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Apple has quietly reintroduced blood oxygen monitoring to its smartwatches, ending a more than year-long absence that left users frustrated. However, the return comes with a compromise: convenience. The tech giant is rolling out a redesigned feature via software updates for Apple Watch Series 9, Series 10, and Ultra 2 models, but users will now need to rely on their iPhone to access readings.
Blood Oxygen Readings: iPhone-Dependent, Not On-Wrist
The new implementation shifts all blood oxygen processing from the watch to the paired iPhone. While the Apple Watch still captures measurements, users can no longer view them directly on the wrist—a hallmark of Apple’s previous seamless experience. Instead, readings appear in the iPhone’s Health app under the Respiratory section. This workaround allows Apple to avoid infringing on patents that triggered a ban by the International Trade Commission (ITC).
Limited Availability Based on Purchase Date
Not all Apple Watch users can benefit from this comeback. Only devices sold after January 17, 2024—recognizable by serial numbers ending in “LW/A”—support the new setup. Earlier models and international versions retain the original, pre-ban functionality.
The Legal Battle Behind the Feature
Apple’s restoration of blood oxygen monitoring follows a favorable US Customs ruling that allowed the company to redesign the feature. This move is a significant chapter in Apple’s ongoing patent fight with Masimo, a medical device company that initially forced Apple to remove the functionality in late 2023.
Masimo has accused Apple of stealing trade secrets and infringing on multiple patents since filing its lawsuit in 2020. The dispute intensified when the ITC upheld Masimo’s claims, briefly halting Apple Watch sales during the critical holiday season. Apple countersued, alleging Masimo’s smartwatches mimic the Apple Watch design. The legal battle is far from over: Apple’s 916-page appeal against the ITC ban is still pending, and Masimo’s patents remain active until 2028.
What Undercode Say:
Apple’s approach highlights the delicate balance between innovation and intellectual property. By moving processing to the iPhone, Apple maintains functionality while navigating patent restrictions, showing how tech companies can adapt creatively under legal pressure.
However, this solution comes at a clear cost to user experience. On-wrist convenience, a defining feature for wearable health tracking, is sacrificed. Users accustomed to instant, glanceable data may find the iPhone-dependent workflow cumbersome, reducing the feature’s daily utility.
Strategically, Apple’s maneuver could signal its intent to outlast Masimo in litigation. The company is known for absorbing temporary setbacks while preserving long-term control over core technologies. By limiting the rollout to newer devices, Apple may also be encouraging hardware upgrades, subtly boosting sales while mitigating legal risks.
From a consumer perspective, this patchwork solution underscores the broader challenges in wearable technology. Legal and patent battles can directly impact how innovations are delivered, reminding users that cutting-edge features may not always be seamless. Apple’s ongoing court battle adds uncertainty: even this redesigned feature could face future restrictions if appeals or patent challenges escalate.
The situation also reflects the increasingly blurred line between medical devices and consumer electronics. Apple is pushing health-tracking capabilities closer to clinical-grade monitoring, which invites heightened scrutiny and litigation. Users should weigh the convenience trade-offs against the feature’s novelty—while blood oxygen readings are back, accessing them now requires a hybrid approach between smartwatch and smartphone.
Overall, Apple’s adaptation demonstrates resilience and innovation under pressure, but it also exposes the fragility of user experience in a litigious landscape. For those invested in Apple’s ecosystem, the move preserves essential functionality, yet it also serves as a cautionary tale about how intellectual property battles can shape technology access and convenience.
🔍 Fact Checker Results
✅ Apple Watch Series 9, Series 10, and Ultra 2 models receive the updated feature via software.
✅ Only watches sold after January 17, 2024, support iPhone-dependent blood oxygen readings.
❌ Earlier models and international versions are not affected by the patent workaround.
📊 Prediction
Apple’s redesign may set a precedent for other tech companies facing similar patent disputes, encouraging solutions that preserve functionality while avoiding direct infringement. In the short term, this could drive user frustration but long-term, Apple may leverage legal wins to fully restore on-wrist convenience, possibly aligning future updates with hardware revisions.
🕵️📝✔️Let’s dive deep and fact‑check.
References:
Reported By: timesofindia.indiatimes.com
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