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The Apple Watch is Apple's entry into the world of wearables

By James Lu - on 10 Sep 2014, 2:47am

The Apple Watch is Apple's entry into the world of wearables

The most eagerly anticipated wearable ever has finally been revealed. Apple's Apple Watch fulfilled many leaked rumors, but in typical Apple fashion, it held a few surprises too.

To the surprise of many, the Apple Watch isn't a round-face design, but actually looks quite similar to Samsung's Galaxy Gear with a square shape face. Two sizes will be available in three different finishes: aluminium, stainless steel and 18-carat gold! Apple's teaser videos show a variety of different straps attached to the Apple Watch, with a wide range of both materials and colors. It's worth noting though that the straps will be proprietary and non-standard.

The Apple Watch has a flexible Retina display panel covered by a sapphire crystal screen. It has a built-in gyroscope, accelerometer, a heart rate sensor, and a Taptic Engine for input sensing. The watch can recognize the difference between a tap and a harder press, which Apple is calling Force Touch, offering another subtle way for users to make different inputs without needing additional input points or buttons.

The Apple Watch is also a fitness tracker.

On the side of the watch, there's a crown, similar to one you would find on a regular watch. Obviously it doesn't serve the same purpose on the Apple Watch, and Apple is calling it a "digital crown." By rotating the crown it can be used to navigate menus, zoom into images and more.

The 'Digital Crown' on the side can be used for scrolling, and zooming in and out.

Similar to how Samsung's Gear watches work, the Apple Watch uses its accelerometer to know when you lift it up to check the time, it will then activate the display. As you'd expect, Apple Watch does notifications, so you can see meetings and message alerts, and you can also send replies or accept and decline invites from the watch itself.

As for software, voice-activated digital assistant Siri will be integrated, along with dedicated Maps and Photos applications. Apple will also be launching dedicated Fitness and Workout apps. Third-party developers will also be able to make apps for the Apple Watch with the WatchKit SDK, which Apple has apparently already released to top developers.

The Apple Watch will come pre-loaded with dedicated Maps and Photo apps, among others.

The Apple Watch requires a paired iPhone to work, and is compatible with the iPhone 5 and all subsequent models. It will be available in early 2015 for US$349.

You'll need to pair the Apple Watch with an iPhone 5 or better.

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