Apple Watch Series 9 review: a minor update
The new Apple Watch Series 9 features an improved chip to speed up Siri performance and new gesture controls called Double Tap. These are the additions that set this new version apart from last year's Series 8 and make the Apple Watch more practical to use. But these developments are not significant enough to convince recent buyers to upgrade to this new version.
The new Double Touch feature takes some getting used to and is not convincing enough in itself to justify the purchase of the Series 9. However, its usefulness could be seen in the long term.
Siri now has the ability to answer health-related questions by processing data locally instead of in the cloud. But this function will not be available before the end of the year. It has the potential to make the Series 9 a much more useful health tracker.
The new Double Tap gesture
Apple rarely adds new gestures to the Apple Watch, so the Double-Tap feature is a small event. As its name suggests, it is triggered by tapping the index finger and thumb twice. This allows you to dismiss a notification, pause a timer, or access widgets from the watch face, among other things. The feature is programmed to perform the primary action of a notification, whether it is to take a call or respond to a text message.
The Apple Watch already supported a similar gesture through its AssistiveTouch accessibility mode. Double-tapping is integrated throughout the UI, and the Series 9's new processor allows it to support this feature without impacting battery life.
Touching twice takes time to get used to. We used it often to clear notifications, stop timers, and text hands-free. But the system is not yet intuitive. Over the past two decades, we have been conditioned to type, swipe, and talk to our devices. Although Double-Tapping has proven to be very useful in certain situations, our instinct is usually to tap the watch screen. It will take time to break this habit.
Siri gets faster on Series 9
Another benefit of the new S9 processor in Series 9 is a faster Siri experience. Some requests that Siri doesn't need to rely on the Internet to respond to, like setting alarms or timers, are now done on the watch. Dictation is also claimed to be up to 25% more accurate. Compared to a Series 8 that we use regularly, we noticed that there was no longer a need to repeat ourselves when speaking certain commands.
We also noticed that Siri was faster on the Series 9 to answer certain questions that didn't require consulting the web.
Another new feature is that the voice assistant will soon be able to answer health-related questions. For example, Siri will be able to provide feedback on the quality of sleep last night upon a simple request such as “ Hey Siri, how did I sleep last night?” ". This feature won't launch until the end of the year.
It's satisfying to see Siri take on a more prominent role on the Apple Watch. Indeed, connected watches are not ideal for long interactions with touch screens due to their small size. This opens up an opportunity for voice assistants.
The Apple Watch Series 9 is more efficient at finding an iPhone
Apple has made the Watch an even more useful iPhone finder, thanks to the second-generation ultra-wideband chip onboard. Not only can you ring your iPhone, but the Series 9 will display an estimate of the distance between you and the phone and indicate the right direction.
Unfortunately, this very practical feature is only available with an iPhone 15 or 15 Pro which are the only Apple phones to also have the new ultra-wideband chip.
The new chip also brings closer integration with HomePod, displaying music playback suggestions at the top of the watch's widget stack when you're within 4 meters of the speaker.
photo credit: Richard Peterson/CNET Richard Peterson/CNET
Health and well-being: like on Series 8
Series 9 inherits the same health and safety features as Series 8. This includes the ability to perform an ECG, temperature detection, blood oxygen detection, high and low heart rate notifications , irregular heartbeat notifications, sleep phase tracking, fall and accident detection. It also has the same dust and water resistance rating as the Series 8.
While the Apple Watch offers a wide range of health metrics, we're still expecting more features related to rest and recovery, a key area where other wellness and sports devices from brands like Oura, Fitbit , Garmin and Whoop surpass Apple. To its credit, the Apple firm does not charge a subscription fee to access all health information, unlike Fitbit, Oura and Whoop, which require a subscription to benefit from the full experience.
photo credit: Richard Peterson/CNET
Autonomy
With the Series 9 seemingly focused on convenience rather than new health features, we wish it had the action button of the Apple Watch Ultra. While keeping some features exclusive to the Ultra line is understandable given its higher price, the Action button feels like it should be part of the overall Apple Watch experience to us. The Ultra already has many other exclusive features, including a larger, brighter screen, longer battery life, and a more durable design. The Action button could have integrated the Series 9 without giving the impression of hunting in Ultra lands.
The Series 9 has a permanent display with autonomy equivalent to that of the Series 8, namely 18 hours. That means it should last one to 1.5 days on a single charge, depending on how you use it. That's pretty impressive considering the Series 9 has a brighter screen and a more powerful processor.
photo credit: Richard Peterson/CNET
Conclusion
The Apple Watch Series 9 feels like a minor upgrade over the Series 8. New features make it a better smartphone companion. But the change is only worth it if you're a first-time buyer or if you own the Series 6 or earlier. If you own an Apple Watch SE and need more comprehensive health metrics, the Series 9 is also a worthwhile upgrade.
photo credit: Richard Peterson/CNET
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