heart – mattjfuller.com

November 30, 2024March 22, 2025

Apple Watch Ultra 2 (Black Titanium, 49 mm, with Black Trail Loop with Black Titanium finish, 2024)

On September 12, 2023, Apple released an updated Apple Watch Ultra model, the Apple Watch Ultra 2. Apple described the upgrade:

“Apple’s most rugged and capable watch is now even better with performance updates, a new double tap gesture, and carbon neutral options.”

The Apple Watch Ultra 2 was similar to the original Apple Watch Ultra, but added a “powerful new S9 SiP” processor (64 GB capacity), a brighter display (3000 nits), and other enhancements including “expanded altitude range, on-device Siri, Precision Finding for iPhone, and advanced capabilities for water adventures.” It also included a 4-core Neural Engine that could “process machine learning tasks up to twice as fast as the original Apple Watch Ultra.”

One year after the release of the Apple Watch Ultra 2, Apple introduced a black titanium option. The new color was released along with watchOS 11 on September 9, 2024:

“Apple today introduced Apple Watch Ultra 2 in a striking new black titanium finish, enhanced with features in watchOS 11 that make the most rugged and capable Apple Watch even better.”

Apple described the color and manufacturing process:

“The new black titanium finish for Apple Watch Ultra 2 is achieved with a custom blasting process, and the diamond-like carbon physical vapor deposition coating over the grade 5 titanium makes it scratch-resistant and durable. The back crystal is made from a matching, dark zirconia.”

The new black color was also made available on the titanium hardware and other band materials:

“To complement the new black finish, the popular Trail Loop, Alpine Loop, and Ocean Band have all been updated to offer a black hardware option in addition to natural titanium. Both black and natural finishes of Apple Watch Ultra 2 are made from 95 percent recycled titanium, and are carbon neutral with any Titanium Milanese Loop, Trail Loop, or Alpine Loop.”

This Apple Watch Ultra 2 shipped with the new Black Trail Loop with black titanium hardware that matched the black titanium case of the watch.

The Apple Watch Ultra 2 was 49 mm high, 44 mm wide, and 14.4 mm deep. The display was 410 x 502 pixels (326 pixels per inch) with an always-on Retina LTPO2 OLED display in a flat sapphire crystal. The natural titanium version weighed 61.4 grams, and the black titanium version weighed 61.8 grams. The Apple Watch Ultra 2 contained 10 sensors, including an electrical heart sensor, optical heart sensor, temperature sensor, depth gauge (±1m accuracy), water temperature sensor, compass, always-on altimeter, high-G accelerometer, high dynamic range gyroscope, and an ambient light sensor.

The Apple Watch Ultra 2 also advanced Apple’s carbon neutral initiative “to be carbon neutral across its entire business, manufacturing supply chain, and product life cycle by 2030.”

Sources: Apple Newsroom (2023, 2024), Specs

November 3, 2024November 4, 2024

Apple Employee Outdoor Run shirt (c. 2020)

This shirt was made available to selected Apple employees who are running enthusiasts. The shirt is made by SUGOi, a Canadian sportswear company that “offers a range of technically advanced clothing and accessories for all conditions and for everyone.”

The shirt is black and made from a textured fabric with a lining. The small front design is printed over the heart and features a red heart similar to the Heart Rate section in the Health app printed with “160 BPM.” The back of the shirt features a striking design with “Outdoor Run” printed at the bottom using a font and layout similar to the Apple Watch Activity app with the Activity rings printed below in matching colors. Eight bright green vertical stripes run from the bottom logo to the top neckline.

The left sleeve features an Apple logo, and the right sleeve includes the word “Apple” (although in a font that resembles Apple Myriad, an older rendition of Apple’s logotype that does not match this overall design).

Both the outer and inner layers of this shirt are textured, likely to promote moisture wicking. The interior lining is semi-transparent white.

Source: SUGOi

September 29, 2024October 26, 2024

Apple Watch SE (Generation 2, silver, 44 mm, GPS, Winter Blue Sport Band, 2022)

The Apple Watch SE Generation 2 was released along side of the Apple Watch Series 8 on September 7, 2022, and was described by Apple: “The redesigned Apple Watch SE delivers the core Apple Watch experience at a new starting price.” Apple positioned the SE Generation 2 as:

“…a great way for users to start their Apple Watch journey, use with Family Setup, or gift to their loved ones. Powerful upgrades include the S8 SiP advanced dual-core processor, the same processor that is in Apple Watch Series 8 and Apple Watch Ultra, making it 20 percent faster than the previous generation, along with Crash Detection and international roaming.”

Notably, the Apple Watch SE Generation 2 used a back case made of a nylon composite material that made the Watch lighter, but arguably decreased the durability offered by the ceramic backs of the other models. While the Series 8 case sizes of the time increased to 45 mm and 41 mm, the Apple Watch SE Generation 2 remained at 44 mm and 40 mm.

While the Series 8 used an Always-on Retina display, the SE Generation 2 retained a Retina display that showed only when you looked at your wrist. Although the SE Generation 2 lacked the ability to run the ECG app, it had many of the same features of the Series 8 and even used the same S8 processor. The Vitals app on the SE Generation 2 included heart rate, respiratory rate, and sleep duration, but lacked wrist temperature and blood oxygen sensors. The SE Generation 2 included Emergency SOS, international emergency calling, fall detection, crash detection, water resistance up to 50 m, Siri, Find My, and the same 18-hour battery life ast the Series 8.

The Apple Watch SE Generation 2 (GPS) was available only in Aluminum and in three colors, Midnight, Starlight, and Silver. The 44 mm size measured 44 mm x 38 mm x 10.7 mm and weighed 32.9 g; while the 40 mm size measured 40 mm x 34 mm x 10.7 mm and weighed 26.4 g. The screen sizes were 368 x 448 pixels (977 square mm display area) for the 44 mm option and 324 x 394 pixels (759 square mm display area) for the 40 mm option.

This Apple Watch SE Generation 2 example is a silver GPS model and shipped with a Winter Blue Sport Band.

Sources: Apple (Newsroom, compare, specifications), Wikipedia

May 20, 2019April 30, 2020

Apple Watch Series 4 (cellular, 44 mm, stainless steel case with white Sport Band, 2018)

The Apple Watch Series 4 was the first major redesign of the Apple Watch family and added several important functions, including health-related features. The display was over 30% larger and filled the entire screen with curved corners, it added more advanced input capabilities, more powerful processing, and more advanced sensors. This model also included GPS and cellular service for use in the United States and Canada.

Like all cellular-capable Apple Watch Series 4 models, this watch could connect to the Internet without an iPhone and send and receive phone calls with an activated cellular service. It was controlled with a Digital Crown with haptic feedback and Force Touch.

This Apple Watch Series 4 model is 44 mm (previous Apple Watch models were 38 mm and 42 mm) with a 368×448 OLED screen. This stainless steel case model used a sapphire crystal to cover the display. All Series 4 models used a ceramic and sapphire crystal back to connect to the wireless charger.

The Apple Watch Series 4 shipped with “revolutionary health capabilities, including a new accelerometer and gyroscope, which are able to detect hard falls, and an electrical heart rate sensor that can take an electrocardiogram (ECG) using the new ECG app.” When announced on September 12, 2018, the ECG feature was not available until it was released on December 6, 2018, through an iOS update.

The ECG feature on Apple Watch Series 4 marked “the first direct-to-consumer product that enables customers to take an electrocardiogram right from their wrist, capturing heart rhythm in a moment when they experience symptoms like a rapid or skipped heart beat and helping to provide critical data to physicians. The irregular rhythm notification feature on Apple Watch can now also occasionally check heart rhythms in the background and send a notification if an irregular heart rhythm that appears to be atrial fibrillation (AFib) is identified.”

In addition, a new accelerometer and gyroscope could detect falls and automatically call 911.

There were 12 different options for this particular Apple Watch Series 4 model: