Apple Reintroduces Blood Oxygen Monitoring to Apple Watch After Patent Dispute
Apple is reintroducing its redesigned blood oxygen monitoring feature to select Apple Watch models via a software update, following a patent dispute with digital health company Masimo.
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Overview
- Apple is reintroducing its blood oxygen monitoring feature to select Apple Watch models, including Series 9 and Ultra 2, through a software update after a patent dispute with Masimo.
- The reintroduction allows Apple Watch users to access the redesigned blood oxygen feature by updating their iPhone to iOS 18.6.1 and their Apple Watch to watchOS 11.6.1.
- The updated feature involves sensor data being measured on the Apple Watch but calculated on the paired iPhone, with results viewable in the Health app's Respiratory section.
- Apple had previously removed the blood oxygen monitoring feature from its watches due to a patent infringement ruling, but has now reintroduced a non-infringing version.
- This software update primarily affects watches in the US market; devices purchased before 2024 or outside the US, which were not subject to the import ban, will not experience changes.
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Analysis
Center-leaning sources cover Apple's blood oxygen feature return neutrally, focusing on factual reporting of the ongoing legal dispute with Masimo and Apple's technical workaround. They present both companies' actions and the legal context without taking sides, emphasizing the practical implications for users and the legal mechanisms involved.
"Blood oxygen tracking is returning to impacted Apple Watches after a lengthy patent dispute, marking a positive development for users and the company."
Gizmodo"Apple announced that it's restoring a version of the blood oxygen monitoring feature to affected Series 9, Series 10, and Ultra 2 watches."
ARS Technica"The surprise reintroduction of the Apple Watch blood oxygen feature, redesigned for some Apple Watch Series 9, Series 10 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 owners, marks a positive development for existing users."
CNET"Apple is bringing back blood oxygen monitoring by tweaking the feature to get around the International Trade Commission’s (ITC) import ban."
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FAQ
The dispute centered on Masimo accusing Apple of infringing its patented pulse oximetry technology used for blood oxygen monitoring on the Apple Watch, including employee poaching and patent infringement claims.
Apple disabled the blood oxygen monitoring feature through a software redesign to avoid infringement, reintroduced a non-infringing version via a software update for certain models, and is working on hardware redesigns to completely circumvent Masimo's patents.
The U.S. import ban applies primarily to the Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 models that infringe Masimo's patents, with devices bought before 2024 or outside the U.S. not affected by the ban.
No, the feature was temporarily disabled due to the patent ruling but has been reintroduced in a redesigned, non-infringing software version on select Apple Watch models via updates to iOS and watchOS.
History
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