There might be plenty of Apple Watches under the tree this Christmas, but those who don’t get one might want to wait until later this year to pull the trigger on buying one.
According to a recent report, Apple may announce the Apple Watch 2 in June, and will feature a more powerful battery as well as a front-facing camera. The fact that the new device will include a battery is an important thing to note. When the original Apple Watch launched, it was largely criticized for its so-called “all-day battery,” which in fact lasted 18 hours of normal use, and yes, there are still 24 hours in each day.
Of course, Apple will have to be careful to ensure that the larger battery doesn’t lead to a bulkier device. Some suggest that the Apple Watch is already a little bulky, and the hope is that the company will be able to slim the device down a little for the second iteration.
Perhaps even more interesting is the fact that Apple may include a front-facing camera with the device. This will not only enable users to video-chat with their friends directly through their Apple Watch, but could also be used for selfies and in apps like Facebook.
In fact, Apple all but confirmed the addition of a FaceTime camera in the Apple Watch at this year’s Worldwide Developer Conference, with watchOS 2.0, the most recent version of the operating system that runs on the Apple Watch, allowing users to answer FaceTime audio calls from their device and route calls to either an iPhone or to be rejected. The addition of a camera could also be helpful for things like facial recognition, however that’s unlikely to provide a more accurate authentication process than biometric tracking like heart-rate detecting.
It’s also likely that Apple will launch more variations of the Apple Watch along with the Apple Watch 2. Currently users can either purchase the Apple Watch Sport, the Apple Watch, or the Apple Watch Edition, with there being a pretty significant price difference between the different models. It will be interesting to see whether or not Apple tries to bridge the gap between the different devices. According to rumors, Apple is expected to make a few versions of the device that will sit in between the Apple Watch and the Apple Watch Edition. The device may include a body made from either titanium or platinum, however it’s not yet known exactly how much these devices will cost.
While the Apple Watch 2 may be announced in June, it’s not likely that it will be released to the public until a few months after that. It is, however, likely that the device will ship in time for the 2016 holiday shopping season.