It is believed that the Apple Watch Series 7, announced this Tuesday, will use the same S6 processor from the system package first deployed in the Apple Watch Series 6 released last year.
Apple couldn’t talk about the performance of the Apple Watch Series 7 processor during Tuesday’s presentation, which is quirky, given that sequential capacity hits are usually a staple of Apple’s hardware presentations.
It seems, however, that there are no performance gains to speak of, as the new portable device uses the S6 SiP introduced with the Apple Watch Series 6 in 2020.
Although Apple has not released exact specifications regarding the processor of its flagship, developer Steve Troughton-Smith in a tweet Today it has been said that the latest version of Xcode reveals that both Apple Watch Series 7 and Apple Watch Series 6 integrate a “t8301” CPU. Troughton-Smith assumes the component is the “exactly the same” part that was used last year, meaning the chip was not massaged with modifications or upgrades.
“There’s a reason Apple hasn’t talked about the Apple Watch Series 7 CPU this year,” Troughton-Smith said. “[A]and it’s because it’s exactly the same as last year’s 6 Series. In fact, it doesn’t even get a new model number, it’s just a modification of the chassis. ”
This dam is perhaps a little naive considering that Apple increased the size of the chassis to fit a new Retina display that has almost 20% more screen area than the Apple Watch Series 6. The housing it’s also 40% thinner and includes “fundamental design changes” that make it the longest-lasting watch coming out of Cupertino. Apple claims the front glass is the strongest yet, while the global unit features IP6X certification and a “bath-proof” WR50 water resistance.
Also new is the improved charging system that provides a charge 33% faster than the Apple Watch Series 6. Apple claims that the device can charge 80% in 45 minutes with the new fast charger USB-C cable magnetic.
It’s unclear why Apple brought the S6 to the Apple Watch Series 7, but the decision is unprecedented for a next-generation flagship device. Apple has introduced a new S-Series processor with every revision of the Apple Watch since its inception and has only twice released a variant of a current chip or integrated a previous-generation processor into an input model. A similar strategy applies to the iPhone and iPad.
It is unclear how the decision will affect the wider ecosystem of Apple Watch, although it seems that the S6 is more than capable of handling a larger screen and watchOS 8. Among Apple products, Apple Watch, with the its lightweight applications and limited capabilities, it may be less affected by the lack of a progressive performance chip.
The Apple Watch Series 7 will arrive later this fall.