Apple Watch Series 6: technical sheet, price and availability

The Apple Watch Series 6 is thehigh-end connected watchunveiled by Apple during its usual end-of-year conference in 2020. It is particularly distinguished fromprevious model, which you can discover in detail at this address, by serious improvements. Both on the hardware side, with upgraded components, and on the software side, with additional features. So, what is this Series 6 worth? Follow the leader.

Always faithful design

To begin, let's talk about the exterior appearance of the Apple Watch Series 6. It must be said, it has everything to please, first of all with raw and elegant finishes. Already, at this level, several choices are possible when you buy the device. The first - and the least expensive - is to opt for an aluminum case. This material is quite fragile: you should not drop the watch too violently. The colors offered for this chassis are as follows: space gray, silver, gold,bleu et PRODUCT (RED). Note also that part of the profits from this version is donated to the fight against diseases such as AIDS or COVID-19: the opportunity to do a good deed.

The Apple Watch Series 6 is also available instainless steel, for at least 300 euros more. The colors change with this edition: only graphite, silver and space black are included. Note that there is also a titanium model, this time billed for an additional 400 euros. But these are not the only parameters that allow you to define the appearance of your Series 6. In fact, you also have the possibility of choosing the size of your choice: either forty millimeters or forty-four.

Let's finish with what is probably the most serious argument for personalization of the Apple Watch Series 6: itsbracelets. To date, there are more than 350 different ones, not counting those marketed by third-party manufacturers. Suffice it to say that the collection is sure to have something to please you. Cupertino categorizes its Apple Watch wrist straps into six categories: single loop, single braided loop, sport band, sport loop, leather and stainless steel. Add to this the special editions in partnership with the equipment manufacturer Nike or the leather goods manufacturer Hermès and there is something for everyone, with even a Pride bracelet!

Screen

The Apple Watch Series 6 comes with a Retina OLED LTPO display that stays on all the time, hence its nicknamealways-on. Its luminance reaches 1,000 nits, meaning you can read it without issue even in direct sunlight, especially since the brightness updates automatically depending on your surroundings. In terms of pure dimensions, it will be 368 x 448 pixels for a display area of ​​977 mm²if you opt for the 44 mm case, compared to 324 x 394 pixels for the most compact Series 6.

watchOS 7: everything you need

The Apple Watch Series 6 is powered, like all its little sisters, by watchOS. This proprietary operating system is only available on Apple smartwatches. It is renowned worldwide for its ease of use. The basic version installed on the Series 6 is watchOS 7, a version announced with great fanfare during the Worldwide Developer Conference in June 2020. Among its advantages, we find in particular improvements on thehealth. Because yes, Apple makes a point of considering its tocante as a real wearable dedicated to your well-being.

The Apple Watch Series 6 is, for example, capable of recognizing moments when youwash your hands, by detecting the associated movements. The sound of water, heard by the watch, also comes into play. A timer is then triggered and invites you to continue your cleaning until the end of the duration recommended by the World Health Organization, i.e. twenty seconds. If you carry out the process too quickly, an alert will warn you that your disinfection
is not finished. But it is not the only type of alarm to protect our body. We can also cite thenotifications in case of excessive noise, which then encourage us to take refuge away from sounds potentially dangerous for our eardrums.

In addition, thanks to the applicationSleep, Apple Watch Series 6 helps you get enough sleep, “neither too much nor too little“. As your nights progress, you can define the best time to fall asleep, and follow the evolution of your different sleep cycles in dedicated statistics. During our lives, we sleep a third of our time: this is an important fact to take into account to stay in shape. Now available without purchasing a device costing several hundred euros. Here, the Watch Series 6 is also ideal for all sleep enthusiastspolyphasique: you will know what your REM periods were.

Like any good activity tracker, the Apple Watch Series 6 is also capable of monitoring your workout sessions.sport. Compatible activities include yoga, cycling, walking, step, running, athletics, dancing and even swimming. Indeed, the Series 6 iswater resistant, the manufacturer announcing a depth of up to fifty meters. However, it is not recommended to engage in this type of practice, but consider that if you get the watch wet, it will not be lost. With Apple Watch Series 6, you can then share your results with your friends and challenge them, if you have a competitive spirit. A seven-day data history is then used to compare your performance with that of those around you.

Obviously, as a connected watch, the Apple Watch Series 6 can also serve as a relay for notifications received on the paired iPhone. Starting with themessages, whether they come from social networks like Linkedin and Facebook or from more private platforms such as iOS Messages or Telegram. Most alerts are even interactive, which means you can from Series 6 without having to open your mobile keyboard. It's then the voice assistantSiriwho will be responsible for transcribing your oral orders and transmitting them to your correspondents.

In the App Store, it is always specified whether an application is compatible with the Apple Watch. So remember to check it to find out if the Series 6 will be able to display your notifications or not. Let's finish this paragraph by talking about updates. The last Apple Watch to have watchOS 7 is the Series 3, released only three years earlier. We can therefore assume that the Apple Watch Series 6 will be supported at least until2023.

Apple Watch Series 6 performance and network

Now let's talk about performance. The Apple Watch Series 6 is powered by aprocesseur 64 bits dualcore Apple S6, which as its name suggests is also manufactured by the same company. According to Apple, this CPU would even be 20% more efficient than the previous generation, the S5 found in the Series 5. In terms of connectivity, this advantage translates in particular to a Wi-Fi modem capable of reaching a frequency of 5 GHz, while GPS and cellular data are also included with the W3 chip. This is not 5G, but LTE.

Obviously, theBluetoothis also in the game, with the 5.0 version in the Apple Watch Series 6. Low Energy, this ensures a range of several meters and allows you to continue communicating with the iPhone even when changing rooms. In fact, whether thanks to its powerful SoC or its various receivers, the Apple Watch Series 6 is an example of speed and will respond without batting an eye to all your requests.

Integrated sensors

Under the hood of the Apple Watch Series 6 are integrated:

• a U1 (ultra wideband) chip, used in the iPhone 11 to make AirDrop more efficient by better measuring distances between corresponding devices
• an accelerometer, to follow your movements in space and particularly useful for recognizing hand washing
• un gyroscope
• theheart rate sensorsecond generation
• a barometer, to measure air pressure
• the altimeter, which now runs constantly in the background
• a compass, to help Apple Maps find its location
• l’blood oximeter, a real innovation compared to the Series 5

What devices are compatible with Series 6?

The Apple Watch Series 6 is only compatible with iPhones. There are a few indirect techniques for connecting it to an Android smartphone or other devices, but they are strongly discouraged. The list of iPhones that are compatible with Series 6 and watchOS 7 is dominated bythe high-end iPhone 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max, revealed a year earlier. But all devices that can installiOS 14(so from the iPhone 6s in reality) are also compatible.

Autonomy

According to Apple, the Series 6 could holdsix o'clockin a row. Which means that even if you activate it in the morning when going to work, you will still be able to call on it even at the end of the day. Unfortunately, there is no improvement here compared to the Series 5 and you will therefore have to choose between activity or sleep. In fact, you will not be able to continue for a full night, especially with the always-on screen. Really a shame for a very interesting feature.

L’Apple Watch Series 6 se(almost) wireless charging, thanks to an induction power station supplied with the smartwatch. This is magnetic, which avoids unplugging the watch by mistake like our MacBook lights. However, the USB cable is only a short meter long, which is really not practical especially at a time when many wall sockets are located close to the ground. Furthermore, no adapter is delivered with the Series 6! You will therefore have to use the one on your iPhone, or buy one next to it.

The Apple Watch Series 6 costs429 eurosin its basic version, twenty euros less than the previous version. An asset. But the price can quickly climb, for example to more than 1,500 euros for a Series 6 signed Hermès. Suffice it to say that you are going from a simple wearable to a real luxury accessory, not to mention the watchfaces which can make the Apple Watch Series 6 seem like a real, truly classic watch.

Conclusion: our opinion on the Series 6

So, what can we deduce from this technical sheet? Already, thatthe Apple Watch Series 6 is the best Apple Watch, with its faster processor, watchOS 7 and its always-on screen and altimeter. Its blood oxygen detector also allows it to seriously differentiate itself from cheaper models. But the Series 6 is also one of the best connected watches in the sector compared to other brands.

onsync with iPhonemakes it the perfect accessory for any fan of the Apple ecosystem, and its access to the App Store offers endless possibilities. In addition, the Apple Watch Series 6 is a very beautiful connected object, which combines class andeleganceto practicality and health. A good 19/20, the point less because of the autonomy which will classify its users into two categories: sleeper or sportsman.