The Apple Watch hasn’t seen a hardware update since it was released thirteen months ago. But whenever the day for a face lift finally comes, there’s a good chance the Apple Watch will contain a built-in camera, if a recent patent from Apple is to be taken without a pinch of salt.
Inside a recent collection of documents published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, a few small illustrations allude to future Apple Watch designs including a built-in camera.
Although the premise of the documents is a reference to pushing location-specific information to an Apple Watch, a tip-off in the form of a built-in camera is seen if you look closely enough. Specifically, Figure 2 within the document makes mention of a camera within the user interface of the Apple Watch.
Within the text of the document, Apple makes mention of “a compact digital camera that includes an image sensor such as a CMOS sensor and optical components (e.g. lenses) arranged to focus an image onto the image sensor, along with control logic operable to use the imaging components to capture and store still and/or video images.”
Although Apple doesn’t specify details about what the purpose of an onboard camera would be, as noted by Patently Apple, the documents mention that the camera could face outward so as to capture QR codes and other scannable input. Facing outward would also permit the camera to capture an image of the person wearing the watch.
It’ll be interesting to see whether or not this feature will be implemented in the next iteration of the Apple Watch. Unlike the iPhone’s consistent release schedule, Apple is yet to even hint at a release date for the next-generation smartwatch.
Whenever it does arrive though, this little tidbit lends credit to the rumors that it may very well have a built-in camera module for selfies with a flick of the wrist.
The OnePlus Buds Clip are a new pair of open-ear earbuds built around a simple convenience. They join Sony’s LinkBuds Clip in the growing ear-cuff category, but either OnePlus bud can go on either ear.
Sensors recognize how the earbuds are being worn and route the audio channels accordingly. There’s no label to check before putting them on, and the feature also works when only one bud is used.
We buy fitness bands and activity trackers to keep tabs on our exercise, but it is easy to forget to start tracking or switch modes when moving between different activities. For Fitbit and Pixel Watch users, that could soon become a lot less annoying, as Google is rolling out a major upgrade to automatic activity tracking that can recognize more than 100 types of exercise, up from just 10 before.
Google first showed off the improved tracking earlier this month alongside the Fitbit Edge. It is now coming to Fitbit Air and the Pixel Watch 3, 4, and 5, and Google claims the added context behind the system makes workout detection nearly twice as accurate while cutting missed activities by more than half. Fitbit Edge will support it too.