The Apple Watch Series 8 will feature a body temperature sensing feature if the Apple algorithm turns out to meet the requirements. According to Ming-Chi Kuo, the next-gen watch will arrive with this feature 2H22.
In a tweet posted on Sunday, Kuo stated that the body temperature sensing component was canceled on the Apple Watch Series 7 due to a qualification failure in the algorithm. Kuo believes that the algorithm will work out on this year’s Apple Watch Series 8 following mass production:
“Apple canceled body temperature measurement for Apple Watch 7 because the algorithm failed to qualify before entering EVT stage last year. I believe Apple Watch 8 in 2H22 could take body temperature if the algorithm can meet Apple’s high requirements before mass production.”
The analyst explains that the main reason for the sensing failure is the difficulty in measuring skin temperature which quickly varies in outside environments. Kuo notes that a smartwatch struggles with supporting core temperature measurement, meaning that a reliable algorithm is needed:
“The challenge in implementing precise body temperature measurement is that skin temperature quickly varies depending on outside environments. A smartwatch can’t support core temperature measurement in terms of hardware, so it needs an excellent algorithm to work together.”
Finally, Kuo mentions the Apple Watch rival ”“Â Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 ”“ saying that this upcoming smartwatch struggles with the same issues due to algorithm limitations: “Samsung is facing this challenge as well, I think Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 in 2H22 might not support the body temperature measurement due to algorithm limitations.”
Many upcoming Apple Watch heath features are having development issues and/or are getting postponed. One example is the blood pressure sensor, this ability has been delayed until 2024 with the Apple Watch Series 10. In addition to the blood pressure sensor, the company is working on a non-invasive blood sugar monitoring for the Apple Watch, though it is still under early development.
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The challenge in implementing precise body temperature measurement is that skin temperature quickly varies depending on outside environments. A smartwatch can't support core temperature measurement in terms of hardware, so it needs an excellent algorithm to work together.— éƒæ˜ŽéŒ¤ (Ming-Chi Kuo) (@mingchikuo) May 1, 2022
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Samsung is facing this challenge as well. Unlike previous media reports, I think Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 in 2H22 might not support the body temperature measurement due to algorithm limitations.— éƒæ˜ŽéŒ¤ (Ming-Chi Kuo) (@mingchikuo) May 1, 2022
