoderate of my different thoughts successful my watchOS 9 preview.) 

Every mentation of watchOS 9 has snazzy caller watchfaces. I usually consciousness “meh” astir Apple’s watchfaces, but I really enjoyed rather a fewer of them this clip around. (They truly bash marque the surface look larger than it is!) The Lunar watchface gave maine each the feels this past week during Chuseok. It’s a immense Korean vacation timed with the mid-autumn harvest connected the lunar calendar erstwhile you sojourn your hometown to walk clip with your family. I besides truly dug the Metropolitan face, and switching up the colour backgrounds connected my favourite Modular look to lucifer my outfits was bully ol’ fun. 

On the productivity front, the redesigned Calendar app truly makes usage of the bigger display. It was a large mode for maine to discreetly visualize my play schedule. I wrote much astir medication reminders a fewer months ago, and contempt utilizing them, I’m inactive unspeakable astatine taking my meds erstwhile I’m expected to. At slightest I instrumentality them overmuch much consistently erstwhile I person reminders connected than erstwhile I don’t.

Another happening I wasn’t expecting was the information that the Series 8 gets 1 of the Ultra’s coolest perks: the redesigned Compass app. If you’re an avid hiker, this is large news. With the caller app, you tin driblet waypoints — geographic points of involvement — arsenic good arsenic retrace your steps utilizing Backtrack if you get lost. I tried it retired connected a walk, and portion determination was a flimsy learning curve, arsenic idiosyncratic with nary innate consciousness of direction, I truly enjoyed utilizing it. (I’ll besides dive much into this diagnostic successful my Ultra review, truthful enactment tuned.)

Sleep tracking besides gets a boost. You tin present presumption slumber stages arsenic good arsenic much elaborate slumber metrics wrong the Health app. It’s inactive not the best, and Apple is playing catchup here, but it’s loads amended than what Apple launched with successful watchOS 7. I ideate the summation of wrist somesthesia tracking volition lone pave the mode for much precocious slumber tracking down the roadworthy — though artillery beingness volition person to amended a spot earlier the Apple Watch tin springiness Fitbit oregon the Oura Ring a tally for their money.

Speaking of artillery life… the Series 8 is inactive a instrumentality you person to complaint daily, but watchOS 9 adds a caller low-power artillery mode. It turns disconnected the always-on show and inheritance sensor readings portion limiting Wi-Fi / cellular connectivity. It besides leaves bosom complaint and GPS intact during workouts. Supposedly you tin get up to 36 hours with it connected the Series 8. (Your mileage volition alteration connected older models.) 

Fair warning: enabling low-power mode isn’t going to magically get you multiday artillery life, and I ne'er got the afloat 36 hours. With regular usage without low-power mode, my Series 8 got astir 24 hours earlier I needed to instrumentality it backmost connected a charger. Low-power mode was mostly a bully mode to get a spot of other foodstuff truthful I could marque it location oregon to get maine done the past mile of a agelong tally erstwhile I forgot to apical up the artillery earlier heading out.

While we’re connected the taxable of exercise, I loved everything astir the caller workout views. It’s casual to customize the order, and I’m a large instrumentality of adding a full 2nd surface of metrics. I’m besides very chuffed that I tin present presumption bosom complaint zones successful the autochthonal Workout app, which you tin already bash connected astir different trackers. It’s besides large that Apple’s yet added the quality to make your ain customized interval workouts. If you’ve been utilizing a Garmin oregon Polar, you’re astir apt rolling your eyes due to the fact that these are staples you’ve had for ages. I’m simply saying that it’s astir clip Apple added these features, and it’ll beryllium a immense payment for beginners transitioning to much intermediate-level workouts.

The lone happening I didn’t emotion was scrolling done the aggregate workout views mid-run. The Series 8 mostly relies connected touchscreen navigation; sometimes it works fine… and different times your fingers are truthful sweaty, it’s a pain. The integer crown is besides truthful slim that it’s not ever the easiest happening to usage mid-motion. This is thing I ideate won’t beryllium an contented connected the Ultra, but it’s a symptom connected the Series 8.

Not galore reasons to upgrade

If it’s not evident by now, the Apple Watch Series 8 is simply a large smartwatch. But if you’re blessed with your existent Apple Watch, determination isn’t overmuch of a crushed to upgrade.

For starters, astir of the things that made my clip with the Series 8 stellar travel from watchOS 9 — a software update. If you person a Series 4 oregon later, you’re going to get the immense bulk of what makes the Series 8 great. If you person a Series 5, 6, oregon 7, you besides person astir the aforesaid processing power. Upgrading to the Series 8 isn’t going to marque things zippier oregon your artillery past that overmuch longer. 

Meanwhile, somesthesia tracking is inactive a nascent feature. I ideate Apple volition physique it retired successful the future, but you don’t needfully request it close now. This is doubly existent if you don’t menstruate, don’t consciousness comfy giving tech companies your wellness data, oregon don’t usage the Apple Watch for slumber tracking. 

You besides don’t need the Series 8 if you’d similar Crash Detection. It’s besides disposable connected the iPhone 14 lineup. If this is simply a diagnostic you privation and your telephone is connected its past legs, you could ever conscionable upgrade that instead.

When you instrumentality each these factors into consideration, Series 6 and 7 owners person nary compelling crushed to upgrade. Chill. But it’s a antithetic communicative if you’ve got a Series 3, 4, oregon 5. (And if you’re connected a Series 2 oregon older, my friends, it’s clip to get a caller watch.) Longtime Series 3 owners, you definitely should upgrade to the Series 8. Trust me, you’re going to bask the show gains and the always-on display, and watchOS 9 is simply a overmuch amended update than watchOS 8 was. It’s time. For Series 4 oregon 5 owners, I deliberation the bigger show is worthy it. After a twelvemonth with the Series 7 and a week with the Series 8, I’m assured successful saying either is simply a crippled changer for readability. But if you’ve got 20/20 vision, you could astir apt clasp disconnected different year.

If you’re buying your archetypal Apple Watch, you could spell with either the Series 8 oregon the somewhat cheaper SE, which starts astatine $249 for GPS lone and $299 for cellular. The SE is the amended prime for first-time buyers who aren’t sold connected the thought of a smartwatch astatine all. You’re gonna get the gist of what makes the Apple Watch truthful fashionable without breaking the bank. (All you’re giving up is the always-on show and precocious wellness sensors.) From there, you tin marque an educated determination astir whether you privation the fancier mentation erstwhile you upgrade. But if you’re already committed to the thought of an Apple Watch, you mightiness arsenic good get the Series 8. 

I inactive person to trial the Apple Watch Ultra, but I’m 99.9 percent definite that the Series 8 is the champion prime for astir people. Not lone is it cheaper than the Ultra but besides it’s the much versatile watch. It’s amended suited to smaller wrist sizes, and it tin beryllium easy dressed up oregon down to suit each occasions. Also, unless you’re into hardcore endurance sports oregon a ultimate klutz of the highest degree, you truly don’t need the Ultra’s extra durability. The Series 8 mightiness look much fragile, but it’s plentifulness durable connected its own. (But, if the Ultra is thing you truly want, don’t fto maine halt you.) 

Listen, the Series 8 doesn’t revolutionize the Apple Watch arsenic we cognize it, but it doesn’t person to. Part of the crushed wherefore Apple tin get distant with twelvemonth aft twelvemonth of incremental updates is due to the fact that it is light-years up of its rivals for iOS users. We’re seeing much contention sprout up among Android smartwatches, but if the forthcoming Pixel Watch and Wear OS Samsung watches are immoderate indication, wearable ecosystems volition stay siloed for the foreseeable future. When it comes to smartwatches, Apple has a winning formula. And until idiosyncratic comes up with different smartwatch that iPhone owners really want, it has nary crushed to hole what isn’t broken.