Apple just left out one of its most popular watches from its new watchOS 9 update
Despite the fact that it’s still available to buy on Apple’s online store, the Apple Watch 3 will not be supported by the new watchOS 9 update unveiled during WWDC.
According to the compatibility list on Apple’s storefront, the upcoming watchOS 9 update will only be available on Apple Watch Series 4, Apple Watch Series 5, Apple Watch SE, Apple Watch Series 6 and the Apple Watch Series 7.
On the flipside, watchOS 9 will only work with iPhones dating back to the iPhone 8, so if you have an iPhone 6s, iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus or first-gen iPhone SE then you won’t be able to make use of the new Apple Watch software.
Even though Apple has discontinued several successors of the Apple Watch 3, the company has continued to sell the third-gen device, positioning it as a cheaper alternative to the flagship wearable of the time.
As a result, the Apple Watch 3 has – until now – received every watchOS update since its release back in 2017. The notion that the watch would be eventually phased out isn’t too much of a surprise, but what is baffling is that the watch is still available to buy on Apple’s store which, as a result of this news, feels like a tricky smartwatch to recommend.
watchOS 9 will bring several requested features along with it, including visible sleep stages as part of the Apple Watch’s sleep tracking system, and heart rate zones to give users a better idea of their performance during workouts.
There’s no concrete release date yet for watchOS 9, other than Apple mentioning that it will be released sometime in autumn.
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Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
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We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
