Apple has announced at the Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC) keynote in San Francisco that a software update known as watchOS 2 will bring a whole range of possibilities for its wearable tech Apple Watch.
Apple has already made watchOS 2 available now as a beta to developers and will be released to all Apple Watch owners as a free upgrade this coming fall.
Apple has issued a new software development kit (SDK) that will allow app developers to access the hardware features of the Apple Watch such as the heart rate monitor, accelerometer, microphone, speaker, video, and digital crown, and most importantly, being independent of a tethering iPhone. This may speed up the response time of majority of the apps available in the Apple Watch. In an on-stage demo, Apple's Kevin Lynch turned the digital crown of his Apple Watch so that a supporting app would then adjust the interior temperature of his car.
Apple also showed the new watch faces capability in their presentation that will allow the user to select an entire photo album so that one will see a different picture every checking of the Apple Watch. Apple has created some time-lapse animations of major cities that change depending on the time of day.
Apple introduced new bits of information other than just the time display on the Apple Watch face. With the upcoming watchOS 2, one can customize the info bits displayed on the Apple Watch face such as moon phase, weather, flight info, appointments, business stocks or even basketball scores.
Another face function that will be implemented is known as Time Travel, which can be utilized by spinning the digital crown to glimpse forward like to one's meeting tomorrow or backward to see a previous event or info relevant to the time.
The Nightstand function will be displayed on the Apple Watch face when the user is not wearing the watch, for instance during charging and the watch is placed on a bedside table. The owner can still view the time as the clock rotates 90 degrees and can also function as an alarm clock.
Other notable features introduced include adding or grouping contacts on the watch, replying or deleting emails, FaceTime call support that will allow the user to answer calls on the Apple Watch, and tetherless Wi-Fi that will make the Apple Watch operate as an independent device.
With the new apps being created by third party developers and an enhanced operating system watchOS 2, the Apple Watch could be a totally new product this coming fall.
Photo: Yann Caradec | Flickr
