Kuo: Don’t Expect ‘Significant Innovative Experiences’ From 2024 Apple Watch

Well-known Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Ku says we’re “unlikely” to  see the 2024 Apple Watch lineup offer “significant innovative experiences.”

In a post on Medium earlier today, Kuo said that he doesn’t expect the Apple Watch to get the much-rumored microLED display or blood glucose monitoring for the 2024 model year. He says both features are at least two years away from being ready for the public.

Kuo also said that he expects to see Apple Watch shipments drop to 36–38 million units in 2023, an approximately 15% year-over-year decline in shipments.

However, Kuo did say that the Apple Watch’s integration with Apple’s upcoming Vision Pro headset could “create an unparalleled and innovative health management experience” that will result in a boost in shipments.

Kuo’s remarks fly in the face of earlier comments from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman who said we could expect to see a significantly overhauled Apple Watch in the form of the “Apple Watch X,” which would launch in either 2024 or 2025. Gurman says the “X” will mark the tenth anniversary of the Apple Watch, which debuted at a media event in September 2014, hitting store shelves in April 2015.

Gurman also said Apple is developing a thinner casing for the Apple Watch X, while also working on new ways to attach watch bands to the device’s casing. The method of attaching bands to the Watch has remained the same since the device’s debut, meaning bands purchased for the original Apple Watch will continue to work well with the current Apple Watch Series 9 and every model in between.

Gurman’s sources tell him that Apple believes the existing band attachment system takes up a good amount of space that could be used for more internal components or at the very least a larger battery. Apple is reportedly working on a magnetic method of attaching watch bands, but it is uncertain whether it will be ready for prime time by the time the Apple Watch X is ready for release.

The Apple Watch anniversary model could also be the first Apple Watch to boast blood pressure monitoring.

Apple could also debut the use of microLED display technology for the Apple Watch X, replacing the device’s existing OLED screens. The Apple Watch has sported OLED displays ever since the first model was released.

There have also been rumors that the 2025 Apple Watch Ultra will boast a microLED display. Tech analyst Jeff Pu earlier this month told investors that the first Apple with a microLED display will launch in late 2025.

In April, display industry analyst Ross Young said that an Apple Watch Ultra sporting a microLED display would not be available until the second half of 2025 at best, not late 2024 as had been originally rumored.

In July, Market research firm Trendforce said that manufacturing issues had delayed Apple’s plans for an Apple Watch Ultra with a microLED display.

Apple has been exploring microLED display technology due to its several advantages over OLED displays, which include improved brightness and battery life, improved contrast ratio, much lower risk of screen burn-in, and a longer potential lifetime.

[The information provided in this article has NOT been confirmed by Apple and may be speculation. Provided details may not be factual. Take all rumors, tech or otherwise, with a grain of salt.]