Apple Watch could finally fix its most controversial health feature
The company is rumoured to be working on a complete overhaul of its blood oxygen sensing platform
It's safe to assume at this point that the next generation of Apple Watches might not look dramatically different on the outside, but a fresh rumour suggests one of the wearable’s most controversial features could be getting a major internal overhaul.
According to recent reports, Apple is exploring a redesigned blood oxygen monitoring system for future Apple Watches following its lengthy legal battle with medical technology company Masimo.
The issue dates back to 2023, when the US International Trade Commission ruled that Apple had infringed Masimo’s pulse oximetry patents, resulting in an import ban affecting certain Apple Watch models in the US.
Apple responded by disabling or limiting blood oxygen functionality on affected devices while it worked on a workaround.
Last year, the company reintroduced the feature with a redesigned system that shifts part of the blood-oxygen processing from the Apple Watch itself to the paired iPhone.
In the feature's current iteration, the watch collects raw data, while the iPhone handles the calculations and displays the results in the Health app.
A legal fix that could become a hardware strategy
Apple has since scored several legal wins, with US trade officials recently ruling that the redesigned implementation does not infringe Masimo’s patents.
Even so, the company now appears keen to move beyond temporary software workarounds and develop a more permanent hardware-level solution for future watches.
This fits neatly into the direction Apple is expected to take under the soon-to-be CEO, John Ternus.
The beginning of a new era?
While Tim Cook helped introduce and turn the Apple Watch into a health and wellness platform through software, services and ecosystem integration, many analysts expect Apple’s next era to focus more aggressively on proprietary hardware and sensor technology.
The Apple Watch has already become increasingly sensor-led over the years, adding ECG, temperature tracking, sleep analysis and advanced heart monitoring.
Blood oxygen sensing was supposed to be another cornerstone of that strategy before the Masimo dispute interrupted Apple’s plans.
Health remains the Apple Watch’s biggest selling point
The rumoured redesign suggests Apple still sees health hardware as the future of the Apple Watch, especially as the smartwatch market becomes more competitive and AI-driven software features become easier for rivals to replicate.
A more advanced blood-oxygen system might open the door for deeper respiratory and recovery insights, areas Apple has gradually been investing in through watchOS updates.
For now, the rumours remain unconfirmed, but the broader direction feels believable.
Apple has spent years positioning the Apple Watch as a serious health device, and after two years of legal turbulence, it looks increasingly likely the company wants complete control over the underlying hardware powering those features.
[via PhoneArena, Reuters, Techradar]
