Apple Watch Wish List: 6 Big Things We Want From the Series 10 (2024)

It's about that time of year for another Apple event, one likely to feature announcements for new iPhone and Apple Watch models.

The Cupertino tech giant is expected to unveil the Apple Watch Series 10 (or the Apple Watch X if it follows the iPhone's generational naming conventions), the latest in our perennial favorite smartwatch line. Apple has spent years adding features to the Apple Watch, and as of the Series 9, it's basically delivering nearly anything we could want. It's fast, bright, waterproof, has a built-in voice assistant, loads of health and fitness features, and is even carbon neutral with the right combination of case and strap.

The big question is: What can be added to the Apple Watch to make it even better? We have some ideas.

1. Most Importantly: Turn the Blood Oxygen Sensor Back On

This is by far the most necessary change Apple can make with the Apple Watch Series 10. The blood oxygen (SpO2) sensor on the Apple Watch was disabled at the beginning of the year due to a patent dispute with health technology company Masimo. This applies to all new Series 9 and Ultra 2 models sold in the US from January 18, 2024. Since then, there's been no word on an agreement or settlement that would reenable the sensor on Apple Watches.

Blood oxygen monitoring is a valuable health metric, and most Wear OS smartwatches like the Google Pixel Watch 2 and the Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 do it. The Pixel Watch 2 only tracks your blood oxygen while you sleep, which can help identify sleep apnea, while the Galaxy Watch 7 supports on-demand SpO2 checks like the Apple Watch did. It's an important function to return to the Apple Watch Series 10.

The Apple Watch Series 9 has an SpO2 sensor, Apple just needs to turn it on (and settle the legal dispute surrounding it) (Credit: Angela Moscaritolo)

Actually, the feature should also return to the Apple Watch Series 9. The last four generations of the Apple Watch, with the exception of SE models, have had SpO2 sensors, and they still work on watches sold before January 18, 2024. They don't work on watches sold after that, but the hardware is still there, and Apple could turn it on.

2. The Obvious Upgrade: Better Battery Life

The battery life on the Apple Watch Series 9 is no slouch at nearly 33 hours based on our tests, and the Apple Watch Ultra 2 lasts an impressive 55 hours, but they can always be better. Even the best smartwatches can't last as long as fitness trackers like the Fitbit Inspire 3 (eight days on a charge in our tests).

It would be nice to see a non-Ultra Apple Watch that lasts two days before you have to charge it or an Ultra that can last past three.

3. The Budget Upgrade: A New Apple Watch SE

The $249 Apple Watch SE is an affordable choice if you want a smartwatch to go with your iPhone, but it's a pretty big step down from the $400 Apple Watch Series 9. Announcing a more powerful Series 10 would be a good time to bump up the SE's hardware so that it stays only a few steps behind the current generation.

Screen brightness is already pretty strong across the board, so a new SE doesn't have to bump up from 1,000 nits to the Series 9's 2,000 nits (and 2,000 nits is already really bright, so the Series 10 doesn't need to reach the Ultra 2's 3,000 nits), but it could switch to an always-on display and shrink the bezels a bit. Just make the SE's screen a bit bigger and more convenient.

It's about time for a new Apple Watch SE (Credit: Angela Moscaritolo)

Mixing in a few Series 9 features would also improve the SE, even if it doesn't get all of them. The double-tap gesture, in particular, would make the watch easy to use, but ultra-wideband precision location tracking and an ECG app would also be welcome. On-device Siri probably isn't that vital since as long as your iPhone is in range, you'll have Siri regardless.

4. The Visible Upgrade: Remove the Bezels

The screen on the Apple Watch seems to get bigger and bigger while the case doesn't change or even get smaller. This is because the bezel around the screen, that black glass between the part of the display that lights up and the metal case, keeps shrinking. There isn't much left to go with the Apple Watch screen, but Apple could just kill it off entirely and give the Series 10 a completely edge-to-edge screen with no unlit bits.

The Apple Watch Ultra 2 already has L1+L5 GPS; we'd like to see it on the regular Apple Watch, too (Credit: Angela Moscaritolo)

5. The Adventurer's Upgrade: Non-Ultra Dual-Frequency GPS

GPS is standard on all Apple Watches, but the Ultra 2 goes a step further. It has dual-frequency GPS that uses both the L1 and L5 signals. L5 is a newer GPS signal that can potentially be much more precise than the L1 signal that other Apple Watches have. Adding L5 to the Series 10 would be a worthwhile upgrade and put the non-Ultra Apple Watch on the same footing as the Galaxy Watch 7.

Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 Classic (Credit: Angela Moscaritolo)

6. Hey, We Can Dream: A Circular Apple Watch

I know the rounded square shape has been part of the Apple Watch's design since the beginning, but I'd love to see a round option added to the mix. It works better for analog faces, and it's one of the main reasons I like using the Pixel Watch.