Intro
Leaks and rumors paint a picture of an incredibly small upgrade. The new Apple Watch Series 9 is expected to look and weigh the same, it is expected to arrive in the same 41mm/45mm sizes, and the only major change rumored so far is an upgrade in the processor.
Apple Watch Series 9 vs Apple Watch Series 8: expected differences
- New S9 chip with faster performance
- Slightly improved battery life
- No other differences
Table of Contents:
Design & Sizes
Same!
As we’ve already said: the look and styling of the new Apple Watch Series 9 is expected to be absolutely identical to that of the Series 8.
Both will be available in a 41mm smaller size and a 45mm larger option, and both will be offered in a Wi-Fi only or Wi-Fi with Cellular configurations.
Bands
One new band possible
There is one rumor saying Apple might pair the Apple Watch Series 9 with a new woven fabric band that has a magnetic buckle, similar to the current Modern Buckle strap.
Of course, this new band will be back-compatible with previous Apple Watch models.
Performance & Features
New S9 chip
In the last three generations of Apple Watches – the Series 6, Series 7 and Series 8 – Apple used different chip names (S6, S7 and S8 respectively), but all of those chips were based on the same design with a dual-core CPU with the T8301 identifier and were largely based on the Apple A13 Bionic chip design. The only performance improvement claim from Apple came way back with Series 6 and S6 chip, which the company said launched apps 20 percent faster.
The very same new S9 chip is what we expect will power the Apple Watch Ultra Gen 2.
Battery and Charging
Same battery sizes expected, but the new chip might help eke out longer battery life
The Series 9 is expected to have the same battery sizes as its predecessor, meaning the following:
Apple Watch Series 9/Series 8 battery sizes:
- 41mm — 282 mAh
- 45mm — 308 mAh
With the new more power efficient S9 chip, however, we might get slightly longer battery life. Just don’t get your hopes too high, the changes in battery life (if there), would be small.
So far, we don’t know whether Apple will raise the prices of the new Apple Watch Series 9.
Currently, the Series 8 prices start from $400 for the Wi-Fi 41mm model, and much higher for the stainless steel versions.
We will update you on this once we learn more about the prices, but considering the small upgrades we don’t expect a huge change in prices.
Summary
It’s clear as day: the Apple Watch Series 9 is a very minor upgrade.
A new chip is certainly a nice thing to have, but not a reason to upgrade from the Apple Watch Series 8.
Apple is rumored to be preparing some bigger changes for the anniversary Apple Watch Series X edition next year, so that’s when we might see some bigger changes, but this year’s new model is nothing more than a slight refresh for the most popular smartwatch in the world.
