Before we get into the updates to watchOS, I wanted to give a huge thank you to you. To everyone for your patience while I took an unplanned hiatus. I’d hoped to be able to continue managing the site with a weekly newsletter. And to do so while supporting my family with medical challenges and surgery. That didn’t go to plan 😅
The good news is that all is well. I’m now in a position to resume managing the site with my usual content cadence and daily blogs. A huge thanks to those of you that have continued to support the site while I was away.
Now…on to the show!
The upcoming watchOS 10 Software Update
The Apple Watch has been on the market for quite some time now. The device has undergone various improvements over time, but the user interface has remained largely unchanged. According to an anonymous Twitter account, the upcoming watchOS 10 features a new Home Screen layout.
The new Home Screen layout for watchOS 10 is expected to be easier to navigate and have more in common with iOS. This means that Apple Watch users can expect folders for apps, making it easy to organize and access the apps they need. The current honeycomb grid layout has been in use since the release of the Apple Watch in 2015. With this new layout, Apple is likely to take the opportunity to refresh various other aspects of the user interface too.
The source that leaked the information about the new Home Screen layout did not provide any additional information. However, it is expected that the new layout will be enabled by default. It is also likely that Apple will include the option to switch back to the old honeycomb grid layout for users who prefer it. The new Home Screen layout is expected to be more intuitive, with easier navigation and more customization options. According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, watchOS 10 will be the Apple Watch’s biggest software update since the device launched.
iPhone 15 Pro to ship with 5-6x optical zoom
Rumors suggest that the next-generation iPhone 15 Pro Max will feature a “periscope lens” that would allow for up to double the optical zoom of the current generation of iPhone. This technology is already used by some Android brands, like Samsung who offer 10x Optical Zoom in their flagship Galaxy S23 handset.
According to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, a periscope lens would be exclusive to the high-end iPhone 15 Pro Max and enable 5-6x optical zoom, with periscope technology built into the Telephoto lens. Kuo also stated that the periscope lens would remain exclusive to the iPhone 16 Pro Max not just this year, but also next year. If you want the best camera experience, you’ll need to be prepared to shell out for the most expensive device in the lineup.
The AppleTLDR Take
Apple knows that many people are prepared to pay for features, exclusivity, and premium technology. They’ve differentiated the Pro and Pro Max before. In recent years Apple has opted to maintain feature parity for the Pro and Pro Max. So it seems that Apple hopes to increase the ASP (average selling price) of the iPhone to maintain gross margins. Or a more innocent explanation could simply be that the smaller Pro iPhone is too small. Too small for the new camera system to fit inside a rumored new design perhaps?
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