Just two months on from the release of the first generation Apple Watch, 9to5Mac reports that industry sources have shed light on Apple’s plans for an updated Watch, set to be released in 2015.
The Apple Watch 2 – which the product is supposedly called – will arrive with new features and capabilities and – possibly – a higher price tag.
In what was first hinted at in Apple’s WWDC more than one week ago (through Apple highlighting watchOS 2.0’s improved FaceTime capabilities) the next Watch is slated tor recieve a FaceTime video camera on the top bezel – allowing users to make or receive calls directly from the wearable.
Secondly, the Cupertino company is planning to extend the Apple Watch’s proverbial reach beyond the iPhone with the introduction of a new wireless chipset, enabling the wearable to achieve basic communication tasks on its own. An iPhone, however, will still be needed to power larger transfers such as system updates.
While the firm’s decision to create a wearable upwards of $10,000 USD in the form of the Apple Watch Edition drew mixtures of bewilderment and criticism, the company is allegedly looking to diversify its lineup into several new models which could be positioned anywhere between the $1000 – $10,000 dollar mark in an effort to entice new customers.
Presently, it is unclear what materials those wearables might be made of, though present speculation pinpoints titanium, palladium, or platinum, heightening anticipation that the firm might be preparing to unveil a higher-price steel model with an advance wrist-strap.
Interestingly, it appears Apple has no intentions to alter the Apple Watch’s battery, and the the first generation wearable’s battery might well continue to serve in an updated version.
Rumours pinpoint that Apple intends to release an updated Apple Watch during the course of 2016, once watchOS 2.0 has released to all first-generation Apple Watch customers.
