Apple Watch is packed to the rafters with toys, both hardware and software-related, and among them, users will get a heart rate monitor. Part and parcel of the wearable’s investment in fitness and health, we’re led to believe that it will provide accurate readings of a user’s heart rate, and now, the company has shed some light on precisely how the technology will work.
With the Apple Watch’s official retail launch almost upon us, the company is looking to ensure that the finer details are made clear, and as such, has updated its support pages to illustrate how the heart rate monitor will function. Moreover, it also includes advice on how users can yield the most accurate readings, which will certainly appeal to those who’re purchasing for sports-related purposes.
The sensor, which is placed beneath the watch’s face, is equipped with LED lights that, allied to light‑sensitive photodiodes, can track the amount of blood streaming through your wrist. It picks up on the red of your blood, and so whenever a beat occurs, the green light absorption increases, computing to the gadget that a heartbeat has taken place.
The more comfortable the fitting of the watch, the more accurate the reading, so if you’re looking to log your daily activities using real, pinpoint data, getting a band that fits properly is advised.
Just how accurate the heart rate monitor is remains to be seen, since most consumer-level interaction with the device has been of the superficial nature during Apple’s try-on sessions. But if we consider other new hardware implementations of this nature – Touch ID, for example – it seems likely that Apple has done its homework, and wouldn’t roll out the heart rate sensor unless it was refined enough to consistently function as advertised.
Unless you’ve been living under a boulder, you’ll probably be aware that the Apple Watch will begin shipping later on this week to those who’ve pre-ordered, although since the early inventories have been exhausted, many will be left waiting in the wings for a few weeks yet.
We’ll keep you in the loop regarding any further Apple Watch-related reports and revelations, so stay tuned to our coverage here!
(Source: Apple)
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